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Selling the easement allows the Perrys to preserve more farmland. The brothers took the money he got from the deal to buy about 100 acres in Halifax County. Larry Perry wants a refuge for when the neighbors "get too thick."

Conservation is also a way to hold onto his family's legacy. Perry harbors fond memories of his grandfather, who was content on the farm even in his 80s when he showed signs of Alzheimer's disease.

"If he got 'lost,' you'd just go to the grassiest point on the farm, and there Da-Da would be, pulling weeds," Perry said. "He would never leave the farm."

In 1973, Perry and his younger brother, Danny, began buying back land from aunts, uncles and cousins to reassemble the farm of his grandparents. For a while, the brothers stopped farming while they pursued other careers. But they began to miss it and got back into farming in 1983.

Perry loves the feeling of self-sufficiency the farm gives him. The Perrys grow soybeans, corn and hay on the 115-acre farm. They also manage timber, board horses and lease land for tobacco. Larry Perry built his home from trees on the farm. He eats the fish he catches, deer he hunts and vegetables he cans himself.

Urban dwellers might find it hard to understand that kind of attachment to the land, said Dale Threatt-Taylor, a board member of the Triangle Land Conservancy.

"In the urban community, we build our houses and think about it appreciating and selling for a profit," Threatt-Taylor said. "Family farms are different. There's a sentiment attached to it ... that's priceless."

Perry doesn't want people tromping through his yard or four-wheelers tearing up the farm. But with tax money going into its preservation, he is willing to share some of the enjoyment of the land with others. A greenway will someday be built on the property beside the Little River, connecting the farm to a nearby 300-acre county park.

Putting the property into conservation may also provide some insulation for a ridge on the farm he holds especially dear. The highest point on the farm, which will overlook the widest point of Raleigh's future reservoir, is the Perry family graveyard. There lie gravestones of his great-grandparents, grandparents and parents. And when he dies, Larry Perry also wants to be laid to rest there.

MAJOR CONSERVATION OPTIONS

Conservation easements -- a landowner permanently gives up some rights of development, but restrictions can be flexible depending on how the agreement is written and the needs of the owner. Typically, the landowner, and any subsequent owner, will be barred from subdividing the property and putting houses on it.

Market sale -- a landowner sells the property, valued at its highest market use.

Donation -- a landowner donates part or all of an easement or property.

FARMLAND CONSERVATION

PROS

Farmers help steward the land. Under an easement, a landowner can continue to farm the land. If a landowner sells or donates his farm outright to conservation groups, the new owners may lease back part or all of the property for farming. Either way, conservationists say having farmers monitoring the land is a good thing. It saves the new owner from having to manage the land, and it keeps people from trespassing or dumping garbage.

Income tax incentives. Congress approved last summer more generous tax breaks for any conservation easement donations. The value of the donation would be the difference between the land's unrestricted value and its new value with limited development. Qualifying farmers can deduct the easement value up to 100 percent of their income over as many as 16 years.

Lower estate taxes. Landowners may have trouble passing land down to their heirs because of the cost of death taxes. A conservation easement can lower the appraised value of land by 30 to 60 percent.

CONS

Control. Farmers might feel as though they're giving up control of the land.

Money. Farmers might gain more money if they hold out longer for an offer from a developer. Conservation money is limited, so conservation groups often focus first on large tracts near critical watersheds.

Complexity. Conservation can be a complicated, drawn-out process, involving paperwork, lawyers and multiple agencies.

N.C. AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT AND FARMLAND PRESERVATION TRUST FUND, TRIANGLE LAND CONSERVANCY

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