Western Reserve Land Conservancy | Conservation Stories

Family chooses to

PROTECT ITS FARM.

dontez Evelyn Frohring is at home on the family farmAt the Frohring farm, customers buy sweet corn and eggs on the honor system - no one is there to make sure they pay. Don't have the precise amount? Just reach into the jar marked "Change."

"People are generally very good about it," said Evelyn Frohring, who grew up on the Newbury Township farm, which her parents received as a wedding gift in 1947. "They're grateful for the fresh food."

The farm will continue to provide food for local people. That is because Evelyn, who lives in Newbury, and her brothers, Ernie of Massachusetts and Brian of Oregon, have made their parents' dream come true by permanently protecting the family's property. The Frohring family has donated conservation easements totaling 308 acres to the Land Conservancy.

Western-Reserve-Land-Conservancy-Frohring-Map

"We have about a mile of frontage (on public roads), so if we had not done this there would probably be houses there," Evelyn Frohring said. "Now, no matter what, it will be a farm. It makes all of us rest easier."

In June, the Frohring family received the Grimm Family Conservation Medal at the Land Conservancy's annual Conservation Celebration. Evelyn and Ernie Frohring accepted the award from Trustee Dick Grimm, who described the natural wonders of the Frohring property as "a cross-section of what everyone hopes Geauga County would be."

In addition to the productive farmland, the property contains old-growth timber. "I think preserving farmland is very important," Eveyln Frohring said. "Agriculture is vital - we all eat food. I think it's important to save this land whenever we can."

Monitoring our protected properties

The Land Conservancy's stewardship team is now visiting more than 250 protected properties per year, staying connected with property owners and the land they love.

The annual monitoring visits are made to check on the use of each protected parcel and to protect its conservation value. In fiscal year 2009, the Land Conservancy added properties – and stewardship responsibilities – in two new counties, Erie and Ashland.

The stewardship program is the third part of the Land Conservancy's three-step land-preservation process. First, we identify what properties in northern Ohio should be permanently preserved. Second, we work to protect the land using a variety of conservation planning tools. The stewardship visits ensure that this land stays protected. Stewardship work is increasing, and the work is becoming more interesting, as the Land Conservancy preserves more properties.