Charlottesville Area Tree Stewards
Promoting the Urban Forest
The Ragged Mountain Natural Area project started in 2017. A larger reservoir was constructed two years ago eliminating some existing trails. A new set of hiking trails (measuring about 13 miles) has been marked. CATS workdays consist of removing invasives, mostly Autumn Olive and Ailanthus. Tree Stewards assist City of Charlottesville crews to maintain the forest as an…
Greenleaf Park, City of Charlottesville, was originally part of McIntire Park. It was created when the 250 Bypass was constructed and cut the parcel off from the rest of McIntire Park. Greenleaf Park is bordered by Rose Hill Dr. and the 250 Bypass. The park consists of a play yard and trails through the surrounding forest.…
This project was started in 2009. Located on Barracks Road across from the BB&T Bank, it is the trailhead of one of the Rivanna Trails which leads to “the Park” and skirts behind the professional schools at UVA. This public land is owned by UVA which has contributed money for plants as well as the…
Tom Wild leads this on-going project which has the ultimate goal of re-establishing the American Chestnut Tree. Workdays occur at different sites where owners have set aside sections of their land for experimentation and investigation in the search for a variety resistant to the destructive blight that has eliminated the Chestnut tree from our forests.…
CATS has been selling trees since 2012 both in the Spring and Fall. We sell between 300 to 400 trees. CATS purchases trees and gets donated trees for the sale. The nursery is maintained by CATS volunteers on the grounds of the Virginia Department of Forestry. In recent years CATS has often partnered with Master…
Oversee removal of invasive species with the Volunteer Workforce for Invasive Removal In this ongoing project, begun in 2015 and led by Tim Maywalt, CATS has led civic groups, service groups, CATS trainees, scouts, and summer campers in an effort to: keep the trails passable and less hazardous, maintain cleared meadow areas, and remove invasive…