A preservation organization will plant more than 20,000 trees at the newly-expanded Meltzer Woods Nature Preserve in Shelbyville.

The Central Indiana Land Trust Inc. said it would plant the trees in a 35-acre agricultural field that was recently purchased to expand the preserve.

“By converting the agricultural land to forest, we’ll allow species in the old-growth ecosystem to expand their territory over time and magnify this venerable site,” said CILTI executive director Cliff Chapman.

The field, which is adjacent to the preserve, was purchased for $260,000,. A portion of that funding came from American Electric Power, the parent company of Indiana Michigan Power, as part of a legal settlement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Meltzer Woods is located at 1522 S. 600 E. in Shelbyville and is open to the public every day from dawn to dusk.