SEASONS GREETINGS!
On behalf of Florida Land Steward and Tree Farm Program partners, we wish you a very festive, peaceful, and safe Holiday season. THANK YOU for everything you do for the sustainability of forests and natural resources in Florida and the region! Take some time to slow down for a little while and enjoy some quiet time out in nature. We look forward to continuing our service to this community in 2026.
“FARMER BRIDGE PAYMENTS” TO BE AVAILABLE FOR FOREST LANDOWNERS – PROVIDE DOCUMENTATION OF ELIGIBILITY BY DECEMBER 19
According to a release by National Alliance of Forest Owners (NAFO) this week, the White House announced $12B in aid for farmers impacted by tariffs. While details are still rolling out, the eligibility for these “Farmer Bridge Payments” has expanded now to include forest owners. Applicants must provide their information (including documenting financial losses) to the Farm Service Agency by December 19. The Administration is planning to disburse the payments to approved applicants in February. The USDA press release regarding “Farmer Bridge Payments” is here for reference, and USDA is asking for questions about this payment program to be sent directly to farmerbridge@usda.gov.
RURAL AND FAMILY LAND PROTECTION PROGRAM SIGN UP PERIOD STARING DECEMBER 15, 2025
Sign up December 15, 2025 – January 23, 2026
The Rural and Family Lands Protection Program (RFLPP) is an agricultural land preservation program designed to protect important agricultural lands through the acquisition of permanent agricultural land conservation easements. The program is designed to protect agricultural lands (including forests) by creating easement agreements that work together with agricultural production to ensure sustainable agricultural practices and reasonable protection of natural resources without interfering with agricultural operations in such a way that could put the continued economic viability of these operations at risk.
Interested landowners can submit their application between December 15, 2025, at 8 am EST, and January 23, 2026, at 5 pm EST. For more information and to apply for the program, visit the RFLPP website here.
2026 FLORIDA LAND STEWARD WALL CALENDARS ARE HERE!
An annual Holiday tradition, the Florida Land Steward wall calendar features beautiful photography, our Florida Land Steward Landowner of the Year, habitat management tips, partnership opportunities, resource contacts, and more. These make a great Holiday gift for the land steward or outdoor enthusiast on your list. Request your calendar by sending an email with your mailing address to Suzette Cook at suzettecook@ufl.edu and we’ll send you one. These are first-come, first-serve to interested landowners, while supplies last.
We need your feedback to keep this tradition going! Did you enjoy and use the 2025 Florida Land Steward wall calendar? To continue this annual tradition, we need to know if and how the Florida Land Steward Calendar is being used. Please share your feedback on the 2025 edition here. Won’t take but a couple minutes!
Want to contribute to future editions of the Florida Land Steward calendar? If you would like to contribute to the production of future editions of the Florida Land Steward Calendar, you can donate at https://wildlifeflorida.org/wildlife/. Click the “Donate” button on the top right. In the field where you can write a note, please indicate “Private Lands Fund”. Thank you!
For some background on this topic, see Forest Carbon: a Potential Source of Income for Forest Owners, Part 1
RECORDING OF THE DECEMBER 10 FIELDS AND FORESTS WEBINAR AVAILABLE FOR VIEWING
On Wednesday December 10, Courtney Miller and Molly Hooks with the American Forest Foundation joined us to discuss the Fields & Forests Program and its opportunities for landowners to diversify the income from their land by planting loblolly pine trees on open fields. This program provides landowners with annual income, professional forestry support, full coverage of site preparation and planting costs, and the profits from subsequent timber harvests. Access the recording of the Dec. 10 Fields & Forests Program webinar here. We have a couple more forest carbon program webinars in the works for January. We’ll keep you posted in the email updates and on the FL Land Steward events calendar.
UF/IFAS JOINS FLORIDA WILDFLOWER FOUNDATION TO FORM STATEWIDE NATIVE SEED PARTNERSHIP
The Florida Native Seed Partnership (FNSP), jointly coordinated by the Florida Wildflower Foundation (FWF) and the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) under a formal Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), convened its newly established Steering Committee on Nov. 14, 2025. The kickoff meeting brought together invited partners from conservation, utilities, research institutions, and agriculture and land-management organizations to address Florida’s growing deficit of native seed — an issue increasingly affecting restoration and land-stewardship efforts statewide. Modeled after successful collaborations in other states, the initiative brings together universities, agencies, NGOs, seed farmers, industry leaders, and landowners to grow Florida’s native seed industry and ensure a reliable, affordable supply for restoration and conservation. Learn more about this effort in this Florida Native Seed Partnership post.
2025 SAND PINE CHRISTMAS TREE SALE AT LAKE WALES RIDGE STATE FOREST
Cut your own sand pine Christmas tree at these dates and locations:
Dec. 15-19 at the Arbuckle Tract
Dec. 1-19 at the Walk-in-Water Tract
$10 per tree. Email XmasTreeLWRSF@fdacs.gov with the number of trees you would like to order. A link will be sent to your email address to pay via card. Or visit the State Forest office 851 CR 630 E., Frostproof, FL 33843 from 8 am to 3 pm to purchase the cutting permit. Bring a hand saw. No power saws allowed.
Click on the flyer to the right or see the Lake Wales Ridge State Forest website for location information. For more details, call (863) 589-0545.
ENROLL IN THE ONLINE FOREST LANDOWNER ACADEMY
Need a good self-paced primer on forestry and forest stewardship? Don’t have time to attend workshops and other events? The UF/IFAS School of Forest, Fisheries, and Geomatics Science’s online Forest Landowner Academy is for you. The direct link to enroll is https://ifas-sfrc-for.catalog.instructure.com/courses/for-fla.
Questions about the course can be directed to Chris Demers, cdemers@ufl.edu, (352) 846-2375; or Michael Andreu, mandreu@ufl.edu.
AMERICAN FOREST FOUNDATION FIELDS & FORESTS PROGRAM AVAILABLE IN FLORIDA
Fields & Forests works with landowners in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina to diversify the income from their land by planting loblolly pine trees on open fields. This low-maintenance opportunity provides landowners with guaranteed annual income, professional forestry support, full coverage of site preparation and planting costs, and the profits from timber harvests. Payment contracts include a payment of $30 per acre per year, and are 30 years duration. See the American Forest Foundation’s Fields & Forests Program web site for details. Questions about Fields & Forests can be directed to (229) 231-3818 or fieldsandforests@forestfoundation.org.
GET FLORIDA LAND STEWARD EMAIL UPDATES
Don’t miss out on news and events! Sign up for the regular email updates! Send an email to Chris at cdemers@ufl.edu to be added to the email listserv. Florida Land Steward email updates are sent once a week or every other week and include the latest calendar of workshops, tours and other events; a link to the current issue of the quarterly Florida Land Steward newsletter; updates on cost-share and other assistance programs, opportunities, and resources; and other stewardship related news and information.
MORE NEWS, EVENTS, AND OPPORTUNITIES
See our Events Calendar and News page for upcoming events and ongoing programs, initiatives, and opportunities.
ACCESS THE QUARTERLY FLORIDA LAND STEWARD NEWSLETTER ONLINE
Access the current and back issues of the quarterly Florida Land Steward newsletter here.
HAVE AN EVENT OR RELATED NEWS TO SHARE?
Drop a line with the details and link(s) to Chris at cdemers@ufl.edu.
CONSIDER A GIFT IN SUPPORT OF THE UF/IFAS FLORIDA LAND STEWARD PROGRAM
The mission of the UF/IFAS Florida Land Steward Program is to help and encourage private landowners to actively manage their land resources for long-term environmental, economic, and social benefits. This program is largely supported by partners and donors. If this program has made a difference in your land stewardship efforts, please consider a gift. Support the UF/IFAS Florida Land Steward Program here. Thanks!
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