Mountain Valleys News and UpdatesApril 2022 |
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Spring is here! With help from our community partners, we are planting the seeds for a lot of new renewable energy-local food-wildfire mitigation-and flood resiliency projects. Thank you for reading our newsletter and giving us the opportunity to share some of our recent projects and upcoming events. Please forward to friends who might be interested in what we are doing. Let us know if you have a project or would like to learn more about any of our programs! |
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****Septic Funding available in the Ivy River Watershed for repairs and replacing straight pipes!! Please call or email, 828-206-6159, mariah@ivyriverpartners.org**** |
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Click the articles below for more... |
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"We All Live Downstream": Artwork Inspired by the French BroadMadison High School students in Kerstin Davis' art class created an installation inspired by the French Broad for the K-12 Art Exhibition at Madison County Arts Council. Ivy River Partners gave a presentation to the class about local water issues, water quality monitoring, and some rare and cool species found in our local waterways. |
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MHS Students Help Bring the Beech Back to Beech GlenMountain Valleys teamed up with Madison High School staff and students , the Greater Ivy Community Citizens Association, and SM Soil and Water Solutions for an educational workday at Beech Glen Community Center. About 40 MHS students attended along with their science teachers as part of their ongoing project to come up with a design for further recreation opportunities and public access at the facility. |
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Our Shade Your Stream planting season has come to an end! We have multiple projects in the queue for next year. This year we.... - Planted 5500 feet of stream or a little over 1 mile
- Planted 4400 native trees and shrubs
- Held 2 outreach events
If you have an eroding stream on your property, fill out this form for a site visit to see if you qualify for this program. |
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We are so excited to continue working with farms and small businesses to help them realize their sustainability goals. Our current funding opportunities include NC Agricultural Development and Farmland Preservation Trust Fund, NC Tobacco Trust Fund, and USDA-Rural Energy for America Program. In combination, eligible projects can be nearly funded in full! |
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Clem Swift of Clem's Organic Gardens in Transylvania County recently received funding from all three cost-share programs! This funding helped pay for nearly all costs associated with the addition of a solar photovoltaic system to the farm. Clem's intention with the install was to offset costs associated with the cold storage of harvested produce. |
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Clem's Organic Garden's grows 8 acres of certified organic produce in the bottoms along the Davidson River. Most of Clem's products are distributed to stores and restaurants however some of his products may be found at local food co-ops as well. |
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Spring 2022 Wildfire Season |
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As of April 13, our state has experienced 3,195 wildfires since the beginning of 2022 (according to NCFS Situation Report). Over 10,600 acres have burned across the state, putting properties and emergency personnel at risk. In late March, just over the state line, the Hatcher Mountain/Indigo Lane wildfire in Wears Valley, TN affected over 300 structures (destroying at least 40 homes) and large-scale resident evacuations were ordered. Did you know... 85% of wildfires in the southeast are caused by careless debris burning! |
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If you’re still wondering if wildfire could affect your slice of western North Carolina – it can! We have the responsibility to prepare our homes, properties, and family and reduce our risk in the case that a wildfire spreads to our backyards. NFPA’s Wildfire Preparedness Day is coming up on Saturday, May 7. This is an annual event that encourages landowners to raise awareness and take action to complete tasks on and around their home to help protect against the threat of wildfires. Has your family made a plan for that day yet? Check out the most recent Forest blog post to learn about wildfire preparedness tasks you can tackle in as little as 10-60 minutes – even on your lunch break. Every little bit counts! |
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Wildfire Preparedness on Your Lunch BreakAs wildfires become more of a normal occurrence in Western NC and resources continue to be stretched thin, homeowners have a larger responsibility to protect their home from wildfire. When we live in a fire-prone area like the forests of Southern Appalachia we must accept the fact that fire is going to happen at some point and take steps to prepare our family, home, and land. |
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Stay tuned! We had a prescribed burn “Learn and Burn’ event planned for Bailey Mountain Preserve in Mars Hill (Madison County) in April. Unfortunately, the weather did not cooperate for our chosen dates. We will keep an eye out for another window either in May or this fall/winter to perform the burn. You can find out about future burns in WNC via the Southern Blue Ridge Prescribed Burn Association Facebook page or their email list. |
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We’re happy to say it’s officially spring here in WNC with plants emerging from their winter nap every day! Did you know that many invasive plants are the first to leaf out each spring? This is one strategy that allows them to outcompete our native plants. It can also make them easier to find to target them for removal! What is an invasive plant? Non-native plants are referred to by many names: exotic, nonindigenous, alien, or even noxious weeds. Non-native plant species become invasive when they spread and reproduce beyond their area of origin, aggressively dominate or cause harm in a new area. |
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A common invasive plant in this region is the Princess Tree (Paulownia tomentosa). It can be identified by its large heart-shaped leaves (arranged oppositely along the branches) and its pretty lavender flowers (on mature trees). The NC Invasive Plant Council has created a list of Invasive Plants found in the Mountains of NC. Check out the list to see if you have invasive plants in your yard and learn how to eliminate them. |
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If you are looking for native, non-invasive planting suggestions for your property, check out NC State Extension's publication called "Fire-Resistant Landscaping in North Carolina". This resource lists NC native plants by flammability rating so that you can choose which plants to have closer to your house (low flammability) vs which plants you want to keep further away from your house, say 30 feet (high flammability). It also provides soil moisture and lighting needs, native region, and wildlife value. |
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To learn more about us and what we do, visit our website by clicking Mountain Valley's logo below. |
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