1. What we do
  2. Reservation Stewardship

Reservation Stewardship

Family walks on a trail to go blueberry picking on a forest reservation
A family on their way to go blueberry picking on Morse Preserve in Alton, NH. Photo by Jerry Monkman/Ecophotography.

The Reservation Stewardship Department is responsible for the management of the Forest Society’s fee-owned lands (over 56,000 acres, the Forest Society’s largest asset).   These lands are managed with a vision that is focused on the future, ensuring the biological richness of the state while providing economic and social returns to the organization, its members, and the public.

Our collection of reservations includes properties in over 100 New Hampshire towns and contains the complete array of forest types, natural communities, habitats, and recreational opportunities found within the state. Our foresters work to develop a Tree Farm® certified management plan for each reservation.  These plans include management goals and objectives related to the key resource areas of timber, wildlife habitat, water quality, natural communities, unique natural and cultural features and recreation. 

With few exceptions, all of our reservations are open to the public for fishing, hunting, hiking and other passive pedestrian recreation. Please visit our Reservation Guide to see property locations around the state and trail maps for the properties most suitable for recreation. 

The Forest Society has been committed to responsible and sustainable forest management since its inception. In fact, most of our reservations are primarily managed for forestry and wildlife habitat. Annually, we conduct timber harvests on a handful of our properties to improve the vigor and quality of the timber and to develop much needed forest openings that will provide "young forest" wildlife habitat.  The proceeds from these operations are re-invested by the Forest Society into other land protection efforts.  

In addition to our commitment to high standards of timber management, the Forest Society has also demonstrated a long-standing commitment to the identification, designation and stewardship of Ecological Reserves on our reservations. These Eco-Reserves are areas on our reservations that contain unique or fragile features and will be managed with specific objectives to maintain those qualities.