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Book Review: Farming on the Wild Side

By on November 15, 2019 in Book and DVD Reviews, Resources

Written by Nancy J. Hayden and John P. Hayden
Published by Chelsea Green Publishing, 2019
Reviewed by Lucy Birkett

Farming on the Wild Side chronicles, in a most delightful and humble way, the progression of a small organic farm in northern Vermont. An entomologist and an environmental engineer make nurturing biodiversity a top priority as they transform an old dairy farm into a productive, thriving, diversified farm teeming with life. The entire book is interspersed with moments of poignant philosophical wisdom, and ecology is everywhere.

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Eco-Answers from the Pros: How Clean Should Fall Cleanup Be?

By on November 15, 2019 in Developing Healthy Landscapes, Gardening Basics, Installing and Maintaining Landscapes, Landscape Maintenance

As I begin fall cleanup in my gardens, what are your recommendations? Should I clean beds off, cutting foliage and remaining seed heads off? Are there some plants best cut off and others that are good to leave until spring? Also, should I remove leaves entirely from the ground around plants? I didn’t get all the leaves removed from beds last year and had a lot of damage to plant roots from either voles or moles.

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Getting the Buzz from Pollinators in Mt. Cuba Center’s Trial Garden

By on October 15, 2019 in Beneficials/Pollinators, Designing Ecological Landscapes, Landscaping for Wildlife, Native Plants

by Sam Hoadley

Mt. Cuba Center’s mission is to inspire an appreciation for the beauty of native plants and a commitment to the native habitats that protect them. Over the past several years the Mt. Cuba Center Trial Garden has become an influencer to the nursery industry and to native plant enthusiasts. Learn about their trials, designed to identify the top performing species and cultivars within the genus that are best suited for the Mid-Atlantic region.

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A Chickadee’s Guide to Gardening: How to Create Habitat for Birds in Urban Settings

By on October 15, 2019 in Landscaping for Wildlife, Wildlife Habitats

Conference Session Review by Melanie Kenney

As humans continue to shape and dominate the landscape, conservationists, land managers, homeowners, landscape professionals, and researchers need information about how wildlife interact with and make use of resources available in urban, suburban, and agricultural green spaces. Dr. Desirée Narango, Postdoctoral Researcher at the City University of New York, Visiting Researcher at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and Research Associate with the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center, presented an exciting new set of research findings focusing on how songbirds navigate, feed, and reproduce in urban and suburban green spaces, using the Carolina chickadee (Poecile carolinensis) as a model insect-eater.

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