Thank goodness for people like Jean and Bob Cooper. In a time when much of Forsyth County is getting paved over, the Coopers have held on to a significant chunk of green space within five miles of Hanes Mall. Their tree farm sets a model that more should follow.
The Coopers primarily got into tree farming for the aesthetics, and so that they could leave a little spot in the world better than they found it, Jean Cooper told the Journal's Fran Daniel. "It's a little oasis here in Forsyth County that we hope to keep as a green spot," she said.
The couple has been honored for their work at Meadowbrook Farm, and is now one of four regional finalists for the National Outstanding Tree Farmer of the Year award. The award recognizes farmers who've done an exceptional job of forest management and who promote sustainable forestry. The farm that the Coopers run with their sons and grandsons is a host to educational tours and workshops and provides food or feeding areas for wildlife.
The farm is home to several pilot projects for the N.C. Division of Forest Resources, such as a green ash planting in a flood-prone area by Salem Creek.
The Coopers also grow loblolly pine and willow oak trees. If they make enough money from harvests to recoup the money they put into the farm, more power to them. That's because trees do so much for the environment. As Bob Cooper, a retired doctor, noted, trees enhance water quality. "The trees are a big sponge to absorb water and screen out pollutants," he said.
Trees also help prevent erosion by holding the soil in place. They provide shade and habitat for wildlife. And, of course, they provide the kind of beauty that no man-made artifice ever can.
But trees are coming down at an alarming rate across the county and region, and they're often not being replaced.
Tree farming isn't easy. There's the drought. There's disease. There are invasive species such as Japanese hops, a climbing vine with prickles that tackles young trees. There's a lot of pruning and brush-cutting to beat back the trees you don't want to grow.
And farmers that practice sustainable forestry have it all the harder. The Coopers have a wildlife stewardship plan, as well as a management plan for their trees.
We need such sustainable tree farms. Some development is needed, but much of the development we've had in recent years hasn't preserved as many trees as it should have.
It's good that some farms are keeping us in trees. The Coopers' farm, within five miles of the bustling Hanes Mall, really is an oasis.
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