The popular Conservation Reserve Program provides incentives for qualifying landowners to establish longleaf pine on previously cropped ground in a south-wide effort to restore the longleaf pine ecosystem over its native range that once encompassed 92 million acres. Today, less than 3 percent remains and the CRP Longleaf Pine Initiative seeks to establish longleaf pine on 250,000 acres across none southern states. In addition to planting longleaf pine, the Conservation Practice CP36 promotes the establishment of native warm season grasses (NWSG).
Several key provisions of the CRP Longleaf Pine Initiative involve control of non-native grasses (bermudagrass, bahiagrass, tall fescue ect.) before planting and establishment of NWSG following pine planting.
For more information visit the Georgia Forest Productivity Website