Land Trust of Virginia Inc.

Bernice Rowe’s 419-acre property in Caroline County contains about 379 acres of “Prime Farmland Soils” or “Farmland Soils of Statewide Importance” and currently produces corn, soy, wheat, and barley. Her family has farmed this land since the 1950’s. Additional natural resources protected include preservation of scenic open spaces, with about a mile of frontage on Sparta Road and 0.72 miles of frontage on Beverly Run Road. The property also contains 18.3 acres of wetlands and 122 acres of forest cover. “I am very excited about having my family farm protected by this easement. This is my contribution to the land that my father farmed and loved and that my family lives on. This marks my stewardship of the land,” said Rowe. “Too much wonderful farmland disappears yearly from development and will never return to agriculture, and I wanted my property to avoid this fate. Caroline is still a very rural county, but just by its physical location between Richmond and Fredericksburg, growth and development will come at some point, and I wanted Wayland Farm to avoid this fate. From now on, it is protected for all who live on the land to enjoy the change of seasons and crop rotations and watch the woodlands and wildlife exist in harmony.”