Poarch Creek Indians Partner with National Resources Conservation Service to hold Inaugural Southeastern Regional Agroforestry Expo
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Poarch Creek Indians recently partnered with the Intertribal Agriculture Council, Tall Timbers and the National Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to hold the first Agroforestry Expo at the Magnolia Branch Wildlife Reserve. The event brought together 90 participants from across the Southeast to explore innovative land management techniques and conservation practices.
Among the attendees, 70% were landowners, with the remaining 30% representing agency and organizational professionals. In addition to those attending from the Poarch Creek Indians, there were nine other Tribal Nations represented at the event, including members of the Cherokee, Choctaw, Dine’, Houma, Lipan Apache, Mvskoke, Passamaquoddy, Yupik and Winnebago Tribes.
“This type of expo offers a great way for agencies to connect with landowners and share programs and opportunities that are available to them for land management, conservation, and policy efforts,” said Jessica Ascott , Tribal Liaison for the Poarch Creek Indians. “It also is a great way for us as Agency employees to connect with each other and Tribal Nations to network and discuss opportunities.”
The Tribe’s willingness to host and participate in these types of events highlights the long-standing relationship between the Tribe and the NRCS, and provides an opportunity to showcase the conservation efforts of the Tribe and discuss future interests and opportunities with Tribal Citizens who could benefit. The involvement of other partners also allows for Tribal networking in sharing programs and opportunities that could be beneficial to the goals of the Tribe in land management.
During the expo, the most popular topic covered was food forests, focusing on managing and foraging for native plants to be used for human consumption. The second topic of greatest interest was how to successfully manage a beehive for honey production. Other topics discussed included prescribed burning and opportunities for private landowners to participate in a prescribed burn association, as well as feral hog control, with demonstrations on hog traps and programs available for landowners needing help with control of this invasive species.
“We greatly appreciate the Tribe partnering with us on this event and allowing us to use facilities, equipment, and manpower to make these events successful. These are invaluable resources that we are grateful to be able to access,” said Ascott.
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