What is a MN Woodland Stewardship Plan? (For landowners in Minnesota)

A Stewardship Plan helps you understand what is in your woods, how to improve them, and when to do work. A unique plan is developed for your woods based on your land management goals. The plan can help you stay on track over the long-term and keep your woods healthy and beautiful. Plans are written for woodland owners with 20 to 5,000 acres where at least 10 acres have or will have trees. Plans are updated every 10 years to stay current with your needs and your woods.

Requirements for a Stewardship Plan?

You must implement your plan to remain eligible for SFIA/Class 2C. Implementation can mean various things and depends on your management goals—maybe you build a trail, set up a thinning, remove invasive species, or plant new trees. After reading your plan's recommendations, you decide which actions to complete. The goal is to put good woodland stewardship into practice on your land throughout the plan duration.

The acreage required is a minimum of 20 acres for a stewardship plan to be written. Of which 10 acres must be forested or planted to be a forest.

Why should I get a Stewardship Plan?

A Stewardship Plan is an actionable plan that is for 10 years. Each plan will include your objectives, property history, current forest and wildlife inventories, management options and alternatives, as well as financial guidance.

A Stewardship plan is the first step and opens your property to multiple programs and cost-share project opportunities, these programs can help increase revenue, lower taxes, increase diversity, increase timber investment, and overall the land value.

Have more questions?

2c: Contact your county assessor here.

SFIA: Contact the Department of Revenue, phone: 651-556-6088, e-mail: proptax.sfia@state.mn.us