This article originally ran in the Ruston Daily Leader on February 7, 2012.

Our vast forestry lands in the state of Louisiana offer an opportunity for diversified income. Many landowners plant trees, harvest the lumber and lease the land for hunting purposes. These are great traditional uses for the land, but today our forests offer another opportunity: agritourism. In this article we will explore how you can make money while your trees grow.

Tourists seeking agricultural venues are increasing in the United States. People are seeking these opportunities because they want a respite from life, want to get back in touch with nature and want to show their children and grandchildren the beauty of the earth.

Travelers enjoy staying in remote locations, so a cabin in the woods with access to a fishing pond would be perfect. Add some horses for riding trail adventures and it’s a perfect get-away. For those who want to stay longer than a weekend, scout out areas on your property where visitors can view wildlife and birds. Some of your guests may want to camp in the woods and have a fire for cooking, while others may be happier with a nice cabin. Be prepared to accommodate everyone’s wish list for a perfect time in the woods.

Hiking on agricultural lands, especially in a wooded area could also be a real treat for the person whose daily life is surrounded by a concrete jungle. Riding all-terrain vehicles may be another addition welcomed by the traveler who is not comfortable on horseback.

For the adventurer, try geocaching. Hide caches (container with something in it) throughout your forested area and provide global positioning system (GPS) coordinates for their locations. The goecaching game is to see who can arrive at the location and find the cache.

With all this fun, comes a duty of care from the landowner. The LSU AgCenter, the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service, the Louisiana Forestry Association and the National Agricultural Law Center are teaming together to offer, Managing Legal Risks for Alternative Uses of Forestlands workshop in Shreveport on March 16, 2012, at the Holiday Inn, 5555 Financial Plaza in Shreveport, LA, to explain how to manage legal risk on agricultural lands.

Presenters will discuss wildlife management, insurance, leasing contracts, landowner liability and agritourism. Attorneys with the National Agricultural Law Center will provide numerous contracts for participants' scrutiny to help them select the right contract for their needs. Liability laws and insurance needs will also be presented by an attorney. Extension specialists from Arkansas and Louisiana will discuss how to manage wildlife and attract people to agriculture lands through agritourism.

The session begins with registration at 8:30 a.m.; the first session begins at 9 a.m. and the workshop concludes at 4:00 p.m. Registration is $20 per person or $30 per couple and includes breaks, lunch and a disk with educational information from the sessions Please pre-register so we can make arrangements for meals. To pre-register, please contact Rusty Rumley at 479-575-2636. Participants can pay the registration fee at the door.

To learn more, contact Dora Ann Hatch, LSU AgCenter Agritourism Coordinator.