The Land Conservancy of McHenry County receives $135,000 grant

WOODSTOCK, Ill. — The Land Conservancy of McHenry County has received a $135,000 grant from the Chicago Community Trust to support the growth of the local food system in McHenry County by working with local landowners and supporting farmland preservation, in alignment with the increasing access to land strategy of Food:Land:Opportunity.

As TLC works to support the local food system in McHenry County, the organization focuses on preserving farmland, increasing land access for beginning and underserved farmers and providing resources and technical assistance to local landowners.

The TLC farm program is also positioned to work on various efforts related to farmland ownership succession and promoting sustainable farming practices.

The funding from FLO will cover TLC’s Farm Program over the coming year. TLC’s Farm Program includes the permanent protection of farmland by working with landowners on agricultural conservation easements.

“We are currently working with five different farmland owners who want to preserve their farms forever. The only way to do that is to place an agricultural conservation easement on the land,” said Linda Balek, farm program manager at The Land Conservancy.

“This grant will help us continue our farmland preservation work because there are landowners who want to make sure their farms are never developed and always remain farms.”

In addition to farmland preservation, TLC offers:

Women’s Learning Circles: TLC hosts three to four Women Caring for the Land Learning Circles seasonally in partnership with local farmers. The Learning Circles provide a crucial link between women farmland owners and the resources and support networks they need to achieve their conservation goals.

While this program was initially designed for non-operating landowners, their group in McHenry County has welcomed a rise in landowners who are actively managing or operating their lands, as well as farm managers and even aspiring landowners.

As such, the learning topics, conversations and farm visits vary widely to include: rotational grazing, fruit crop production, creative land access and land use agreements, agroforestry, and community building through agriculture.

Dates for this season’s remaining Learning Circles are Aug. 14 and Sept. 18. Registration is required: https://conservemc.org/womenslearningcircle/.

Apple Creek Food Forest: The Apple Creek Food Forest is the latest undertaking by the TLC Farm Program. Still in its development stage, the food forest will be a demonstration space showcasing the diversity of perennial crops grown in our region using methods that regenerate the earth and strengthen the local economy, as well as cultivating a community through workdays and events. The first few plantings have been established, including a Milpa garden.

Currently, the team is working on infrastructure needs like a parking lot and water access. Upcoming projects include building a trail that connects to neighboring Creekside and Prairiewood schools and building raised beds for container gardening.

Visitors are welcome to see what’s growing at the Food Forest’s open house from 4 to 7 p.m. on Aug. 22.

Registration is requested at: https://conservemc.org/apple-creek-food-forest-open-house/.

Community Focus

“One of the greatest impacts of our FLO funding has been the ability to increase staff capacity, allowing us to expand our efforts and deepen our impact within the community we serve,” said Claire Hodge, Farm Program coordinator.

Food:Land:Opportunity — Localizing the Chicago Foodshed is a multiyear initiative that aims to create a resilient local food economy that protects and conserves land and other natural resources while promoting market innovation and building wealth and assets in the Chicago region’s communities.

Funded through the Searle Funds at the Chicago Community Trust, Food:Land:Opportunity is a collaboration between Kinship Foundation and the Chicago Community Trust.

The Land Conservancy of McHenry County is a member-based, private nonprofit dedicated to preserving natural, scenic and agricultural land.