The Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas) is one of the most widespread and numerous warblers in North America. It is known for its distinctive call, and the black ‘… Read more
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Grow a Meadow, Large or Small Instructor: Kathy Connolly , Speaking of Landscapes Workshop When:
Where:Online (By Zoom Meeting) |
Improving the biodiversity of our landscapes— specifically stemming the significant declines in insects, birds, and millions of species worldwide— requires re-establishing native plant landscapes. It also requires a commitment to ecological landscaping. But what is that? To us, it means gardening by working with ecological processes— leaving leaf litter and decaying plant stems as essential habitat for insects, understanding inherent soil and climate conditions, choosing the most appropriate native species for our site. There is so much to consider! Learn more about our philosophy here.
Mayflower or trailing arbutus (Epigaea repens) is much beloved for its fragrant flowers, which bloom early in spring. This species adorns the top banner of our website, and we chose it for many reasons. It grows throughout the Commonwealth and was selected a century ago to be our state flower. Beautiful, small but tough in its own way, it was also used medicinally by Native Americans. Its history, winding from relative abundance, to threatened status, and now legal protection, is emblematic of the challenges that so many of our native plants face.
We built this website for you— to make information about native plants, and the practice of smart ecological landscaping, much more widely available. We consider ourselves an "open source" nonprofit. Through this website and so many of our other programs, we offer tons of free information— access to resources, lectures, videos, ideas, and inspiration. Our goal is to change the world, to help all of us as humans better understand ourselves as part of a complex organic system, to make ecology more mainstream, and to include you in our community.
Just released in May!
This newest guide by Carol Gracie is richly detailed— full of wonderful photographs and superb writing. It is unique in presenting a depth of botanical information in the context of natural history and ecological systems, helping us to truly appreciate many of the summer flowering species that inhabit both meadows and woodlands. A valuable new resource!