Foundation actively beautifies Valley

The highway between Minden and Carson City gets greener every year, thanks to the Carson Valley Reforestation and Beautification Foundation.

Nick Koropchak, president of the foundation, is driven by a love for growing and a desire to leave a cleaner, more beautiful Carson Valley to his grandchildren.

"I grew up on a farm in Pennsylvania," Koropchak said. "I just never got over that need to grow things."

Koropchak, 67, began planting trees behind his Sierra foothills home after the 1996 Autumn Hills fire torched land backing up to his property.

He and several friends received permission from the U.S. Forest Service to be stewards of the land, and the Reforestation and Beautification Foundation was formed.

Searching for a year-round project, the foundation began planting along Highway 395 between Minden and Carson City in 2000.

"Some days you can see a cloud of yellow smog hovering over the Valley," Koropchak said. "The trees will help reduce some of that CO2.

"We have to leave more for our grandchildren than a pile of money and a cloud of black smoke."

More than 6,000 seedlings have been planted, along with 200 trees, by the foundation.

It installed a drip system along the 1.7 miles between Ambrosetti Ranch Road and Arnold Settlemeyer's ranch.

"We're hoping that the drip system is only necessary for about five years," said Tom Whear, a member of the foundation board of directors. "After that time, the trees should be reasonably self-sufficient."

Also, 125 raptor perches were installed on which birds can sit then hunt from. This helps control voles, gopher-like rodents that eat young plants.

Significant contributions from Suzy Stockdale of the Smallwood Foundation, Marilyn Malkmus of the Malkmus Foundation and Joanne Hall of the Fairweather Foundation have funded the planting project over the last several years. However, additional funding is still needed.

Whear, 64, said the foundation needs about $8,000 annually.

"A lot of expenses come out of our own pockets," said Nancy Jackson, a director for the foundation. "We receive no compensation at all for this endeavor."

The foundation received technical support and soil materials from Craig Witt of Full Circle Compost.

Koropchak, a retired doctor, said caring for the trees is an almost daily endeavor. He said he visits several times a week to see if anything is needed and runs the drip system once a week.

"It's a lot more fun planting trees than running a family medical practice because the trees don't call you in the middle of the night," Koropchak joked.

The foundation has not lost a tree in more than two years, which Whear said is due to the planning that goes into planting them.

Soil is treated with acidifiers and mineral supplements, before the young trees are planted and staked.

Koropchak mows the roadside periodically with a belly mower because some of the state-owned machines would be too harsh on the drip system. The foundation also controls weeds.

A variety of lilacs and crabapples have also been planted along the highway.

"It's been enough years now to where you are able to see a lot of the growth," Whear said.

YOU CAN HELp

To volunteer or make a donation, contact Koropchak at 782-5259 or write the foundation at: 1591 Mono Ave., Minden, NV, 89423.

YOU CAN HELP

What: Carson Valley Reforestation and Beautification Foundation

Anyone interested in volunteering or making a donation can contact Koropchak at 782-5259 or write the foundation at: 1591 Mono Ave., Minden, NV, 89423.