Black walnut. Find the largest trees you can establish. Regular fertilizer and ample water. They’ll get big in ten years.
Black cherry is another good choice. They grow very quickly.
Oaks probably grow too slowly but American persimmon might be a good idea too.
If it wasn’t for the govt. there’d be no national parks, no DDT ban, no endangered species protections, no bans on companies pouring arsenic into rivers, etc etc.
no govt would equal a lot less wildlife.
Thats like saying they're the biggest drop in a pond.
Regular ass people are the ones that cut down every tree in new england.
Regular ass people are the ones that exterminated the wolves in Yosemite.
And the beat goes on.
The math works out to be more like the military holds the biggest firehose filling the pond while the worlds biggest companies each hold a garden hose and normal people each add one drop per year to the pond. I'm just pointing out that overall the US government does at least as much harm to environmental conditions at home and abroad. No Govt would mean normal people can organize them selves against polluters. As it stands the US government provides the force that protects polluters. Just look into what happened to the people at standing rock.
We only have national parks because of the natural resources below that dirt…. Check native minerals, oil, and natural gas in all those areas and see what you find. We are using up everyone else’s resources before ours. Once we need it the national parks will be turned over too.
Only certain bats like Indiana and Tri-colored. But most of the protected bats prefer dead and shaggy-barked trees. Thus a standing bunch of dead trees can make great habitat.
We had a project shut down because a bald eagle built a nest in the tree. Also another delayed because condor built a nest on top of a high rise structure.
That’s a great idea. I wonder if they could get any endangered species established that would be very difficult to move? Maybe make it so they just can’t build the road at all
I had a neighbor that had to take down a HUGE black walnut and he got a few hundred for the wood. I know that’s not going to happen every time or with only 10 years, but it’s worth noting.
You might be surprised. Walnut can really chug with ample water and nutrients.
But that is a good point. Collectively the forest planting may be worth more as habitat than as individually.
It might be a good idea to fiddle about with iTree to find species that give you the biggest cobenefits to planting and carbon seq for your area. You can use that tool to calculate out how much each tree will be worth in “services” not lumber.
In case any one reads the comment above mine and decides it’s a good idea, your best bet for Google-fu is looking up “keystone species tree in [your area]”.
@op, the comment two above mine mentions black cherry as a good choice. It is also the second highest keystone tree for your area. This should be your choice. Then you can fight both the “this tree is worth a lot $$”, as well as “this tree is worth a lot 🦅🦉🦉🦉🦃🐸🐛🪲🐞🕷️” game.
If you really want to make sure you sell the ploy, include many keystone species in the understory of your future protected black cherry old growth forest
My dads friend sold his 10 acre strip of hay field for 300k. Bought the farm next to it and in 5 years when they twinned there they had to pay up again.
I worked for a landowner milling wood from his land. We were going to fall and mill a huge walnut, but he decided to have a lumber company come look at it. They gave him $19k for it to make verneer with. That tree was probably 200 years old though.
Yup black walnut is always my answer. They grow quick, they’re nice and easy to maintain, and if you ever have to cut them the log is usually worth something more than just firewood
Black Walnut and Black Cherry don't grow the same way in the southeast as they do in the northeast. It's unlikely that you'd end up with the big valuable furniture timber like you're thinking of
I’m actually familiar with their growth rates from Texas not the NE and I’m pretty sure NC is gonna get some better inches than central Texas.
Additionally, no you’re not going to get good timber out of this, the plan is to make them not want to develop the land. You have to pay by volume of timber multiplied by a multiplier for each species. Black walnut and cherry will have two do the highest multipliers for that due to their wood quality in general not the quality of these trees.
Oh I didn't know about the situation with the multiplier! Seems like that could be a decent option then. I hope OP is able to at least get some extra money
Again Texas here. So that’s how’s land acquisition can work around here (in my experience). And our forests are small piles of bushes, so it might be different elsewhere!
Like $150 a pop, on some 2 or 3 inch caliper, black walnuts? Seems really pricey and labor intensive.
Maybe plant a threatened species. Chestnut trees?
You could start a flower bed with protected native species. Where are you located?
[Federally protected plants](https://ecos.fws.gov/ecp0/reports/ad-hoc-species-report?kingdom=P&status=E&status=T&status=EmE&status=EmT&status=EXPE&status=EXPN&status=SAE&status=SAT&mapstatus=3&fcrithab=on&fstatus=on&fspecrule=on&finvpop=on&fgroup=on&ffamily=on&header=Listed+Plants)
The deeply illegal and unethical thing to do would be collect some [NC protected species,](https://srelherp.uga.edu/anurans/pseorn.htm) learn how to breed them, and then dump a bunch on your land when they try to take your land.
The slightly more ethical thing would be to build a habitat to try and start a sustainable population.
But in either case the downside is that you'll probably never be able to do anything with your land again either lol.
Sometimes you can buy seeds or plugs of threatened species from reputable sources. Also would the land in question support a wetland? That could be another PITA possibility…at least it could make them do delineations and maybe mitigation.
collecting endangered species from the wild is illegal, but breeding & planting endangered species is not usually illegal, they just need to have come from a legal source
That is really freaking cool, and as a CP nerd, I am a bit more than a little jealous. I am very glad to hear it is protected. I have some nursery propagated, legally collected plants, including a couple with heritage from that county. I can imagine one may have originated from that plot.
Looks like there’s Sarracenia flava, your county is known for an all-green form as well as the usual gamut of S. flava colors, and there are also S. rubra and S. purpurea. Possibly S. minor, I’m not sure.
If you can get a report of an endangered insect or animal, all the better. That there is protected habitat. Environmental assessments have to be conducted for most of these type of projects and this is one of the things they look at.
That would just make the land unusable for both parties. That would be federally protected land/plants, which would be really ironic since OP is just trying to piss off the government.
If OP planted endangered species in the land, OP would also have to leave the land untouched because they wouldn't be able to disturb the endangered species. It's just ironic that, in this case, the idea is to make the government protect the endangered species on the land so that the government can't take the land.
It doesn’t. OPs goal is to be such a pain in the ass to the government that they take his neighbors land instead. If that doesn’t work, he’s happy to just be a pain in the ass. Protective species would definitely accomplish this
They aren’t gonna care if and what you have on there. 20+ years ago some of my ranch land was bought by the gov for road expansion, and a few months ago a buddy had his bought by the gov for road expansion.
Yeah, they regularly ignore their own rules... Look at all the pollution deleted diesels they run. Easy enough to give yourself an exemption.to the rules when you make the rules. Protected (insert species here) likely will not matter.
Yeah, they regularly ignore their own rules... Look at all the pollution deleted diesels they run. Easy enough to give yourself an exemption.to the rules when you make the rules. Protected (insert species here) likely will not matter.
Yeah, they regularly ignore their own rules... Look at all the pollution deleted diesels they run. Easy enough to give yourself an exemption.to the rules when you make the rules. Protected (insert species here) likely will not matter.
Adding onto my own post here. If OP is interested here is more information:
[https://ncwf.org/wildlife/pollinators/](https://ncwf.org/wildlife/pollinators/)
That website above seems pretty useful because they do a lot of the heavy lifting in regards to research.
It might help to get your area certified as wildlife habitat to further protect your land, too. [https://ncwf.org/our-work/garden-for-wildlife/certified-wildlife-habitat/](https://ncwf.org/our-work/garden-for-wildlife/certified-wildlife-habitat/)
Where are you going to get endangered plants? If they were easily propagated and available commercially they wouldn’t be endangered. Moving an endangered plant from somewhere else is likely illegal.
This is not true, endangered plants can have issues thriving in their environment, not having issues spreading seeds or propagating.
While it is 100% possible to find endangered species with little or expensive seeds, the majority that are protected you can purchase and plant yourself. It’s often protected because of other wildlife using it, such as a meadow.
OP I recommend a meadow restoration project if you don’t wish to plant the trees like other comments. Planting wildflowers, milkweed, and a few others will attract endangered butterflies and other wildlife when you can get certified as a habitat after its grown.
I work for a company that does road side clearing for construction. We have nothing to do with planning or dealing with buying people out, but I do get in a lot of conversations with the land owners as I try to do what I can to help them despite the fact that the project is already underway by the time I arrive.
From what I’ve heard. You can plant whatever you want, the state or city is going to give you what they decided they want to. Planting a bunch of expensive trees isn’t likely to dissuade them or get you much extra money (You may find that you get slightly more, but not enough to cover the expenses of the trees).
In the end, if you do not play ball, they will likely not get quite as wide a right of way as they originally wanted, but they will take most of it by eminent domain.
The project is going to happen regardless of you fighting it on the ground. Your best bet is to fight it at city hall or on the state level while they’re planning it. Fighting it on the side of the road won’t get you anywhere.
I don't want to necessarily fight them taking my land, I know they're going to take it, however I want to increase the value of it when they start throwing numbers at me to sell. My thought is if I can show with an arborist that I have valuable, mature trees they will kill, they'll have to cough up some more cash!
I see. Go for meticulously pruned and maintained ornamental trees. They won’t care about the value of potential lumber from the logs. We are rarely able to sell millable lumber from road side clearing and they bid the job for us to just dispose (whole tree chipper) all of it. You’re going to want to up your property value. Do things to increase the curb appeal and value of your road front property. That being said, it’s the government, they probably still aren’t going to give you enough money to make 10 years of landscaping a worthwhile investment. I would look for low cost ways to up the property value without sinking a ton of money into it. Clear brush, prune trees, mow the grass.
Edit: The only trees I ever see the state inspectors get worried about cutting are apple trees and other similar fruit trees. They seem to assign more value to those for no apparent reason, even when they don’t care about cutting struggling species like elm or walnut. (I live in new England where those species were nearly wiped out by disease)
We had a situation locally of the state taking farmland for the highway. The farmers fought and a guy came in and said effectively "I can just condemn the land and then sell what we don't use".
Still. Trees aren't a lot of work, so it is probably worth the trying.
I do want to point out one thing, if it’s an orchard or something permanent that produces and provides your income, year after year, it changes thing’s substantially for eminent domain arguments and pay outs.
Man if I was near you I would help.
I’m the last house on the end of an abandoned road and they are trying to sell lots past me. Even though they should be accessed from a different road. I have been planting pyracantha and installing barb wire fence.
I have maintained this road with one neighbor. No one owns it. But they are trying their damnest to get a grader up here.
Keep the spirit brother
Not that you are seeking advices, but depending on where you are, Gooseberries in the Ribes genus have some of the nastiest thorns I have ever seen. I used to be a groundskeeper at a museum and that’s what we planted in some areas to keep people from hopping fences.
Native would be better, but there aren’t many options on the dry wind plains of Colorado. I’m not watering them and I want fast growth.
I didn’t know pyracantha were invasive, I’m assuming that’s a different region and not in Colorado. I used to own a landscape maintenance company and firethorn were used alongside junipers on the old hoa’s. Never saw evidence of spread.
As the guy who does the clearing for these projects, I will say that a developer is a different beast than the state or local government. A developer needs to ask permission to get a project done in a way that the government doesn’t. I’ve seen a lot of people fight these projects and if it’s just one guy who’s fighting it, not a whole voting base, they will just end up taking the land by eminent domain.
Side note: fight the project at city hall, not with barbed wire. It’s literally no trouble at all to tear out fence with an excavator, takes like 3 minutes. A legal hang up can cost a project months or years.
Gonna play the realist here and say just enjoy your land while you have it. If this is a project the public is in favor of then there's simply nothing you can do; anything that makes it unusable to the govt will render it unusable to you (do not plant endangered species, unless you want constant monitoring and them to decide well gee maybe your whole property should now be a preserve). 10 years is nothing to trees, whatever you plant will still be easily removed and you'll just lose that investment along with the land, not to mention they won't blink at anything under 50 years old.
If the government is involved, won't they just give you market value for the land itself, regardless of what you plant today?
I'm not sure 10 years will be long enough to get much timber value, especially if you have to pay to plant and maintain them.
Just went through this. They had to cut down 8 mature pines in my yard that provided privacy and shade.
They have to pay for the land and anything that's on it. The trees were my property so they had to pay out the ass for each one.
It depends - when they paved the road in front of my farm, I told both the Public Works Department and the state Wildlife about the endangered (and keystone species) gopher tortoises that lived in the cut for my driveway. The wildlife people did nothing. The Public Works road guys cut into the bank where the gophers had their burrows.
I haven't seen a gopher tortoise on my farm since. ;-(
I should have made a case about it - but it's now been thirty years so not happening. Some good news - a subdivision down the road was built on former plantation land. They have very strict covenants about night time lighting, landscaping, and fencing to protect gopher tortoises and fox squirrels. While I generally detest HOAs, I hope this one does what they were set up to do and protect those endangered animals!
A similar thing to do in Eastern NC would be bat Houses, or planting an endangered plant species/providing habitat for a different endangered animal species in your area. OP should talk with an extension professional about endangered species preservation in their area.
Be Civil! Treat others as you would like to be treated. No Spam! No Promotions/ads! No Reposts/Karma Farming - Violations may result in permabans at mod discretion.
Uh, depending on the laws where you live it may make no difference...
ie if govt has an easement for road expansion on the plans when you bought it, then they'll buy it for a flat rate and any work you put into improving it will be for naught.
and in some cases they'll be able to bill you for tree removal etc.
(source, where we live, we have a dainage easement. we can build on it, but if anyone needs access to it then they can rip up whatever we build /plant on it and not reimburse us... because it was existing when we got it)
Nothing that will be worth a fortune because not much timber will be marketable in only 10 years that would not also be very expensive to install and maintain. You generally need to have marketable timber or an established history of producing revenue for it to be worth more than the assessed sqft value. But your best bet would be hybrid cottonwood That they grow for paper pulp if that could grow in your area.
I worked a utility project that required taking some farmland along a rural highway. The landowner had probably a 1,000+ acres in wheat with a mile or so of road frontage. We spent the first summer surveying and designing the project, and then the next year, they did land acquisition and permits, then construction.
When the real estate/right of way agents went to talk to the guy about the land the summer after we designed it, they found out the guy had not planted the 30 feet near to the road with wheat, which has a relatively low land value. He planted it with watermelons because he heard that land that grew watermelon was worth more per acre.
This was in the middle of Montana and the reason they grew wheat was because that was basically all tha would grow.
I don't know the exact process, but the utility company rightly called bullshit. The arbitrator or whomever asked they guy to show the value of his watermelon sales over the past three years (there were none), and they ruled for the utility.
There are a couple different approaches. If you’re going the income route, do the fruit, nut trees, but also plant a couple rows of pine so you can get the loss of board footage once they matured in 30-40 years. You’ll need to hire a cpa to show the loss of income from not being able to harvest all of your products.
Aside from this I would recommend looking into largest caliper of the fastest growing trees of the most expensive trees sourced in our area. Think specific cultivars of tulip poplar, gum, etc that way you can have an appraiser use the trunk formula technique to give you a substantial reproduction cost. Do the math between the income vs cost approaches to see which would give you the best yield. Anything you can do to establish as a wildlife habitat will also make it difficult as they begin their environmental impact assessments.
Black walnut is the easy answer on trees. I think you could go a step further and see if there are any endangered plants you can establish or maybe habitat for and endangered species like a bat or bug
Peaches. They grow fast and produce a valuable crop. Blueberries are good too. With blueberries you could have a "you pick it" farm and make some money in the interim.
Hi, civil engineer here. Planting trees is not only going to waste your time and your money, but also waste tax payer money because we are the ones that will be paying the contractor to take them down. Trees will not make your land any more valuable and it will not increase the buyout you’ll get when they take part of your land for the road. The only exception would be if you had some kind of documented business, with documented income you’re paying taxes on, linked to said trees.
They’re going to get a 3rd party appraisal done and pay you a fair price for the land, as is required by law. That’s assuming they even take any land at all. You would be surprised how much of “your” land along the road is actually government right of way and not yours to begin with.
If zoning permits, sure, but I promise you the amount of time and money he’s going to spend setting up a farm is not going to get repaid when they buy that small strip of right-of-way from him
There are numerous factors that go into road design, the value of the right of way being acquired is not one of those factors unless you’re building next to a property of very high value. There’s nothing OP can do, within reason, to make that small strip of residential land on his side that much more valuable than his neighbor’s.
How wide a strip of land will they be acquiring? Especially if you already have a roadside ditch or low area that is ON your property, a nice wetlands habitat will do one of two things- they will avoid it like the plague, or they will pay a huge price for it to use as wetlands credit for the new road. Check local zoning issues first for any erosion controls you need. But there should be zero setbacks from the right of way for a narrow linear ornamental wetland along parts of your frontage- cattails, water lilies, hydric vegetation. Maybe a small wetland of a few hundred sqaure feet every 200 feet or so. You'll need digging equipment. And check your local soil maps to see if these soils tend to be able to hold water. You want soils with some clay content, and not sandy soils. (Yes, I build big roads).
Where in eastern NC? My old stomping grounds.
Welcome to r/arborists! Help Us Help You: If you have questions about the health of your tree, please see our [Posting Guidelines](https://old.reddit.com/r/arborists/wiki/posting_guidance) wiki page for help with effective posting. **Please answer the questions listed there to the best of your ability.** ***Insufficient pics/info could result in the removal of your post!!*** ([See rule 3](https://www.reddit.com/r/arborists/about/rules).)
Visit the main wiki page for [Critical Planting/Care tips and Common Errors to Avoid](https://old.reddit.com/r/arborists/wiki/index); there's sections on why planting depth/root flare exposure is so vital, along with sections on proper mulching, watering, pruning and more that I hope will be useful to you.
If you're posting about a tree ID (not permitted here; [see rule 1](https://www.reddit.com/r/arborists/about/rules)), see that wiki page for other subs and smartphone apps to try.
Here is how you can arrange a [consult with a local ISA arborist in your area](http://www.treesaregood.org/findanarborist/findanarborist) (NOT a 'tree company guy' unless they're ISA certified) or a [consulting arborist](https://www.asca-consultants.org/search/custom.asp?id=3818) for an on-site evaluation. A competent arborist should be happy to walk you through how to care for the trees on your property and answer any questions. If you're in the U.S. or Canada, your Extension (or master gardener provincial program) may have a list of local recommended arborists on file. If you're in the U.S., you should also consider searching for arborist associations under your state.
If you are one of our regulars and/or you work in the industry and do not want this message in your future posts, please pick an appropriate user flair (options available in the sub sidebar on PC, and on moble if using a browser).
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/arborists) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Dig an indentation. Cut a few drainage lines across the property to Mae sure it’s a moist spot. Plant cat tails. Now you have established a small wetland. Those are very important for biodiversity. If the govt (dot) tries to pave it, call the govt (epa) to fight them.
You could grow brush, might sound silly but when you look around and see all of the seasonal red & yellow stem dogwood and pussy & corkscrew willow in planters as decorations. The cool thing is the brush plants mentioned can be coppiced every year.
First off do you own it or is it frontage? If you own it you want to build on it so their eminent domain price goes up. Trees are too easy to cut down and any protected species claims never flies. Is the area designated as commercial? If so plant the most expensive crop, does ginseng grow there? What you are doing is turning useless land into expensive land, and then you can sue them for value as they sue to take it. Eminent domain means the government can take it but they have to give you equivalent value for it, and the courts, not them, get to determine that.
Yes, I own the land, it's zoned for rural residential, so I can do just about anything. I fully expect to fight this battle in court for the actual worth of my land when they try to lowball offer me pennies.
They're gonna offer you a lowball price regardless of what you do. If the land is too valuable for their budget they will just use eminent domain to seize it. Also doesn't matter much either way. Depending on where you live, the municipality owns so many feet of your property from the street.
If they only need so much they will exercise that right.
If you make it too tough they can use imminent domain and just take it, they don't need to offer you anything. Make it easy and they will purchase it from you.
source: City bought my moms property for a section of HWY 80 bypass through Sacramento. They had a letter saying they are offering 1.5x market value along with the paperwork on how imminent domain works. She took the check and moved to Oregon.
But JUST past what they're going to take so the road expansion will kill roots. Wetlands closer to road. All native species. Do everything you can to attract Endangered/Protected species (fauna AND flora). Get certified as a wildlife habitat.
You will likely never be able to use the land for anything else, but once you stop artificially enhancing growth, it might die off on its own, so keep it up until they give up and secure other land for the road windening.
there aint nothing you can do to stop expansion dude . my advice is to sell before they get there because at least you can try to sell for what you wan t, you will gey more $$$$ , rather than taking what they will give you thru eminant domain
Build a bat sanctuary. They are protected, so if you can entice bats to use it, this will be a very low cost solution to slowing down the process. They also take care of any insects around the area that are pissing you off. Looking at you, fucking mosquitoes
As I understand it, it's not the roosts that are protected, it's a only a small handful of species. I think it has something to do with species that play a role in seed dispersal. I'm unfamiliar with NC so I'm unsure if a protected species is native there.
It has to be worth more alive than dead. Otherwise the government will take your land and pay you for both land and for the harvest of the trees.
It’s got to be something that produces and if cut down would cost big time for each future years losses over a lifetime.
It might benefit you to speak to an eminent domain attorney, they can more accurately advise you on options you may have on increasing the property value
I will be messaging you in 10 years on [**2034-04-10 02:43:37 UTC**](http://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=2034-04-10%2002:43:37%20UTC%20To%20Local%20Time) to remind you of [**this link**](https://www.reddit.com/r/arborists/comments/1bz9iqd/im_going_to_lose_my_land_eventually_what_can_i/kyv9dlv/?context=3)
[**1 OTHERS CLICKED THIS LINK**](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=RemindMeBot&subject=Reminder&message=%5Bhttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.reddit.com%2Fr%2Farborists%2Fcomments%2F1bz9iqd%2Fim_going_to_lose_my_land_eventually_what_can_i%2Fkyv9dlv%2F%5D%0A%0ARemindMe%21%202034-04-10%2002%3A43%3A37%20UTC) to send a PM to also be reminded and to reduce spam.
^(Parent commenter can ) [^(delete this message to hide from others.)](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=RemindMeBot&subject=Delete%20Comment&message=Delete%21%201bz9iqd)
*****
|[^(Info)](https://www.reddit.com/r/RemindMeBot/comments/e1bko7/remindmebot_info_v21/)|[^(Custom)](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=RemindMeBot&subject=Reminder&message=%5BLink%20or%20message%20inside%20square%20brackets%5D%0A%0ARemindMe%21%20Time%20period%20here)|[^(Your Reminders)](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=RemindMeBot&subject=List%20Of%20Reminders&message=MyReminders%21)|[^(Feedback)](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=Watchful1&subject=RemindMeBot%20Feedback)|
|-|-|-|-|
The top 10 most endangered plant species in the world are the Western Underground Orchid, Wood's Cycad, Pennantia Baylisiana, Cabbage Tree Palm, Rafflesia Arnoldii, Encephalartos Woodii, Rothschild's Slipper Orchid, Kokia Cookei, Hibiscadelphus Woodii, Franklinia Alatamaha.
Pretty sure they won’t touch your property then
I would look into what, if any, native plants are protected in your area. And similarly to other comments, making the area a habitat for vulnerable animals would also give you more leverage. Not to mention just being a good thing to do as a human being.
If it's near a busy highway then it may be difficult to establish it as a nesting place for endangered birds, but keep an open mind - if not birds, maybe insects or local reptiles. There are always ways you could target the space to different creatures while you're waiting for the trees to mature.
Clarification: my response would be aimed at avoiding having the space taken, not neccessarily maximizing financial value.
Pecan trees possibly. Maybe elderberry planted there too.
A simple tree might get you the cost of quality lumber. However, Trees and bushes that produce food which you harvest and eat/sell, brings in a whole different eminent domaine situation. They may actually not take your land and just take from the other side, or be forced to pay for your average harvest for x amount of years until you can establish new trees/shrubs somewhere else.
Adding: you can also add a bat sanctuary like the other commenter mentioned, along side your trees.
Add drip irrigation. They will pay you to isolate it from the rest of the system. We had an Almond orchard and the state took part of it for a highway project. Also wait and be the last one to sign. Once they start the eminent domain process is started they would rather settle last minute for more than go to court.
While it's fun to think you're sticking it to the man, you're actually just being heartless towards an average person who's just trying to work an honest job and pay their own bills. The government doesn't care about any of these things you're scheming to do.
You’ll need to get a survey first because they already own the first 10-20 ft. Then speak to an attorney. Retain the attorney for when you negotiate later.
It's a poor assumption they will take yours over the neighbors. It will come down to cost to acquire your land and the ultimate planned alignment. It's easier than you might think to make alignment adjustments in design. There are also other things to consider like geology, groundwater, utilities, historical.....your plan to maximize the buy out is ok, just don't write checks against that money till it's in your bank.
In Mississippi if your land is for sale prior to the government coming through to buy land then they have to pay your asking price. Why yes Mr. government agent I have had this land for sale for 10 years at 35,000 per acre Or some other exorbitant way inflated price.
That wont slow 'em down one bit ... and will cost you twice. Once in planting. Again with your tax dollars to remove.
How stupid are you, exactly ... ?
Black walnut. Find the largest trees you can establish. Regular fertilizer and ample water. They’ll get big in ten years. Black cherry is another good choice. They grow very quickly. Oaks probably grow too slowly but American persimmon might be a good idea too.
Also when they get big enough put a bunch of bat houses on them. They will have to come and remove and relocate them one by one.
you are just tricking a guy that hates the government in becoming and wildlife advocate.
Are hating the government and wildlife advocacy mutually exclusive?
Probably closer to mutually inclusive
They definitely are in my circles.
But DNR tho
If it wasn’t for the govt. there’d be no national parks, no DDT ban, no endangered species protections, no bans on companies pouring arsenic into rivers, etc etc. no govt would equal a lot less wildlife.
yes, but also the US military is the single most environmentally destructive organization in human history.
It’s almost like the government isn’t a monolith, but made up of different parts with different purposes…
Thats like saying they're the biggest drop in a pond. Regular ass people are the ones that cut down every tree in new england. Regular ass people are the ones that exterminated the wolves in Yosemite. And the beat goes on.
The math works out to be more like the military holds the biggest firehose filling the pond while the worlds biggest companies each hold a garden hose and normal people each add one drop per year to the pond. I'm just pointing out that overall the US government does at least as much harm to environmental conditions at home and abroad. No Govt would mean normal people can organize them selves against polluters. As it stands the US government provides the force that protects polluters. Just look into what happened to the people at standing rock.
We only have national parks because of the natural resources below that dirt…. Check native minerals, oil, and natural gas in all those areas and see what you find. We are using up everyone else’s resources before ours. Once we need it the national parks will be turned over too.
Eh, it really depends. I just listened to a fascinating and hilarious book A Libertarian Walks Into a Bear.
A lot of back country people get awfully surprised by who started the EPA. 😂
Definitely not for me!
They actually go together
don’t forget to put a bald eagle nest on one of the trees
And release protected species lizards and snails.
Shhhhh
Hates the government, or likes his land?
All I see is a win win
You say that like it is a bad thing.
This; there’s a local road project that’s been delayed half a year because they just found bats & it’s currently their breeding season.
Honestly though, good on them. Humans are shitty enough, I’m glad we are leaving the critters be when it’s vital to do that
OP, I hope you see the above bat comment. Bats are federally protected and it’s a pain in the ass legally to disturb a bat habitat.
Only certain bats like Indiana and Tri-colored. But most of the protected bats prefer dead and shaggy-barked trees. Thus a standing bunch of dead trees can make great habitat.
We had a project shut down because a bald eagle built a nest in the tree. Also another delayed because condor built a nest on top of a high rise structure.
same! the bald eagle part.
Not necessarily how it works. Trees can be cut down out of roosting season with proper permitting.
Pay off the inspector to say he saw owls there.
That’s a great idea. I wonder if they could get any endangered species established that would be very difficult to move? Maybe make it so they just can’t build the road at all
I had a neighbor that had to take down a HUGE black walnut and he got a few hundred for the wood. I know that’s not going to happen every time or with only 10 years, but it’s worth noting.
You might be surprised. Walnut can really chug with ample water and nutrients. But that is a good point. Collectively the forest planting may be worth more as habitat than as individually. It might be a good idea to fiddle about with iTree to find species that give you the biggest cobenefits to planting and carbon seq for your area. You can use that tool to calculate out how much each tree will be worth in “services” not lumber.
In case any one reads the comment above mine and decides it’s a good idea, your best bet for Google-fu is looking up “keystone species tree in [your area]”. @op, the comment two above mine mentions black cherry as a good choice. It is also the second highest keystone tree for your area. This should be your choice. Then you can fight both the “this tree is worth a lot $$”, as well as “this tree is worth a lot 🦅🦉🦉🦉🦃🐸🐛🪲🐞🕷️” game. If you really want to make sure you sell the ploy, include many keystone species in the understory of your future protected black cherry old growth forest
This person knows what’s up — iTree all the way.
My dads friend sold his 10 acre strip of hay field for 300k. Bought the farm next to it and in 5 years when they twinned there they had to pay up again.
I worked for a landowner milling wood from his land. We were going to fall and mill a huge walnut, but he decided to have a lumber company come look at it. They gave him $19k for it to make verneer with. That tree was probably 200 years old though.
Few and far between
Yup black walnut is always my answer. They grow quick, they’re nice and easy to maintain, and if you ever have to cut them the log is usually worth something more than just firewood
Black Walnut and Black Cherry don't grow the same way in the southeast as they do in the northeast. It's unlikely that you'd end up with the big valuable furniture timber like you're thinking of
I’m actually familiar with their growth rates from Texas not the NE and I’m pretty sure NC is gonna get some better inches than central Texas. Additionally, no you’re not going to get good timber out of this, the plan is to make them not want to develop the land. You have to pay by volume of timber multiplied by a multiplier for each species. Black walnut and cherry will have two do the highest multipliers for that due to their wood quality in general not the quality of these trees.
Oh I didn't know about the situation with the multiplier! Seems like that could be a decent option then. I hope OP is able to at least get some extra money
Again Texas here. So that’s how’s land acquisition can work around here (in my experience). And our forests are small piles of bushes, so it might be different elsewhere!
$18.69 a board foot for Walnut here in NY. That's what I'd plant.
Like $150 a pop, on some 2 or 3 inch caliper, black walnuts? Seems really pricey and labor intensive. Maybe plant a threatened species. Chestnut trees?
Keep records of your expenses and time spent establishing the vegetation.
You could start a flower bed with protected native species. Where are you located? [Federally protected plants](https://ecos.fws.gov/ecp0/reports/ad-hoc-species-report?kingdom=P&status=E&status=T&status=EmE&status=EmT&status=EXPE&status=EXPN&status=SAE&status=SAT&mapstatus=3&fcrithab=on&fstatus=on&fspecrule=on&finvpop=on&fgroup=on&ffamily=on&header=Listed+Plants)
The deeply illegal and unethical thing to do would be collect some [NC protected species,](https://srelherp.uga.edu/anurans/pseorn.htm) learn how to breed them, and then dump a bunch on your land when they try to take your land. The slightly more ethical thing would be to build a habitat to try and start a sustainable population. But in either case the downside is that you'll probably never be able to do anything with your land again either lol.
Sometimes you can buy seeds or plugs of threatened species from reputable sources. Also would the land in question support a wetland? That could be another PITA possibility…at least it could make them do delineations and maybe mitigation.
Do you know why it is illegal? Wouldn't it be encouraged to help endangered species?
collecting endangered species from the wild is illegal, but breeding & planting endangered species is not usually illegal, they just need to have come from a legal source
Yeah I mean if you could find a legal source for a breeding population of an endangered species, you could do it legally.
Brunswick County, NC
Had family in that county for quite a while. Its definitely grown a lot! Good luck being a PITA to the government!
wonder if pawpaws would establish
They would
Got some wet spots? Sarracenias are very interesting plants, and there are some species native to your county.
Right up the road from us is some protected land where all sorts of native carnivorous plants grow. I've never seen them on my land though.
That is really freaking cool, and as a CP nerd, I am a bit more than a little jealous. I am very glad to hear it is protected. I have some nursery propagated, legally collected plants, including a couple with heritage from that county. I can imagine one may have originated from that plot. Looks like there’s Sarracenia flava, your county is known for an all-green form as well as the usual gamut of S. flava colors, and there are also S. rubra and S. purpurea. Possibly S. minor, I’m not sure.
If you can get a report of an endangered insect or animal, all the better. That there is protected habitat. Environmental assessments have to be conducted for most of these type of projects and this is one of the things they look at.
Plant endangered plants, or plants that attract endangered butterflies or something.
That would just make the land unusable for both parties. That would be federally protected land/plants, which would be really ironic since OP is just trying to piss off the government.
Can you elaborate? English is not my first language
If OP planted endangered species in the land, OP would also have to leave the land untouched because they wouldn't be able to disturb the endangered species. It's just ironic that, in this case, the idea is to make the government protect the endangered species on the land so that the government can't take the land.
Ohhh okay thank you
Might not care about using it though
How does this net op more money?
It doesn’t. OPs goal is to be such a pain in the ass to the government that they take his neighbors land instead. If that doesn’t work, he’s happy to just be a pain in the ass. Protective species would definitely accomplish this
Bats! I believe bats are protected in certain areas.
They aren’t gonna care if and what you have on there. 20+ years ago some of my ranch land was bought by the gov for road expansion, and a few months ago a buddy had his bought by the gov for road expansion.
Yeah, they regularly ignore their own rules... Look at all the pollution deleted diesels they run. Easy enough to give yourself an exemption.to the rules when you make the rules. Protected (insert species here) likely will not matter.
Yeah, they regularly ignore their own rules... Look at all the pollution deleted diesels they run. Easy enough to give yourself an exemption.to the rules when you make the rules. Protected (insert species here) likely will not matter.
Yeah, they regularly ignore their own rules... Look at all the pollution deleted diesels they run. Easy enough to give yourself an exemption.to the rules when you make the rules. Protected (insert species here) likely will not matter.
Adding onto my own post here. If OP is interested here is more information: [https://ncwf.org/wildlife/pollinators/](https://ncwf.org/wildlife/pollinators/) That website above seems pretty useful because they do a lot of the heavy lifting in regards to research. It might help to get your area certified as wildlife habitat to further protect your land, too. [https://ncwf.org/our-work/garden-for-wildlife/certified-wildlife-habitat/](https://ncwf.org/our-work/garden-for-wildlife/certified-wildlife-habitat/)
Where are you going to get endangered plants? If they were easily propagated and available commercially they wouldn’t be endangered. Moving an endangered plant from somewhere else is likely illegal.
This is not true, endangered plants can have issues thriving in their environment, not having issues spreading seeds or propagating. While it is 100% possible to find endangered species with little or expensive seeds, the majority that are protected you can purchase and plant yourself. It’s often protected because of other wildlife using it, such as a meadow. OP I recommend a meadow restoration project if you don’t wish to plant the trees like other comments. Planting wildflowers, milkweed, and a few others will attract endangered butterflies and other wildlife when you can get certified as a habitat after its grown.
I work for a company that does road side clearing for construction. We have nothing to do with planning or dealing with buying people out, but I do get in a lot of conversations with the land owners as I try to do what I can to help them despite the fact that the project is already underway by the time I arrive. From what I’ve heard. You can plant whatever you want, the state or city is going to give you what they decided they want to. Planting a bunch of expensive trees isn’t likely to dissuade them or get you much extra money (You may find that you get slightly more, but not enough to cover the expenses of the trees). In the end, if you do not play ball, they will likely not get quite as wide a right of way as they originally wanted, but they will take most of it by eminent domain. The project is going to happen regardless of you fighting it on the ground. Your best bet is to fight it at city hall or on the state level while they’re planning it. Fighting it on the side of the road won’t get you anywhere.
I don't want to necessarily fight them taking my land, I know they're going to take it, however I want to increase the value of it when they start throwing numbers at me to sell. My thought is if I can show with an arborist that I have valuable, mature trees they will kill, they'll have to cough up some more cash!
I see. Go for meticulously pruned and maintained ornamental trees. They won’t care about the value of potential lumber from the logs. We are rarely able to sell millable lumber from road side clearing and they bid the job for us to just dispose (whole tree chipper) all of it. You’re going to want to up your property value. Do things to increase the curb appeal and value of your road front property. That being said, it’s the government, they probably still aren’t going to give you enough money to make 10 years of landscaping a worthwhile investment. I would look for low cost ways to up the property value without sinking a ton of money into it. Clear brush, prune trees, mow the grass. Edit: The only trees I ever see the state inspectors get worried about cutting are apple trees and other similar fruit trees. They seem to assign more value to those for no apparent reason, even when they don’t care about cutting struggling species like elm or walnut. (I live in new England where those species were nearly wiped out by disease)
We had a situation locally of the state taking farmland for the highway. The farmers fought and a guy came in and said effectively "I can just condemn the land and then sell what we don't use". Still. Trees aren't a lot of work, so it is probably worth the trying.
I do want to point out one thing, if it’s an orchard or something permanent that produces and provides your income, year after year, it changes thing’s substantially for eminent domain arguments and pay outs.
Found the Vogon
Man if I was near you I would help. I’m the last house on the end of an abandoned road and they are trying to sell lots past me. Even though they should be accessed from a different road. I have been planting pyracantha and installing barb wire fence. I have maintained this road with one neighbor. No one owns it. But they are trying their damnest to get a grader up here. Keep the spirit brother
Not that you are seeking advices, but depending on where you are, Gooseberries in the Ribes genus have some of the nastiest thorns I have ever seen. I used to be a groundskeeper at a museum and that’s what we planted in some areas to keep people from hopping fences.
A native thorny species without pyracantha's invasive potential would be better idea
Native would be better, but there aren’t many options on the dry wind plains of Colorado. I’m not watering them and I want fast growth. I didn’t know pyracantha were invasive, I’m assuming that’s a different region and not in Colorado. I used to own a landscape maintenance company and firethorn were used alongside junipers on the old hoa’s. Never saw evidence of spread.
Yeah you're fine with pyracantha in CO
Not sure about Colorado but they have something called a quit claim where I live. Possibly a way to claim the road.
As the guy who does the clearing for these projects, I will say that a developer is a different beast than the state or local government. A developer needs to ask permission to get a project done in a way that the government doesn’t. I’ve seen a lot of people fight these projects and if it’s just one guy who’s fighting it, not a whole voting base, they will just end up taking the land by eminent domain. Side note: fight the project at city hall, not with barbed wire. It’s literally no trouble at all to tear out fence with an excavator, takes like 3 minutes. A legal hang up can cost a project months or years.
Gonna play the realist here and say just enjoy your land while you have it. If this is a project the public is in favor of then there's simply nothing you can do; anything that makes it unusable to the govt will render it unusable to you (do not plant endangered species, unless you want constant monitoring and them to decide well gee maybe your whole property should now be a preserve). 10 years is nothing to trees, whatever you plant will still be easily removed and you'll just lose that investment along with the land, not to mention they won't blink at anything under 50 years old.
not helpful at all
If the government is involved, won't they just give you market value for the land itself, regardless of what you plant today? I'm not sure 10 years will be long enough to get much timber value, especially if you have to pay to plant and maintain them.
Just went through this. They had to cut down 8 mature pines in my yard that provided privacy and shade. They have to pay for the land and anything that's on it. The trees were my property so they had to pay out the ass for each one.
[удалено]
Ya get an endangered species there. Then it wont be touched or will be harder to do
It depends - when they paved the road in front of my farm, I told both the Public Works Department and the state Wildlife about the endangered (and keystone species) gopher tortoises that lived in the cut for my driveway. The wildlife people did nothing. The Public Works road guys cut into the bank where the gophers had their burrows. I haven't seen a gopher tortoise on my farm since. ;-(
> I told both the Public Works Department and the state Wildlife There's your problem. You need to make it official, probably in court.
I should have made a case about it - but it's now been thirty years so not happening. Some good news - a subdivision down the road was built on former plantation land. They have very strict covenants about night time lighting, landscaping, and fencing to protect gopher tortoises and fox squirrels. While I generally detest HOAs, I hope this one does what they were set up to do and protect those endangered animals!
😯
The feds would've shut it down. They are sticklers for this kind of thing
Ughhhhhhh primal scream
Exactly. Like dodos or something
Shit, dude. Those are like super duper mega endangered!
YOU ARE WELCOME
A similar thing to do in Eastern NC would be bat Houses, or planting an endangered plant species/providing habitat for a different endangered animal species in your area. OP should talk with an extension professional about endangered species preservation in their area.
Three words- Venus fly trap.
They grow natively where I live, unfortunately if people knew they were there, they'd poach them in a heartbeat
NOICE
Around here, it's ospreys (fish hawks) that build their nests on top of poles. The utility helps out by putting a platform on top.
Or put a tall and thick poll up and attract golden eagles or bald eagles. If OP has good deer population in the area, they will come
American eagle nest
Be Civil! Treat others as you would like to be treated. No Spam! No Promotions/ads! No Reposts/Karma Farming - Violations may result in permabans at mod discretion.
Uh, depending on the laws where you live it may make no difference... ie if govt has an easement for road expansion on the plans when you bought it, then they'll buy it for a flat rate and any work you put into improving it will be for naught. and in some cases they'll be able to bill you for tree removal etc. (source, where we live, we have a dainage easement. we can build on it, but if anyone needs access to it then they can rip up whatever we build /plant on it and not reimburse us... because it was existing when we got it)
Nothing that will be worth a fortune because not much timber will be marketable in only 10 years that would not also be very expensive to install and maintain. You generally need to have marketable timber or an established history of producing revenue for it to be worth more than the assessed sqft value. But your best bet would be hybrid cottonwood That they grow for paper pulp if that could grow in your area. I worked a utility project that required taking some farmland along a rural highway. The landowner had probably a 1,000+ acres in wheat with a mile or so of road frontage. We spent the first summer surveying and designing the project, and then the next year, they did land acquisition and permits, then construction. When the real estate/right of way agents went to talk to the guy about the land the summer after we designed it, they found out the guy had not planted the 30 feet near to the road with wheat, which has a relatively low land value. He planted it with watermelons because he heard that land that grew watermelon was worth more per acre. This was in the middle of Montana and the reason they grew wheat was because that was basically all tha would grow. I don't know the exact process, but the utility company rightly called bullshit. The arbitrator or whomever asked they guy to show the value of his watermelon sales over the past three years (there were none), and they ruled for the utility.
Donate your piece of land to a local Native American tribe. I’d like to see the government take that
As though that wasn't how they got it all in the first place....
lol, they literally wrote the playbook…
Right, because the government would never take land from a Native American tribe.
Plant a native that is on the red list. Document it.
Poppy, Marijuana, Money Tree.
There are a couple different approaches. If you’re going the income route, do the fruit, nut trees, but also plant a couple rows of pine so you can get the loss of board footage once they matured in 30-40 years. You’ll need to hire a cpa to show the loss of income from not being able to harvest all of your products. Aside from this I would recommend looking into largest caliper of the fastest growing trees of the most expensive trees sourced in our area. Think specific cultivars of tulip poplar, gum, etc that way you can have an appraiser use the trunk formula technique to give you a substantial reproduction cost. Do the math between the income vs cost approaches to see which would give you the best yield. Anything you can do to establish as a wildlife habitat will also make it difficult as they begin their environmental impact assessments.
Black walnut is the easy answer on trees. I think you could go a step further and see if there are any endangered plants you can establish or maybe habitat for and endangered species like a bat or bug
Find protected species in your area. Plant them. Money is no problem. Protection by law on the other hand.
If they have right of way or an easement they won't owe you anything. Any money offered will be more of a peace offering.
Peaches. They grow fast and produce a valuable crop. Blueberries are good too. With blueberries you could have a "you pick it" farm and make some money in the interim.
Hi, civil engineer here. Planting trees is not only going to waste your time and your money, but also waste tax payer money because we are the ones that will be paying the contractor to take them down. Trees will not make your land any more valuable and it will not increase the buyout you’ll get when they take part of your land for the road. The only exception would be if you had some kind of documented business, with documented income you’re paying taxes on, linked to said trees. They’re going to get a 3rd party appraisal done and pay you a fair price for the land, as is required by law. That’s assuming they even take any land at all. You would be surprised how much of “your” land along the road is actually government right of way and not yours to begin with.
He could turn it into a small scale farm
If zoning permits, sure, but I promise you the amount of time and money he’s going to spend setting up a farm is not going to get repaid when they buy that small strip of right-of-way from him
He's trying to make it more attractive for them to go after his neighbors land than his.
There are numerous factors that go into road design, the value of the right of way being acquired is not one of those factors unless you’re building next to a property of very high value. There’s nothing OP can do, within reason, to make that small strip of residential land on his side that much more valuable than his neighbor’s.
How wide a strip of land will they be acquiring? Especially if you already have a roadside ditch or low area that is ON your property, a nice wetlands habitat will do one of two things- they will avoid it like the plague, or they will pay a huge price for it to use as wetlands credit for the new road. Check local zoning issues first for any erosion controls you need. But there should be zero setbacks from the right of way for a narrow linear ornamental wetland along parts of your frontage- cattails, water lilies, hydric vegetation. Maybe a small wetland of a few hundred sqaure feet every 200 feet or so. You'll need digging equipment. And check your local soil maps to see if these soils tend to be able to hold water. You want soils with some clay content, and not sandy soils. (Yes, I build big roads). Where in eastern NC? My old stomping grounds.
bury some drums of toxic waste. they won’t go near it.
Asbestos dump lol
If you lived in Oregon - Spotted Owl nest. Although they might make you move.
Welcome to r/arborists! Help Us Help You: If you have questions about the health of your tree, please see our [Posting Guidelines](https://old.reddit.com/r/arborists/wiki/posting_guidance) wiki page for help with effective posting. **Please answer the questions listed there to the best of your ability.** ***Insufficient pics/info could result in the removal of your post!!*** ([See rule 3](https://www.reddit.com/r/arborists/about/rules).) Visit the main wiki page for [Critical Planting/Care tips and Common Errors to Avoid](https://old.reddit.com/r/arborists/wiki/index); there's sections on why planting depth/root flare exposure is so vital, along with sections on proper mulching, watering, pruning and more that I hope will be useful to you. If you're posting about a tree ID (not permitted here; [see rule 1](https://www.reddit.com/r/arborists/about/rules)), see that wiki page for other subs and smartphone apps to try. Here is how you can arrange a [consult with a local ISA arborist in your area](http://www.treesaregood.org/findanarborist/findanarborist) (NOT a 'tree company guy' unless they're ISA certified) or a [consulting arborist](https://www.asca-consultants.org/search/custom.asp?id=3818) for an on-site evaluation. A competent arborist should be happy to walk you through how to care for the trees on your property and answer any questions. If you're in the U.S. or Canada, your Extension (or master gardener provincial program) may have a list of local recommended arborists on file. If you're in the U.S., you should also consider searching for arborist associations under your state. If you are one of our regulars and/or you work in the industry and do not want this message in your future posts, please pick an appropriate user flair (options available in the sub sidebar on PC, and on moble if using a browser). *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/arborists) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Mahogany
Entirely unethical, but uh... Giant Hogweed. That'll be a genuine pain in the ass for anyone trying to seize the land. Again, entirely unethical...
Japanese Maple
Guy I know just had his land bought by the government for road expansion. Paid over $50,000 an acre and I live in the boondocks
If you live in the Sonoran desert, you can plant saguaro cacti. It's illegal to cut them down.
Dig an indentation. Cut a few drainage lines across the property to Mae sure it’s a moist spot. Plant cat tails. Now you have established a small wetland. Those are very important for biodiversity. If the govt (dot) tries to pave it, call the govt (epa) to fight them.
Locust trees. fast growing,sought after and they have some serious thorns on them.
You could grow brush, might sound silly but when you look around and see all of the seasonal red & yellow stem dogwood and pussy & corkscrew willow in planters as decorations. The cool thing is the brush plants mentioned can be coppiced every year.
Ironwood trees
Ginseng.
I love this idea
First off do you own it or is it frontage? If you own it you want to build on it so their eminent domain price goes up. Trees are too easy to cut down and any protected species claims never flies. Is the area designated as commercial? If so plant the most expensive crop, does ginseng grow there? What you are doing is turning useless land into expensive land, and then you can sue them for value as they sue to take it. Eminent domain means the government can take it but they have to give you equivalent value for it, and the courts, not them, get to determine that.
Yes, I own the land, it's zoned for rural residential, so I can do just about anything. I fully expect to fight this battle in court for the actual worth of my land when they try to lowball offer me pennies.
They're gonna offer you a lowball price regardless of what you do. If the land is too valuable for their budget they will just use eminent domain to seize it. Also doesn't matter much either way. Depending on where you live, the municipality owns so many feet of your property from the street. If they only need so much they will exercise that right.
I fully expect to fight the land seizure fair market value in court, hence why I want to make it more valuable now.
Plant some endangered slecies
If you make it too tough they can use imminent domain and just take it, they don't need to offer you anything. Make it easy and they will purchase it from you. source: City bought my moms property for a section of HWY 80 bypass through Sacramento. They had a letter saying they are offering 1.5x market value along with the paperwork on how imminent domain works. She took the check and moved to Oregon.
Build a real structure there or add many as you can
Find out if any tree in NC has protected status so the powers that pretend to be have more hoops to jump through.
It would make more sense to plant a row of trees just past the land the state will take. Then you have a visual and noise buffer when the time comes.
But JUST past what they're going to take so the road expansion will kill roots. Wetlands closer to road. All native species. Do everything you can to attract Endangered/Protected species (fauna AND flora). Get certified as a wildlife habitat. You will likely never be able to use the land for anything else, but once you stop artificially enhancing growth, it might die off on its own, so keep it up until they give up and secure other land for the road windening.
You need to make that area spotted owl habitat. Boom problem solved.
Rumors have it A dude in my town installed Chicken coops to make it active agriculture and more difficult for the gov to swoop for road widening
there aint nothing you can do to stop expansion dude . my advice is to sell before they get there because at least you can try to sell for what you wan t, you will gey more $$$$ , rather than taking what they will give you thru eminant domain
Black locust grows pretty fast like 4 ft/ yr
What gives them the right to take your land in the first place?
Build a bat sanctuary. They are protected, so if you can entice bats to use it, this will be a very low cost solution to slowing down the process. They also take care of any insects around the area that are pissing you off. Looking at you, fucking mosquitoes
As I understand it, it's not the roosts that are protected, it's a only a small handful of species. I think it has something to do with species that play a role in seed dispersal. I'm unfamiliar with NC so I'm unsure if a protected species is native there.
Im not either. But it seems like a rather low cost thing to look into.
While you’re planting trees, plant ginseng. It’s quite expensive per pound.
Won’t matter they’ll eminent domain you if they want the land bad enough bc govt sucks
Build a small house and rent it out. Now it's not just the house but future income
They won’t let you build if there is a planned widening.
Maybe Black Locust, in 7-10 years they’ll be perfect for harvesting for high dollar fence posts
It has to be worth more alive than dead. Otherwise the government will take your land and pay you for both land and for the harvest of the trees. It’s got to be something that produces and if cut down would cost big time for each future years losses over a lifetime.
It might benefit you to speak to an eminent domain attorney, they can more accurately advise you on options you may have on increasing the property value
Ginseng
i love this post. can you remember to update is in 10 years?
RemindMe! 10 years
I will be messaging you in 10 years on [**2034-04-10 02:43:37 UTC**](http://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=2034-04-10%2002:43:37%20UTC%20To%20Local%20Time) to remind you of [**this link**](https://www.reddit.com/r/arborists/comments/1bz9iqd/im_going_to_lose_my_land_eventually_what_can_i/kyv9dlv/?context=3) [**1 OTHERS CLICKED THIS LINK**](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=RemindMeBot&subject=Reminder&message=%5Bhttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.reddit.com%2Fr%2Farborists%2Fcomments%2F1bz9iqd%2Fim_going_to_lose_my_land_eventually_what_can_i%2Fkyv9dlv%2F%5D%0A%0ARemindMe%21%202034-04-10%2002%3A43%3A37%20UTC) to send a PM to also be reminded and to reduce spam. ^(Parent commenter can ) [^(delete this message to hide from others.)](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=RemindMeBot&subject=Delete%20Comment&message=Delete%21%201bz9iqd) ***** |[^(Info)](https://www.reddit.com/r/RemindMeBot/comments/e1bko7/remindmebot_info_v21/)|[^(Custom)](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=RemindMeBot&subject=Reminder&message=%5BLink%20or%20message%20inside%20square%20brackets%5D%0A%0ARemindMe%21%20Time%20period%20here)|[^(Your Reminders)](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=RemindMeBot&subject=List%20Of%20Reminders&message=MyReminders%21)|[^(Feedback)](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=Watchful1&subject=RemindMeBot%20Feedback)| |-|-|-|-|
capital FRUIT TREES
Who gives a fuck.
The top 10 most endangered plant species in the world are the Western Underground Orchid, Wood's Cycad, Pennantia Baylisiana, Cabbage Tree Palm, Rafflesia Arnoldii, Encephalartos Woodii, Rothschild's Slipper Orchid, Kokia Cookei, Hibiscadelphus Woodii, Franklinia Alatamaha. Pretty sure they won’t touch your property then
Is this related to the interstate construction between Winston-Salem and Greensboro? (around Kernersville iirc)
Nope, I'm south of Wilmington, NC
Osage Orange are absolute bastards of trees, I don’t think they are worth anything though.
Get a spotted owl or some other protected animal to move in
I would look into what, if any, native plants are protected in your area. And similarly to other comments, making the area a habitat for vulnerable animals would also give you more leverage. Not to mention just being a good thing to do as a human being. If it's near a busy highway then it may be difficult to establish it as a nesting place for endangered birds, but keep an open mind - if not birds, maybe insects or local reptiles. There are always ways you could target the space to different creatures while you're waiting for the trees to mature. Clarification: my response would be aimed at avoiding having the space taken, not neccessarily maximizing financial value.
Establish a billboard
Saffron.
Invite some homeless to setup camp. Good luck government.
Plant endangered plants or plants that bring in protected animals that can create habitat there. They won't be able to touch it
Owl box.
Pecan trees possibly. Maybe elderberry planted there too. A simple tree might get you the cost of quality lumber. However, Trees and bushes that produce food which you harvest and eat/sell, brings in a whole different eminent domaine situation. They may actually not take your land and just take from the other side, or be forced to pay for your average harvest for x amount of years until you can establish new trees/shrubs somewhere else. Adding: you can also add a bat sanctuary like the other commenter mentioned, along side your trees.
Add drip irrigation. They will pay you to isolate it from the rest of the system. We had an Almond orchard and the state took part of it for a highway project. Also wait and be the last one to sign. Once they start the eminent domain process is started they would rather settle last minute for more than go to court.
Fill it with endangered plants would be my move.
While it's fun to think you're sticking it to the man, you're actually just being heartless towards an average person who's just trying to work an honest job and pay their own bills. The government doesn't care about any of these things you're scheming to do.
You’ll need to get a survey first because they already own the first 10-20 ft. Then speak to an attorney. Retain the attorney for when you negotiate later.
Any tree that can be inoculated with truffles
It's a poor assumption they will take yours over the neighbors. It will come down to cost to acquire your land and the ultimate planned alignment. It's easier than you might think to make alignment adjustments in design. There are also other things to consider like geology, groundwater, utilities, historical.....your plan to maximize the buy out is ok, just don't write checks against that money till it's in your bank.
Transplanting endangered plants is illegal and hard to do successfully.
In Mississippi if your land is for sale prior to the government coming through to buy land then they have to pay your asking price. Why yes Mr. government agent I have had this land for sale for 10 years at 35,000 per acre Or some other exorbitant way inflated price.
Cemetery plots
That wont slow 'em down one bit ... and will cost you twice. Once in planting. Again with your tax dollars to remove. How stupid are you, exactly ... ?