The abundance of this season was no accident. Under the careful tending of Morgan Farah and Sidi Limhouse, the Conservancy ' s sweetgrass farm is flourishing. In January, while the plants lay dormant, Sidi set controlled fires across the rows of sweetgrass, a method rooted in both ecology and practicality. The burning cleared away dead growth, opening space for fresh, pliable shoots to emerge with the coming spring.
“ When the grass came back, it was all new growth, exactly what the artisans need,” explained Sean Cannon, the Conservancy’ s Restoration and Enhancement Specialist.“ No dry stalks, no wasted effort. We could harvest the whole plant, bundle it, and get it directly into the hands of artisans.”
The burn method also eased the heavy labor that had previously limited harvests. Traditionally, sweetgrass is harvested by hand-pulling, but pulling nearly 1,400 plants proved too demanding for the limited number of available volunteers. By cutting bundles after the burn, the team found a way to gather more grass, more efficiently, without compromising quality.
“ It’ s not a method you’ d use in a public landscape,” Sean admits.“ But here, on farmland, it works beautifully. It gives us exactly what we need.”
70 • KIAWAH CONSERVANCY