Open space: there was a time when it was just outside the door for many Americans. Increasingly, it requires time and effort to find a pastoral landscape that provides serenity, solace, and sustenance. As such sights become rarer, those who love living things, wild things, and growing things feel a responsibility to help land lovers, gardeners, orchardists, and outdoor recreationists improve their land by cultivating living products, sustaining local people and wildlife, and enriching their own lives. Fortunately, the means are at our disposal. 

Agricultural Zoning

Agricultural zoning is an important land management tool often used by municipalities to protect and conserve agricultural land for small-, medium- and large-scale farming. It applies on multiple scales, from nationwide and regional to state and municipal levels. It incorporates climate and temperature as well as land use recommendations and regulations. Like any tool, landowners should use it wisely as an unfamiliarity could cause problems for well-meaning land managers. 

Effective agricultural zoning begins with land use planning. One of the goals is to protect soils most suitable for agriculture, which requires first identifying those soils. The USDA has developed a classification system containing over 20,000 soil series descriptions. Using this, they have mapped soil series by county for most regions of the country. Books from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service are available and are a good starting point as they identify which soil series are best suited for agriculture. The next step is identifying which areas within a municipality contain these soils and are worthy of protection, directing other development to non-suitable soils. 

Once these areas are identified, municipalities can create agricultural zones or districts through agricultural laws, regulations, and codes. Formalizing these helps minimize conflict from non-agricultural activities and clarify what activities are in compliance. For example, agricultural zoning regulations might limit the number and type of buildings and structures allowed to avoid development “creep.” They might also stipulate the activities allowed so that the best soils are used for agriculture. In contrast, sites with poorer soils in the agricultural zone might be used for forestry or raising livestock. 

Agricultural zoning is generally divided into two types: exclusive and non-exclusive. As the name implies, exclusive agricultural zoning prohibits most other non-agricultural activities. Non-exclusive agricultural zoning may permit some other uses, like residential, but often with more restrictive regulations on minimum lot size. Local farmland agricultural zoning ordinances are typically drafted by municipalities, often with general zoning guidelines provided by the county or state. They may contain further exceptions or restrictions based on local circumstances and situations. It is also possible in some situations to get a variance, depending on what is being requested. 

Owning land zoned for agriculture is not without its obligations. Obvious ones include compliance with ordinances and restrictions. Less obvious ones include things like

practicing sustainable farming through crop rotation or providing a healthier product through organic farming. 

It also includes planting suitable crops, whether row crops, truck crops, mast orchards, or landscape and ornamental stock, using another type of agricultural zoning. Most plant growers, from home gardeners and landscapers to food plotters and full-time farmers, are (or should be) familiar with the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map (PHZM). It divides the U.S. into 10-degree F zones based on average annual minimum winter temperatures over 30 years. These Zones or Regions have long been considered the standard by which growers determine which plants are most likely to thrive at a specific location. Each of the 13 zones is divided into half zones designated as “A” and “B.” 

Last November, the USDA updated the PHZM for the first time since 2012. Jointly developed by USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and Oregon State University’s (OSU) PRISM Climate Group is more accurate as it is based on newer data from nearly double the number of weather stations. It also 

contains greater detail and a new “Tips for Growers” section. The new data show that roughly half the country shifted to the next warmer half zone while the other half remained about the same. 

Benefits of Zoning Districts

The benefits of agricultural or farm zoning districts are numerous. Landowners themselves often realize economic benefits from lower property taxes. They can enhance that by selling or donating a farmland preservation easement, ensuring the land remains in active agriculture. Meanwhile, producing their food cuts down on the grocery bill. 

Others in the community benefit in a variety of ways. Protecting agricultural areas maintains a vital ingredient of a healthy community. They provide locally grown foods. Knowing where your food comes from can be reassuring, and local food requires lower transportation costs to bring it to market. Not to mention stabilizing prices by discouraging speculation-based pricing of farmlands. Meanwhile, re-directing development into areas with more developed infrastructure like municipal water, sewer, and other utilities further reduces the burden on all taxpayers. 

In addition to the practical, there are existential benefits to preserving agricultural areas. For some, it might be as simple as the ability to drive through an undeveloped landscape on the commute between work and home. Undeveloped land provides a place for wildlife and often outdoor recreation. As the old saw goes, they are not making any more of it. Agricultural zoning offers a practical and responsible means for preserving open space and a lifestyle for those who love the land.