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The Culpeper Soil and Water Conservation District publishes a newsletter, Views from the Foothills, on a seasonal basis. The newsletter is mailed to landowners in our five-county District who receive land use tax benefits and others who have an interest in our activities. We encourage readers to support the newsletter by receiving the newsletter via email or becoming a sponsor. For more information, call Stephanie DeNicola at 540-825-8591 or stephanied@culpeperswcd.org.

2024

Winter: Bay Bill Update; Septic Cost Share Returns to Culpeper; 2023 Conservation Awards; Tree Sale Order Form; Live Stakes; Meadow Mix Preparation; Hemlock Wooly Adelgid

2023

Fall: Grass Filter Strips: 100% Cost Share; Ag Cost Share Practices; Winter Bale Grazing; 2024 Tree Seedling Sale; Meadow Mix Prep; Live Stakes; Hardwood Tree Initiative; Backyard Funds Available; 0% Interest Loans; Missouri Grazing Manual Available; Road & Driveway Guide; Welcome Cheyenne: Good Luck Brandy; Woods & Wildlife Conference Announced; Students Chosen for Summer Camp

Summer: New Landowner Workshop September 15; Conservation District Receives Statewide Dam Safety Recognition; New Year New Funding; Crop Producers Cover Crop Signup Alert; Agricultural Cost Share Practices; Virginia Tech, Land Grant Universities, Cooperative Extension and You; New Forester Assignments; Save Money with Soil Testing to Improve your Lawn; Missouri Grazing Manual; Practice Spotlight: FR-3M; Drinking Water Testing Clinic; Your Guide to Safe Well Water; Conservation District Announces Scholarship Recipients; Ranching for Profit Workshop; Students Chosen for Summer Camps; 0% Interest Loans Available; Bee Friendly Beef; Road and Driveway Maintenance Guide Available; Invasive Alert

Spring: Virginia Fencing Law; Ag Cost Share Practices; Pond Management Resources; Free Lawn Soil Tests; New Landowner Update; Pharmaceutical Disposal; Drinking Water Clinics; Your Guide to Safe Well Water; Emerald Ash Borer Cost Share Program; Virginia’s Wildfires; Backyard Conservation Funding; 0% Interest Loans; Grazing Manuals & Sticks Available; Road & Driveway Guide; Be Septic Smart

Winter: Conservation Programs Workshop; Agricultural Cost Share Practices Available; Improving Pasture Quality through the Use of Legumes; Tree Sale; Grass Filter Strips; Streambank Restoration Funding Increased; 2022 Conservation Awards; Woods & Wildlife Conference; Small Farm Outreach; Not just Meddling in the Middle; New Landowner Update; Free Soil Tests; 0% Interest Loans; Missouri Grazing Manual and Grazing Sticks Available; Fighting Bugs with Bugs

2022

Fall: The Bay Bill, Resource Management Plans (RMPs) and Best Management Practices (BMPs); Stream Bank Restoration Funding Increased; Graze 300 Promoted by Virginis Department of Conservation and Recreation; 2023 Tree Sale; Grassland Bird Initiative; Help for Septic System Maintenance; New Landowner Update; DEQ 0% Interest Loans; Meet Lily Smith; Woods & Wildlife Conference; Agricultural Cost Share Practices Available

Summer: Culpeper District Receives Unprecedented Level of Agricultural Cost Share Funds; Cropland Grass Filter Strips; Cover Crops; New Farmer Field Day; Best Management Practices; 2021 Conservation Awards; Prescribed Fire; Students Chosen for Scholarships to College and Summer Camps; Welcome to the Woods; Spotted Lanternfly; Drinking Water Clinic

Spring: Five County Conservation District Seeks Citizen Input for Long Range Plan; Interview with Jeremy Engh; Forage and Grazing Management Field Day; How to Start a Farm Workshop; Resource Management Planning Program; 2021 Conservation Awards; Culpeper District Directors and Staff Recognized; An Introduction to Soil Health Coalition; Prescribed Fire; Drinking Water Clinic

Winter: Improve Pasture Quality Through the Use of Legumes; Cropland Soil Loss, Sod Waterways and Cost Share Opportunities; Spotted Lanternfly; Establishing Native Warm Season Grasses; Converting from Wildtype to Novel Tall Fescue; Scholarships for Summer Camps and College Available; Tree Sale Order Form; Get Help to Control Runoff in your Yard

2021

Fall: Did you Know; Major Overhaul of Virginia Tax Credit Program; Agricultural Cost Share Programs; Invasive Species and NRCS; New to Tree Sale: Meadow Mix; Cost Share for Septic System Maintenance and Repairs; Tree Sale Order Form; Live Stakes Return to Tree Sale; News from the Tree World

Summer: Maintaining Your Septic; Agriculture Cost Share Funds Available; New to 2022 Tree Sale: Virginia Meadow Seed Mixes; Employee Changes at the District; Pasture Management Opportunities to Reduce Stored Feed Needs; More Quail per Bale; WaterSense Products Help Reduce Water Usage; Live Stakes Return to Tree Sale; College Scholarships and Summer Camps; Drinking Water Testing Clinic for Residential Wells; Cover Crop Planting Deadlines Extended

Spring: Virginia General Assembly Takes Bold Action; Tax Credit Updates; Conservation Funds Available; Corral Rental Opportunity; 2020 Conservation Awards; What is a Conservation Easement?

Winter: Agricultural BMP Cost Share Program and Nonpoint Source Pollution; DEQ Zero Interest Loan Program; Agricultural Cost Share Funds Available; Soil Testing for Lawns; Welcome to Your Woods Part 4; New 100% Reimbursement Small Beef Herd Initiative Coming Soon; Road and Driveway Maintenance Guide Available; Be Septic Smart – Think at the Sink; Resource Management Planning Program

2020

Fall: Nutrient Management and House Bill 1422; Soil Testing for Lawns; Welcome to Your Woods Part 2; Partner Spotlight: Virginia Forage and Grasslands Council; Spotted Lanternfly; Tree Sale Announcement; Live Stakes; Conservation Incentive Programs

Summer: Conservation District Completes Record Year; Save Money with Soil Testing for your Lawn; When Volunteer Trees Go Bad; Conservation District Announces College Scholarships; Game Department Changes Name; Drinking Water Clinic for Culpeper & Rappahannock (drive through kit pick up); Spotted Lanternfly; Live Stakes; Conservation Incentive Programs; Guide to New Woodland Owners Part 1; Welcome Corey Bray

Spring: Silvopasture Basics; Soil Testing for Lawns; Pond Alert; Emerald Ash Borer Cost Share Program; Invasive Species Harm Region’s Trees; Drinking Water Clinic for Culpeper, Fauquier & Rappahannock; Spotted Lanternfly; Conservation Incentive Programs; Web Soil Survey

Winter: Increasing Farm Income by Maximizing Forage Uptake through Rotational Grazing; Save Money with Soil Testing for your lawn; Virginia Conservation Assistance Program; Spotted Lanternfly; Chronic Wasting Disease Update; Scholarships Available for Summer Camps and College; Dr. Monira Rifaat Retires; Madison Farmer Recognized; Conservation Incentive Programs; New Directors; Driveway Guide Available; James River Buffer Program

2019

Fall: Managing stockpiled fescue; Culpeper SWCD Program and Publication Recognized; Tree Sale Returns; 2019 Conservation Awards; New Practice Helps Producers with Pasture Management; Conservation Incentive Programs; CSWCD Expands Federal Education Grant; Scholarships Available for Summer Camps and College; Driveway Guide Available; James River Buffer Program

Summer: DEQ offers 0% interest loans for BMPs; Septic Smart; Scholarships Available for Summer Camps and College; Water Testing Clinic; District Grant for Meaningful Watershed Educational Experience Wraps Up Year 1; Plant Piedmont Natives; District Accepting Cover Crop Sign-Up; Free Soil Tests for Lawns; Driveway Guide Reprinted

Spring: Stream Exclusion Fencing Changes, Buffer Payments and the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Plan III; Chronic Wasting Disease Discovered in Culpeper; Free Soil Tests for Lawns; Students Chosen for Summer Camp; Fence Maintenance Cost Share; Students Chosen for College Scholarships; Driveway Guide Launched; Water Testing Clinic; New Regulations Regarding Chronic Wasting Disease in Deer

Winter: Bradford Farms in Orange Recognized with State Forestry Award; Transition from Stored Feed to Pasture; All County Septic Program May End Soon; Pond Health Assessments Available; Fence Maintenance Cost Share; College & Summer Camp Scholarships Available; Water Testing Clinic for Greene, Madison & Orange; 2019 Tree Sale

2018

Fall: Resource Management Planning; Spotted Lanternfly; Pollinators of the Forest; 2018 Conservation Awards; District to Hold 2nd Round of Lawn Testing Clinics; Graze & Gallop

Summer: Signup Now for Conservation Funds for fencing, water and Cover Crops; Forestry Practices for Birds; CREP Update; District to Hold 2nd Round of Lawn Testing Clinics; Culpeper SWCD Announces New Federal Grant for Educational Programs; Welcome Courtney & Kendall

Spring: Fescue Toxicosis and Management; CSWCD Director Receives Grand River Basin Award; Septic System Cost Share; Students Chosen for Summer Camps and College Scholarships; Lawn Testing Clinic Sign-up; Drinking Water Clinic; Exotic Tick Found in Virginia

Winter: Cost share for Emerald ash borer; Grants Available for Dam and Floodplain Projects; VA Conservation Assistance Program; Tree Seedling Sale; Septic System Cost Share; Is Your Forest Working for You?: Drinking Water Clinics; CSWCD Receives Two New Grants

2017

Fall: Resource Management Plans; Students Chosen for College Scholarships and Summer Camps; Tree Seedling Sale; 2017 Conservation Awards; Septic System Cost Share Rates Increase; Orange County Director Recognized for Service; District Awarded New Grants

Summer: Reconnecting Cattle & Quail — NRCS’ Working Lands for Wildlife Program; The Importance of Forage Management in Pasture & Hay Fields Heading into Fall; VCAP Urban Cost Share Program; Forestry Updates; VA Ag Expo; Septic System Open to all Counties with New Rates

Spring: Beauregard Farms Recognized with Rappahannock River Basin Award; Improving Pasture with Legumes; Brad Jarvis Recognized for Years of Service on the CSWCD Board; Tom O’Halloran Recognized with Watershed Connections Award; Emerald Ash Borer Update; 2nd Annual Tree Sale a Success; Soil Survey Updates; Septic System Cost Share Open to all District Counties

Winter: Meadows for Everyone; Woods & Wildlife Conference; 2nd Annual Tree Sale; Increasing Farm Income by Maximizing Forage Uptake through Rotational Grazing; 2016 Conservation Awards; Pond Management Planning; Cost Share for Septic System Maintenance and Repairs Opens to Entire 5-County Area; Winter Rain Barrel Sale

2016

Fall: Upper Rapidan TMDL Implementation Grant and District-wide Water Quality Improvement Fund Grant Awarded to Culpeper SWCD; 2nd Annual Tree Sale; Right Tree, Right Place; Welcome Amanda Chester; Quail in the Woods; Welcome Sarah Weaver Sharpe;  Good Luck Melissa Allen;Cover Crop Program Sign Up; Cost Share for Septic System Maintenance and Repairs Opens to Entire 5-County Area

Summer: Introducing Blue Ridge PRISM; Conservation District Announces Scholarships; Rain Garden Project in Culpeper; Envirothon Update; Students Chosen for Summer Camps; Regional Homeowner’s Guide Available; Healthy Riparian Buffers Make Healthy Streams; Drinking Water Clinic; Conservation District Cover Crop Program Sign-up; District Announces Two New Grants are Pending; Septic System Health Care

Spring: Seven Myths about Rain Gardens; Apology from the Editor; New Directors Join the Board; Backyard Conservation Funds; Expanded Federal Benefits for Conservation Easements; Drinking Water Clinic; Tall Fescue and Endophyte Fungus; The Open Land Conundrum; Septic System Health Care

Winter: Orange Farm Recognized for Exemplary Conservation Practices; 2015 Awards Banquet; Tree Seedling & Rain Barrel Sale; Stream Crossings; District Receives Chesapeake Bay License Plate Grant; District Staff Recognized; Free Pesticide Disposal; Household (well) Water Testing; Cost Share for Septic System Maintenance (technical difficulties. For a copy via email contact the editor at stephanied@culpeperswcd.org.)

2015

Fall: BMP Data Needed; Tree Seedling and Rain Barrel Sale; Cover Crop Sign up; Septic System Cost Share in Parts of the Robinson River Watershed; Monarchs and Milkweed; Emerald Ash Borer Found in Madison; Forestry Quail Habitat Cost Share; Septic System Health Care

Summer: TMDL Update in the Hughes, Hazel, Thornton and Rush Rivers; Conservation District Announces Scholarships for College and Summer Camps; Publications Available from Virginia Cooperative Extension (click here for the expanded list); Envirothon Update; Rotational Grazing; Funds Available for Residential Stormwater Retrofits; Septic System Health

** The following newsletters are available via email by request. Send an email to Stephanie DeNicola at stephanied@culpeperswcd.org and request season and year.

Winter 2015: Stream fencing initiative Signup deadline Nears, 2014 Conservation Awards; New Outdoor Classrooms Installed, If You Build It They Will Come; CREP Opportunities; Riparian Buffer Tax Credit; Woods and Wildlife Conference; College and Summer Camp Scholarships Available; Cost Share for Septic System Maintenance

2014

Fall: 75 Years of Service; Silvopasture Program in November; Meet Ashleigh Cason; Wildlife Habitat Opportunities; 100% Cost Share Available for Livestock Exclusion Fencing; Mid-Summer Defoliation of Oaks; Envirothon Team Places 2nd Overall at State Competition; Meet Geoff Moore; Cost Share Available for Septic System Maintenance

Spring: Delegate Ed Scott Recognized by State Conservationists; Students Chosen for College Scholarships; Environmentally Friendly Pond and Lake Management; Virginia Water Resources Center; 100% Cost Share Available for Livestock Exclusion Fencing; Students Chosen for Summer Camps; Watershed Connections: Backyard Stormwater; Cost Share Available for Septic System Maintenance

Winter: Equine Small Acreage Systems; Scholarship and Summer Camp Opportunities; Annual Report Released; Annual Awards Banquet Held; 100% Cost Share Available for Livestock Exclusion Fencing; Cost Share Available for Tree Plantings; Building Homes for Wildlife; Welcome Melissa Allen; Cost Share Available for Septic System Maintenance

2013

Fall: 100% Cost Share Available for Livestock Exclusion Fencing; Cicadas; Lyme and Ticks; Forestry Department Seeks Acorns; Pollinator Gardens

Spring: Conservation Easements; The Cicadas are Back; Students Chosen for Summer Camps and College Scholarships; Watershed Connections: Backyard Stormwater; Open Lands Tree Planting Initiative; Federal Conservation Programs Announce Sign Up; Envirothon Update

Winter: Life History and Habitat of Amphibians; Beheading Nature; Federal Conservation Programs; Understanding your Septic System; Orange County Pet Waste Program; Awards Banquet Held; Help Available for Septic System Fixes; Cost share Available for Residential Landscape Features

2012

Fall: Funding Available for Agricultural Cost Share Programs; Virginia Working Landscapes; Tree Planting; Understanding your Septic System; Native Warm Season Grasses; Invasive Species; Help Available for Septic System Fixes

Summer: Emerald Ash Borer Warning; Stockpiling; Rain Gardens for Erosion Control; New Board Members; Herbicide Application Techniques; Upper York TMDL Underway

Spring: Virginia’s Big Woodland Transfer; Rules of Nature with Rotational Grazing; Incentives for Continuing Conservation Practices; Envirothon Update; Summer Camps and College Scholarships; Envirothon through the Words of a Student and Judges; Chinese Privet

Winter: High Profit for Beef Producers; Scholarship and Summer Camp Opportunities; Forage Radishes as Cover Crops; New Cost Share Opportunities in Impaired Watersheds; Spring Fire Season Advice; Forestland Incentive Program Expands to Include Greene County; Spring Fever Rain Barrel Sale

2011

Fall: Answering the Call of the Bobwhite Quail; Update on Stream Restoration Projects; Livestock Management and Environmental Well-being; Residential Cost Share for Septic Systems in the Robinson River Watershed; NRCS/VSU Outreach for Historically Underserved Landowners; End of the Summer Rain Barrel Sale

Summer: Proper Tree Maintenance; Students Chosen for Summer Camps; New District Website and e-mail addresses; Awards Banquet Held; 2011 College Scholarships; Envirothon Update; District Receives Grants for Outdoor Classroom

2010

Fall: Getting an Edge — a Give or Take for Wildlife; New Incentives for Continuing Conservation Efforts; Lake Management — Controlling Aquatic Weeds; Legislative Update; Stream and Wetland Mitigation Banking

Summer: Watershed Connections: Groundwater; Cost Share Available for Quail Habitat; District Farms Recognized with York and Rappahannock Basin Awards; District Announces Academic Scholarships and Summer Camps; Area and State Envirothon Results; Culpeper Outdoor Classroom Begins

Winter: How Recent TMDL Planning Impacts Producers, Homeowners and BMPs; Chesapeake Bay Watershed Initiative Program Available through NRCS; Annual Awards Banquet Held; Stream Restoration Project Completed in Locust Dale; New Cost Share Program for Quail Habitat

2009

Summer: Forage Based Nutrient Management Planning; Orange Farm Recognized; Scholarship Recipients; Envirothon Update; Legislative Update; Comment Periods for Proposed Legislative Amendments

Spring: Federal Conservation Practices; Local Landowners Recognized; Restoration Stockings of American Shad in the Rappahannock River; Emerald Ash Borer in Virginia; TMDL Implementation Planning Begins for Hazel, Hughes and Rush Rivers; Improving Pasture Quality with Legumes; Rain Barrel Demand Remains High

2008

Summer: DEQ Releases 2008 Water Quality Assessment; Best Management Practices for Driveway Construction; Scholarship Recipients; Poultry Litter Hotline; Soil Sampling; Cost Share Funds Available; Rain Barrel

Spring: Farm Bill 2008 Passes; Meet Thomas O’Halloran; Legislative Update; Rain Barrels in High Demand; Heritage Day at Graves Mountain Lodge

Winter: Conservation Grants Support Local Efforts; Annual Awards Banquet Held; Benefits of Livestock Exclusion; Landmark Groundwater Ruling; Nutrient Management Plans; Welcome New Directors and Staff Member; 2008 Legislative Agenda

2007

Fall: Vegetation, Erosion and Dams; BMP Program Updates; Rotational Grazing; Water Conservation Tips; CREP Easements; Rappahannock River Summit Held; Meet Your New Directors; Demand for Rain Barrels High in the District

Spring: Conservation Real Estate: The Market-Based Solution; Legislative Update; New Pond Brochure; Rain Barrel Workshop Held; Academic and Camp Scholarships Announced; Local Farm Receives Grand Basin Award; Joe Thompson Retires

Winter: Spring Box Development; 2006 Conservation Awards; CREP Benefits; New Board and Staff Members; District and Partners Receive Awards; 2007 Easement Changes; CREP May Expire; Low Impact Development Info Session; Scholarship and Summer Camp Applications Due April 2

2006

Fall: 2006 DEQ Water Quality Assessment; Buffers and Stream Health; Cost Share Opportunities; Greene County Farm Bureau Project; Heavy Equipment Operators’ Training; Biosolid Applications; TMDL Meetings in the District; Pesticide Collections

Spring: Riparian Buffers; CREP Change; DEQ Equipment Loan Clarification; Legislative Update; Local Forage Award Recipient; The Benefits of No Till; District Steps Up Outreach Efforts; Examining Your Stream

Winter: Chesapeake Bay Restoration and Local Development; Meet Spencer Yager; The Importance of TMDLs; Annual Awards Banquet Held; Cost Share Programs; Stream Corridor Protection; CREP Easements; Scholarships Available

2005

Fall: Cost Share Available; Rain Barrels and Raingardens; Meet Pete Acker; Movin’ Dirt Brochure; Ideal Raingarden Plants for the Chesapeake Bay Watershed; Pond Management; District Scholarships Available

Spring: Rainwater Harvesting; Low Impact Development Takes Shape in the District; New Conservation Incentive Program; Director Named Outstanding Forage Producer; Farmland Marketing Conference; Watershed Address; Welcome Lynn Graves; Stormwater Management and You

Winter: Forests, Fallen Leaves and Water; Nutrient Management Plans; Phosphorus, Phytase and the Environment; Land Use Taxation; Welcome New Staff Members; Conservation Funding Available; Tributary Strategies; Scholarship and Summer Camp Opportunities

2004

Summer: Paving the Watershed; Students Investigate Mountain Run Watershed; Forestland Management; Reporting Water Pollution; Conservation Funds Available; Nutrients: Too Much of a Good Thing

Spring: Lawns and the Bay; BMP Farm Tour; Native Warm Season Grasses; New Directors; Agricultural BMP Program

Winter: TMDLs; Streamside Landowners; Collecting Rooftop Runoff; Madison Library Raingarden; Welcome John Chiles; EQIP; Welcome Cliff Miller

2003

Fall: Watershed Protection (Chesapeake Bay Watershed Part II); Conservation Awards; Agricultural/Forestal Districts; Watershed Education Grant; Community Education; Soil and Water Conservation District Directors and Elections

Summer: The Chesapeake Bay and the Culpeper SWCD (Part I); Manure as a Nutrient Source; Invading Exotic Species; Septic Systems; New Chairman of the Board; Conservation Programs in the Culpeper SWCD; New Administrative Secretary

Spring: Conservation and Organics; Oysters; Wetland Restoration; Envirothon; Harvesting Rain; Water Conservation Tips

2002

Fall: Conservation Awards; Striped Bass; Farm Tour; Farm Bill; Raingardens

Summer: Conservation Easements; Farm Bill; Education, CREP; Riparian Buffers

Spring: Pond Maintenance; Water Wizard Van; Dam Safety Act; Wetlands

Winter: Low Impact Development; Shad; Ag Tax Credits; Scholarships; Grant

2001

Summer: Upper Rappahannock Stream Monitoring Program; Erosion and Sediment Control Initiative; Rappahannock Summit IV; STEP Volunteers

Spring: Grazing in Riparian Areas; Chemical Water Quality Monitoring; Restoring a River; Upper Rappahannock Stream Monitoring Program

Winter: Ponds; Conservation Awards; RCC Workgroups; Conservation Incentive Programs

2000

Fall: District History; Stewards of the Upper Rapidan; Biological Water Quality Monitoring; Conservation Awards; Educational Websites

Summer: Chesapeake Bay Agreement; Heat Stress and Livestock; Soil Survey