In 1981, Chuck Leavell and his wife inherited Georgia land; decades later, Charlane grown into a 4,000-acre estate with 70% forest cover | World News

PC: US Fish and Wildlife Service

For Chuck Leavell, the road to becoming a Georgia tree farmer began with land that came to his wife’s family in 1981. At the time, Leavell was already building the music career that would take him from the Allman Brothers Band to decades of work with the Rolling Stones. The inherited property was farmland, not a ready-made forestry operation. Much of the surrounding land had long been used for crops and livestock. Leavell and his wife, Rose Lane, gradually acquired neighbouring tracts and began changing the way the property was managed. As per the reports by Wall Street Journal, what started with roughly 1,000 acres eventually became Charlane Woodlands and Preserve, a 4,000-acre property outside Macon, with about 70% of the land remaining forested.

How Rose Lane’s inherited Georgia land grew into the 4,000-acre Charlane estate

Rose Lane inherited the original acreage after her grandmother died in 1981. The property included family land and a house, making its future a matter of stewardship as much as ownership. Rather than leaving the acreage as it was, the couple began buying adjoining parcels over the years.That expansion changed the scale of the operation. By later accounts, Charlane had reached around 4,000 acres, a substantial increase from the land Rose Lane inherited. The property is now associated with forestry, wildlife habitat and the management of Southern pine, rather than the row crops that had previously dominated parts of the land.Leavell did not arrive at forestry with formal training. He had a different profession entirely.

How Leavell turned a life in rock music into a study of forestry

Leavell was already an established keyboard player by the time he took on greater responsibility for the family property. His work with the Allman Brothers Band had placed him in the American rock scene during the 1970s. The connection between his two lives gradually became clearer to him. The instrument at the centre of his career was made from wood, while the land around his home was filled with trees that could be grown, harvested and used. He began reading about land management and forestry, speaking with other landowners and learning about the practical side of running a tree farm.At one point, he studied forestry by correspondence while he was on tour. The education covered areas including forest management, prescribed burning and the longer-term decisions involved in growing timber.

PC: WSJ

How Charlane’s forests became part of a working timber operation

The couple’s move towards forestry made practical sense for a property that Leavell had to manage alongside a demanding touring career. Crops and livestock require regular attention, while timber operates on a much longer cycle. Charlane’s forests include Southern yellow pines such as loblolly and longleaf, along with other native hardwoods. Earlier descriptions of the property also recorded slash and shortleaf pine among the trees being managed.The intention was not simply to leave the woodland untouched. Timber production became part of the property’s management, with thinning and harvesting carried out as part of the forest cycle. Leavell has described the process in practical terms, including the satisfaction of knowing that trees grown on his land could eventually become lumber for someone’s home.

About 70% of the 4,000 acres is forest

The scale of Charlane is perhaps easiest to understand through the acreage. The property grew to roughly four times the size of the land originally inherited by Rose Lane, reaching about 4,000 acres. Recent profiles put around 70% of Charlane under forest cover. That amounts to roughly 2,800 acres of woodland, although the exact acreage of forest can change with planting, harvesting and other land-management decisions.The forests are not the only feature of the property. Charlane has also been managed for wildlife, with habitat work aimed at species including bobwhite quail, deer, turkey and ducks. Prescribed burning has formed part of the approach, helping manage vegetation and maintain habitat conditions in areas intended for wildlife.

The old Bullard House remains part of the property

There is also a much older layer to Charlane. The Bullard House, an early 19th-century farmhouse, was restored by the Leavells in the 1990s. The property developed beyond a private residence. A guest lodge was built from timber associated with the land, while other buildings have served practical purposes including workshops and accommodation. In a 2014 account, the main house was described as a roughly 6,000-square-foot home with extensive use of Southern yellow pine, from floors to walls and exposed structural elements.A separate woodworking shop became another way for fallen or harvested trees to remain connected to the property. In the earlier account, Leavell described having large sections of an old red oak milled into thick slices that could later be turned into furniture.

Forestry became part of Leavell’s public life

The work at Charlane eventually extended well beyond the boundaries of the property. Leavell became involved in forestry education and conservation, writing books about forests and appearing in projects focused on trees and land management. His forestry work has also brought recognition. He was named National Outstanding Tree Farmer of the Year in 1999 and has twice been recognised as Georgia Tree Farmer of the Year. The U.S. Forest Service also made him an honorary forest ranger.That record helps explain why Charlane is more than an unusual second career for a touring musician. The property became the place where Leavell could put the forestry principles he was learning into practice, while continuing the musical career that helped make the expansion of the land possible.