Grassroots Gretna is an independent, community-rooted project focused on ecological education—especially as it relates to the land, forests, and water resources within Mount Gretna, but with lessons that apply in any neighborhood. Grassroots efforts, as inspired by the Homegrown National Park message—that everyday people, planting native species and caring for wild patches, can help regenerate biodiversity—resonate in this effort. Join me in that spirit: build on what you’ve already started, or find a place to begin.
What You’ll Find Here
Forests First - How we care, steward, for woodlands over time—from basic maintenance to longer-term succession planning. This includes pruning, replanting, invasive species control, tree health, and more. No parcel is too small to be stewarded—it’s all connected.
Water at Work - Mount Gretna’s forests are more than scenery—they help keep our water safe. Because our community sits within the protection zone of the regional aquifer, what happens on every property, large or small, has the potential to affect the water we all drink. This section explains how forest health connects to runoff, erosion, and groundwater recharge, and highlights practical steps we can each take to safeguard water quality.
Easement 101 - Conservation easements have been part of the community conversation since 2023. This section offers a plain-language overview of what easements are, how they work, and why permanence matters. It also introduces another option now available in Mount Gretna: protection through a DCNR C2P2 Acquisition & Development grant, the tool used to secure Soldiers Field in 2022 and now a potential path for the Southern Woodlands.
Who Stewards Our Woodlands?
We do—all of us. Mount Gretna’s land is owned by a mix of individual homeowners, the Pennsylvania Chautauqua, and the Mount Gretna Borough. For the purposes of this site, the Chautauqua and Borough are considered landowners alongside everyone else.
This map of property lines helps put land distribution into perspective. It shows which areas are communal and which belong to individual households—reminding us that every parcel, large or small, benefits from stewardship—ongoing care—and restoration where healing is needed. Just as important, each parcel is connected to the next. Together they form the fabric of our community landscape, and when cared for collectively, they create the continuous spaces where wildlife can thrive.
And those connections don’t stop at Mount Gretna’s boundary. Our woodlands, gardens, and green patches link outward into the larger landscapes that surround us—part of a regional network of forests, streams, and habitat corridors. When we care for our own parcels, we strengthen not only our community’s resilience, but also its role in the broader ecological system that supports us all.
Why Now?
A common question: “Why do we need stewardship now? The trees have been fine since the Chautauqua was founded in 1892.”
The answer is both simple and urgent:
Ecosystems once more stable now face stronger storms, new pests, and shifting conditions.
Aging canopy trees are not being replaced quickly enough by younger native trees that should form the next generation of the forest.
Stormwater runoff, intensified by climate, compounds the runoff from past land changes (including State Game Lands #145 clear-cut in 2009) and continues to affect our community landscape.
Neglect is no longer neutral. Doing nothing, once considered safe, now lets decline take hold faster. Stewardship is about resilience: if we lose forest health, our drinking water, our habitat, and our sense of place all suffer. The phrase “Under the trees of the old Chautauqua” will lose meaning if there are no healthy trees left to gather under.
This is not just about protecting a past—it’s about safeguarding a future.
How This Site Approaches Information
I’m not a forester, hydrologist, or lawyer. I’m simply a Mount Gretna neighbor who cares deeply about this place. My belief is that good ecological decisions start with clarity, reliable sources, and solid science.
What you’ll find here is education-focused content, drawn from trusted sources—ecological science publications, government programs, regional plans, and also from local practitioners. I’ll link sources directly within the text or list them in the Explore Further or Sources sections.
Grassroots Gretna isn’t affiliated with the Chautauqua Board of Managers, the Chautauqua Foundation, the Borough, or the Mount Gretna Authority. It’s the work of one resident—guided by practitioners who generously share their knowledge—who believes that stewardship is important, begins with understanding, and that accessible information helps every neighbor make better choices.