Meadowview Research Farms

Meadowview, Virginia is home to The American Chestnut Foundation’s Research Farms. This property and its facilities are used to preserve, study, and breed American chestnut trees for resistance to the blight fungus. Meadowview includes tens of thousands of trees at various stages of the breeding process, planted on more than 150 acres.

Meadowview farm staff explain the benefits of a future, year-round, modern greenhouse and how it will advance our mission.

The History of Meadowview Research Farms

1989: The first research farm was established as a means to formally execute the backcross breeding program. Chestnut trees have been planted, crossed, and grown on this farm for more than three decades, and it continues to function as one of two seed orchards. More than a decade later, the property was filled to capacity with chestnut trees at various stages of backcrossing.

1995: A generous donation enabled the purchase of land nearby, now known as the Glenn C. Price Research Farm and home to the farm staff’s offices, laboratory, maintenance shop, nursery facilities, and backcross orchards.

2010: The Glenn C. Price Laboratory was dedicated and is used to conduct on-site research.

2015: An operations building was constructed near the offices and laboratory on the Glenn C. Price Farm. The facility boasts a large 3,300 square foot indoor workspace with overhead heating, a drive-thru garage bay, pesticide and herbicide storage and mixing area, a large walk-in cooler used for seed storage, and is equipped with an eyewash station, emergency response equipment and often houses machinery and containerized chestnut seedlings in winter. In addition, the building is used as a general workspace for large tasks such as seed processing, comfortably accommodating large workgroups of volunteers and students. TACF has hosted a number of company celebrations and dinners, classes, and presentations in the facility.

2017-18: TACF greatly improved the operation’s capabilities by constructing a greenhouse and neighboring shade houses to increase the capacity and ability to grow seedlings for research and breeding. In spring 2018, TACF board of directors recognized chairman emeritus Dick Will for his years of unwavering support, advocacy, and leadership by dedicating the newly constructed greenhouse in his honor.

As the bedrock of TACF’s traditional backcross breeding program and a center for chestnut blight research, Meadowview Research Farms works closely with collaborative partners including colleges and universities, state and federal government agencies, volunteer conservation groups, and private industries who assist us in moving closer toward our unwavering goal to return the American chestnut to its native range.

To learn about volunteer opportunities at Meadowview Research Farms, please call 276-696-9142 or contact VA-TACF Chapter.