In late 2012, NBW’s Conservation Agriculture Studio was engaged to re-envision Overlook, a 320-acre family estate and cultural heritage landscape in Dalton, Pennsylvania - in the early 20th century the Olmsted Brothers were commissioned to design and implement plans for what was to be a weekend and summer retreat. The plan for Overlook preserves the property’s rich ecosystems, celebrates cultural heritage and establishes a model of tandem agricultural and ecological production. NBW’s Studio created a Stewardship Plan which will assure the health, productivity and profitability of the Overlook Landscape sustainably into the future. An integral part of the Conservation Agriculture Studio is the Biological Baseline Survey (Bio-Blitz). This rapid ecological assay joins NBW with a distinguished group of Ecologists from the Roosevelt Wildlife Station in Syracuse, New York. During the beginning of summer, between June 20-23 we joined forces for a long weekend of camping, collection, collaboration and observation as we delved into the wildlife of Overlook. Resulting information was then synthesized with possible habitat range to generate population estimates to be designed into the long term plan of the property and coupled with agricultural systems.
Collaborators: Farm Consultant Zachary Wolf, SUNY College of Environmental Sciences and Forestry, Roosevelt Wild Station
