In the early 2000s, Mark Magura bought a 272-acre Indiana farm; after a 3-year restoration, 200.6 acres came back as wetland, prairie and forest for wildlife

For more than a decade, much of Mark Magura’s Indiana property was simply farmland, with about 220 acres leased to farmers growing crops. Today, the landscape includes wetlands, prairie, young forest and shallow seasonal ponds that provide wildlife habitat. The transformation took three years and ultimately put 200.6 acres under a permanent conservation easement, ensuring that the restored land will not return to conventional farming.

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