PIEDMONT GRASSLANDS ASSESSMENT: 2024 Field Research Review

^{Above: Mafic savanna remnant in Fauquier County. Credit: Emily Luebke}

By Drew Chaney, Senior Field Technician,
Piedmont Discovery Center

In 2024 Piedmont Discovery Center (PDC) embarked on its fourth season of the Piedmont Grassland Assessment. With the support of donors, the research team was able to survey a significant geographic area in search of old growth savanna remnants! The effort resulted in the discovery of dozens of previously unknown rare ecosystems and plant species. 

2024 Piedmont Grassland Assessment in Numbers 

Counties Covered: 6 (Amherst, Appomattox, Campbell, Fauquier, Halifax (in part), Nottoway)

Number of old growth Piedmont grassland sites discovered: 289

Number of remarkable sites prioritized for further study: 55

Number of grassland indicator species in the 2024 grassland sites: 540

Total reconnaissance miles driven: 3,601

New county record plant discoveries: 90

Highlights: In 2024, the PDC survey crew documented many exciting finds, including several new occurrences of rare plant species. Some of the most noteworthy finds include the second Virginia Piedmont location for the globally imperiled cream-colored tick-trefoil (Desmodium ochroleucum), the second global occurrence of Harvill’s witchgrass (Dichanthelium harvillii), a new population of the state imperiled American bluehearts (Buchnera americana), and a sighting of the rare bee Anthophorula micheneri, a specialist on false foxglove (Agalinis). 

What’s Next? With your help we will expand the search for old growth savanna remnants. The Piedmont Grassland Assessment team is surveying 7 counties in 2025: Arlington, Dinwiddie, Fairfax, Halifax, Lunenburg, Pittsylvania, Prince William. We will drive the highways and back roads of these counties in search of these priceless and previously unknown remnants. Later in the summer and fall, we will return to the most remarkable examples to gather in-depth vegetative data so we can learn more about them. These thorough assessments will allow us to advise landowners about how best to manage these ecosystems and educate the general public about the diversity, beauty, and value of these rare grasslands. The assessments also help us further understand the different mixes of native plants that associate with different types of landscapes. We are beginning to see patterns that allow us to hypothesize about type, size, and location of pre-colonial grassland biomes! The data also informs and empowers our design, restoration, and propagation initiatives. Once we have accomplished this survey in 2025, we will have covered 32 Virginia Piedmont counties with the Piedmont Grasslands Assessment!