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Whiterock
Conservancy uses cattle grazing to model a system that helps rural landowners derive income from the land while also achieving restoration and conservation goals. In 2009, Whiterock Conservancy implemented a sustainable pasture management system to create more effective cattle rotations to
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Another historic building located on
Whiterock Conservancy is the Heeder barn, located on the Middle Raccoon River in the heart of the conservancy. Currently used as an event facility for weddings and corporate retreats, this barn was converted from a working barn to a place for celebration during
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The predominant plant community at
Whiterock is oak-dominated forest, covering about 1,200 acres of the total landscape. Oak savanna, an ecosystem that was once widely distributed in the state of Iowa, is currently one of the most endangered in the region, with less than 0.1% of the original tract
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Whiterock
Conservancy focuses on using a variety of tools to foster a healthy and resilient environment. Historically, fire was an important part of Iowa's landscape. It helped to create and maintain habitat, recycle nutrients and maintain a level of ecosystem functional balance on the land that
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Much like the state of Iowa, the vast majority of the
Whiterock Conservancy landscape was historically covered in tall and mid-grass prairies. Today, very little remains. Currently, a total of 26 acres of native prairie remnants and 600 acres of reconstructed prairie are present on the property,
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While highly intact as a land base, much of
Whiterock is in need of intense restoration efforts to protect and conserve rare habitats and restore key ecosystem functions and services. Like oak savannas, prairies on Whiterock Conservancy lands are also managed with prescribed fire and mechanical
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Whiterock
Conservancy uses its 5,500+ acres for sustainable outdoor recreation with the intention of helping the public reconnect with the outdoors by having fun on, and learning about, Iowa's diverse landscape. Its 30 miles of trails are multi-use and offer access to hiking,
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Agricultural production is an important part of the Iowa landscape. Although economic production is a primary for many landowners, some production systems, such as grazing beef cattle, are also an important part of the land's native disturbance regime.
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helped minimize the impact of other disturbances, like flooding. Fire, an ecosystem disturbance, has been dramatically curbed on the Iowa landscape over the last 100 years, resulting in a highly degraded and poorly functioning Iowa ecosystem.
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watershed, and an additional 1,000 non-contiguous land located in the Brushy and Middle
Raccoon River watersheds. The Whiterock landscape almost exclusively made possible by an extraordinary planned land gift from the
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removal of invasive species. In addition, some of our prairie acreages are being integrated into the rotational grazing program.
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remaining. Whiterock
Conservancy is actively restoring oak savanna habitat through the reintroduction of
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protect ground cover. Interior fences were constructed to exclude cattle from riparian areas.
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Whiterock
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and part of the Whiterock Resort. In 1997, the farm house and surrounding lands became an
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240-acres of which were recently planted in the fall of 2008, and 110 acres in 2009.
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Oak savanna is characterized by two layers: an overstory of scattered, widespread
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that stewards over 4,000 acres of contiguous land located in the
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Whiterock Conservancy Implements New Grazing System | Iowa NRCS
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family to Whiterock Conservancy. The landscape is a mosaic of
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destination which later became the Whiterock Resort in 2007.
388:. Nps.gov (August 21, 2009). Retrieved on October 14, 2011.
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457:. YouTube (June 28, 2010). Retrieved on October 14, 2011.
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The main office of Whiterock Conservancy is the historic
411:"Garst Farm Resorts : Liz Garst: Coon Rapids, Iowa"
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Roswell and Elizabeth Garst Farmstead Historic District
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400:. Ia.nrcs.usda.gov. Retrieved on October 14, 2011.
386:National Register of Historic Places Listings
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481:Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture
108:Learn how and when to remove this message
167:. The land is also home to the historic
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496:Non-profit organizations based in Iowa
455:Templeton Rye Archive - Gloria Brouse
307:Roswell and Elizabeth Garst Farmstead
169:Roswell and Elizabeth Garst Farmstead
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210:Oak Savanna restoration
182:. The land is used for
57:"Whiterock Conservancy"
471:Whiterock Conservancy
373:June 5, 2010, at the
121:Whiterock Conservancy
442:May 7, 2010, at the
136:Middle Raccoon River
42:improve this article
272:Rotational grazing
161:riverine woodlands
335:Coon Rapids, Iowa
311:bed and breakfast
176:Nikita Khrushchev
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416:. Agmrc.org
323:prohibition
315:agritourism
240:wildflowers
157:oak savanna
98:August 2013
490:Categories
420:August 10,
356:References
285:Recreation
236:black oaks
184:recreation
128:land trust
68:newspapers
125:501(c)(3)
440:Archived
371:Archived
329:See also
232:bur oaks
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