Andrew B. Jameson, owner of an Evangeline Parish Tree Farm, was given the state's Outstanding Tree Farmer by Louisiana Forestry Association. The award was presented during the annual LFA convention August 30, during the membership luncheon held at the Hilton Hotel in Lafayette.

James owns the 5,400 acres of forest land near Oakdale. A resident of Houston, Texas, Jameson spends much time in Louisiana on the property.

"This was barren land when my grandfather bought it in the 1940s," he said. Today all the elements of good forest practices are evident, with a variety of forest types. The land is predominately a mix of slash, loblolly, and longleaf pine, but it also has upland and bottomland hardwoods, a creek, 20 miles of access roads, and a camp house.

He also has a 250-acre enclosed compound of exotic animals. These include camels, donkeys, emus, antelope, assorted species of deer, and pot-bellied pigs. Native Louisiana wildlife are also found on the other acreage.

James is property manager, and his forester is Donald Baker of Alexandria.

"This is some of the prettiest timberland in Louisiana," said Baker. He noted that the Jameson family planted trees to reforest the land back in the Fifties, when few private landowners were doing so.

The Tree Farm is also a model of erosion control, watershed quality, and road and ditch maintenance. "The owner does not take short cuts when it comes to expenditure for forest management, " Baker said. Jameson has a long-term plan to diversify the age mix of the land.

"We want to have a good continuation from one generation to the next," Jameson said. "We want this to be an ongoing concern that my children can enjoy in the future. Protecting the land is important to me."