2026 Catalyzing Agroforestry Grant Program applications close on March 3, 2026.
HartWood
Johnson County, IA
Location:
Johnson County, IA
Total Acres:
46 Acres
Agroforestry Acres:
46 Acres
Year Established:
2025
Introduction
We are starting to plant a diverse range of fruits and nuts with a focus on chestnuts in a field that was previously conventional row crops. We are also planning to add, a variety of berries, paw paw, persimmon, heartnut, stone fruits, pears, and perennial flowers and ornamentals with hay as an alley crop. We plan to market through u-pick as well as wholesale and value-added items.
Some of our main goals are to increase biodiversity, improve soil health, and demonstrate alternative diverse perennial food crops as a replacement for current commodity crop monocultures in area.
Main Agroforestry Species
Chinese chestnuts, paw paw, American persimmon, heartnut, walnut, Asian pear, yellowbud hickory, blackberry, raspberry, honeyberry, black currant, bush cherry, gooseberry, aronia, serviceberry, elderberry, grass/alfalfa hay
Contact Information
Main Contact:
Katie Hochstedler
Phone
Email:
Website:
Social Link
Social Link
Site Visitors
by appointment only
Nursery or Planting Stock Provider Information
Agroforestry System Design
We are in the early stages so far but planning to put around 25 acres into chestnuts at 25 ft between rows and 20-25 feet within rows. There will be some areas of chestnuts interplanted with paw paws with two trees between each pair of chestnuts. In fall 2025 we planted the first part of a 2 acre berry patch and 3 acres of chestnut and paw paw.
Personal or Collective Experiences
December 15, 2025 at 4:24:58 PM