Land Management

It’s a quiet morning. The predawn sky is milky white with scattered clouds. The air has that delicious briskness of late fall. Standing silently at the edge of the pond I slowly pan my gaze from left to right, looking for any movement, any sign of the diurnal world waking up.

It begins with the idea of possibility. 

A piece of land becomes available. We go to the land and walk in, full of questions and ideas.

Is this landscape being overrun by buckthorn, honeysuckle or other invasive species?

If you happen to go for an early hike on a dewy morning at Stagecoach Prairie, you may notice beautifully woven orbs of white glistening in the morning sun.

It’s happening slowly. A little more each day. The pulsing pace of summer and all her activities are slowly giving way to the more subdued rhythms of autumn.

“Roaming Stone” marks Belwin’s first long-term art installation, commissioned as part of 4Ground: Midwest Land Art Biennial.

Whatever you call them, this charismatic and iconic animal is certainly something that demands your attention. Learn about the herd at Belwin Bison.

Belwin is hard at work developing the Oxbow Trails property, located along St. Croix Trail South and Valley Creek. Trails open in Fall 2022.

At Belwin Conservancy, we steward more than 1,600 ecologically rich acres next door to a major metropolitan area. Our goal is not just to maintain the land as it was when we acquired it, but to transform the land to the state it was in before European settlers arrived and to support the most ecologically… Continue Reading Burning at Belwin

How has Belwin grown to protect more than 1,500 acres of land in Afton? Through partnerships founded on trust and a shared goal of conservation.

On June 23, 2020, the Washington County Board of Commissioners approved a Land and Water Legacy Program project that supports creation of a conservation area park with public hiking trails in the City of Afton. Belwin Conservancy, the City of Afton, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, and the county reached an agreement on the… Continue Reading Belwin and Partners to Create Conservation Area Park in Afton

In this issue of our biannual newsletter, you’ll read about a state-of-the art telescope you can visit at Belwin, what your landscape means to native creatures, and how our Arts, Culture, and Ecology program brought a Buckthorn Buffalo to Belwin’s land.

As you drive down any street in any town, city, or even the countryside, what you most likely see are squares of mowed green grass, maybe a flower garden and a few shrubs. These are dead landscapes as far as insects, reptiles, amphibians and birds are concerned. There may not be cover for a bird… Continue Reading Creating Living Landscapes: Why They Matter and What You Can Do to Help