Sycamore Land Trust

May 6, 2013 – The American chestnut blight changed everything. A once-magnificent tree abundant across a large expanse of eastern forest and extending westward to Indiana, the species was all but eliminated over most of its range. The blight introduced from Asia in the early 1900s quickly spread and destroyed most chestnuts. Today, only a few isolated pockets remain in North America. In the first American chestnut planting at an…  [Read More]

March 29, 2013 – Four Salem High School students recently gave a presentation about an outdoor laboratory project at the Conservation Happenings conference at Muscatatuck National Wildlife Refuge. With guidance from Sycamore Land Trust’s Environmental Education Program on design and implementation of an outdoor laboratory, students and teachers are transforming 60 acres next to Salem Community Schools into vibrant educational resource. The outdoor lab consists of a native prairie, wetland…  [Read More]

January 29, 2013 – Sycamore Land Trust has purchased 600 acres of rugged Brown County woods east of Nashville. In addition to preserving another piece of Brown County natural heritage, the property is important for conservation because of both its size and location. Nearly one square mile in size, The Laura Hare Nature Preserve at Downey Hill is near Brown County State Park, as well as Gnawbone Camp, which is…  [Read More]

November 5, 2012 – Sycamore Land Trust gave two awards at their recent Annual Celebration and Membership Meeting held November 2 at the Bloomington Monroe County Convention Center. The Barbara J. Restle Lifetime Conservation Award was given to Bill McCoy, in recognition of his service to our environment. McCoy has been the manager of the Patoka River National Wildlife Refuge near Oakland City, IN since it was established in 1994….  [Read More]

September 28, 2012 – In its largest land protection project yet, Sycamore Land Trust has acquired a 1,043 acre tract adjoining the Patoka River National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), one of only three national wildlife refuges in Indiana. The property contains marsh and forested wetlands, as well as upland tree and prairie plantings, providing diverse habitat for several endangered and threatened species such as bobcat, river otter, Indiana bat, copperbelly watersnake,…  [Read More]

September 17, 2012 – A team of biologists has discovered endangered Indiana bats living at Sycamore Land Trust’s Beanblossom Bottoms property in northwest Monroe County. Indiana bats are vulnerable to disturbance and their population size has declined by about half since they were listed as an endangered species in 1967. Biologists from the consulting firm WEST, Inc. used audio devices to detect Indiana bats at Beanblossom Bottoms Nature Preserve.  After…  [Read More]

August 8, 2012 – Capriole Farm has partnered with Sycamore Land Trust to permanently protect the historic farmstead that gave rise to internationally-recognized Capriole goat cheese. Judy and Larry Schad, the founders of Capriole Farm in Greenville, Indiana, pioneered a sustainable model of commercial goat dairying in the early 1980s. They based their Certified Humane model on a traditional one centered on herd health, longevity, and productivity. “Our goal was…  [Read More]

July 11, 2012 – Sycamore Land Trust recently acquired ownership of Eagle Slough Natural Area in Evansville. An oasis of wetland and mature bottomland forest, Eagle Slough provides excellent habitat for birds and other wildlife. Experts have counted more than 150 different species of birds on the property, and the site has been a popular inclusion in the Ohio Valley Birding Festival. The healthy bald cypress stands at Eagle Slough…  [Read More]

February 17, 2012 – Three hundred U.S. Representatives have co-sponsored the Conservation Easement Incentive Act, including Indiana Representatives Dan Burton, Joe Donnelly, and Pete Visclosky. H.R. 1964 makes permanent a recently-expired tax incentive that helps organizations like Sycamore Land Trust work with modest income landowners to conserve important natural and historic resources throughout southern Indiana. Landowners can retire the development rights on their land by donating a conservation easement to a…  [Read More]

December 1, 2011 – Our new and improved website is now live! Many thanks to the crew at IU’s Serve IT Community Clinic for working with us to create the new site. It has an updated look, more information about Sycamore and our projects, and several great new features. The new site will make it quicker and easier to find out more about the impact and scope of our conservation work throughout southern…  [Read More]

November 3, 2011 – Sycamore Land Trust is working to purchase a 38-acre addition to our Trevlac Bluffs Nature Preserve in Brown County, as reported in a front-page article in today’s Herald-Times. The parcel for sale, which includes a large portion of the bluff that features a rare stand of native hemlock trees, would be a critical addition to the preserve. The hemlock stand is one of only twenty or…  [Read More]

October 10, 2011 – Sycamore has recently secured the protection of The Clemens Place on Clifty Creek, located just north of Koleen in Greene County. Donated by William Clemens, Jr., the 58-acre parcel is Sycamore’s fourth protected property in Greene County, our 73rd property overall. “Donating the Clemens Place on Clifty Creek to Sycamore Land Trust gave me a meaningful way to honor members of my family who settled on…  [Read More]

October 5, 2011 - Our award-winning Environmental Education program has received a $20,000 installment of a multi-year grant from the Raymond Foundation. This will allow the program to continue reaching out to kids throughout southern Indiana, connecting them with nature and combating “Nature Deficit Disorder.” During the 2010-2011 school year, the Environmental Education program reached 2,785 kids at 38 schools. Our thanks goes out to the Raymond Foundation for their support.