It’s National Pollinator Week: Thank a Bee, and a Fly, and Even A Beetle
In 2006 the United States Senate designated the first National Pollinator Week as a way to recognize the importance of pollinators to agriculture and ecosystem health. Sure, beekeepers and avid gardeners celebrate this week, but the average American is hard pressed to name even a single pollinator beyond a honey…
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Remembering a Great Naturalist: A Toast to Carol Gracie
This past fall we lost one of the great naturalists of the Northeast, Carol Gracie. Carol was not just a naturalist, but a botanist, photographer, lecturer, and author of four fantastic books: Summer Wildflowers of the Northeast, Spring Wildflowers of the Northeast, Florapedia, and Wildflowers in the Field and Forest:…
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Why Locally-Sourced, Locally-Grown Native Plants Matter
Have you visited your local farmer’s market lately or picked up your weekly allotment at a CSA? If you are a locavore, like so many of us, you might be asking some pretty specific questions of your suppliers when you are vetting your food choices, such as: Where was this…
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Easy Native Perennials to Start from Seed: Economical and EcoBeneficial!
Biodiversity is critical to the health of ecosystems but species diversity is crashing and getting worse in the face of climate change. How can you help? Skip the clones of native plants (grown from cuttings or tissue culture) and plant native seeds to increase genetic diversity to support our challenged…
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The American Gardener: Book Review of The Pollinator Victory Garden
Book Review from The American Gardener: The Pollinator Victory Garden: Win the War on Pollinator Decline with Ecological Gardening Kim Eierman, Quarry Books, Beverly, MA. 160 pages. Publisher’s price, paperback: $26.99 Having worked as a garden designer for 15 years, I’m aware of the importance of native plants, but communicating…
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Dwarf Nativars – Do They Measure Up?
For those of us with small landscapes, dwarf cultivars of native plants can seem like a gift from heaven. Want to grow a particular native plant, but just don’t have the room? Have a straight species plant, like a native viburnum, that needs a pollinator partner for fruit production –…
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