My original plan (Plan A) for the timber pasture, now woods, was to leave it alone and just keep it in the family.

With minor variations, this had been my Dad’s plan.

But there were some obstacles to this plan, that he hadn’t needed to address:

• Annual Personal Property Taxes at residential rates would make this plan (A) expensive, without much return on this investment.
• Untended pasture follows a steady pattern of forest succession. But just because it is natural doesn’t necessarily make it ideal for wildlife, forest growth, conservation, and recreational enjoyment.
• There is so much dense underbrush that without intervention, the Timber Pasture would soon become unusable for any purpose other than raising stunted trees, thorny bushes and Poison Ivy.

So I felt compelled to abandon Plan A, and move on to Plan B, then later to Plan C, and on and on. It seems my overall strategy keeps changing, based on new knowledge. A lot of things are like that, I guess.

So here are my plans, in order, with some explanations of why I thought they might be a good idea and why I ultimately needed to abandon them.

Plan A (Just Leave it Alone)

Plan B (Forest Management Plan)

Plan C (The “New Plan”: Heavy Equipment, a Gator and a Garage)

Plan D