Bringing Nature To Your Backyard (p.52)

By Cindy Lincoln

Whether you are limited to a small patio or have acres of land, you can easily create a beautiful garden that attracts wildlife and helps restore natural habitats. Habitat loss due to commercial and residential development is a leading cause of wildlife population decline in many areas. Involving children in the design, creation, and maintenance of a backyard habitat is a great way for kids to see and understand the role that wildlife plays in their community. Creating a backyard habitat not only benefits wildlife, but can be less expensive and easier to maintain than "typical" residential landscapes that include large lawn areas. Sustainable gardening methods that are good for wildlife also help to improve air, water, and soil quality in your neighborhood. "Green" gardening includes techniques such as conserving water, reducing chemical use, removing invasive plants and replacing with native species, composting yard waste, mulching, and reducing turf or lawn areas. (Less lawn means less mowing!)

Planning your backyard habitat starts with deciding which wildlife species you want to attract and how large a habitat you want to create and maintain. The success of your wildlife habitat depends on how well you provide the following four essential ingredients: food, water, shelter, and space. The design of your garden should incorporate two key principles: diversity and zoning. Diversity simply means including a wide variety of plants (trees, shrubs, ground covers, vines, and flowering perennials or annuals) so that food and shelter for wildlife will be available throughout the year. Native plant species that are adapted to the local environment, including soil, climate, water availability, and wildlife, should be used whenever possible. Zoning reflects the different levels that exist between the soil and tree canopy. Different wildlife species may live at each level or zone so grouping plants of different heights can expand the number of habitats that can be created vertically if the size of the yard is limited. Finally, keep in mind that natural landscapes have curves and irregular clumps of plants. Well-manicured lawns, perfectly symmetrical plantings, or beds with straight lines are not usually included in a garden designed to attract wildlife. However, a backyard wildlife habitat can be both productive and attractive and does not have to look wild, weedy, or neglected.

The best way to provide food for wildlife is to plant a variety of native shrubs, trees, and perennials that flower and fruit during different seasons. The types of plants used will depend on what kinds of wildlife you want to lure into your garden. For example, the butterfly lifecycle begins with the larval stage (or caterpillar) that later transforms into the brightly-colored flying adults; the two stages require very distinct food sources and different species are often very picky eaters! If you've ever grown parsley or fennel and discovered it disappeared overnight, it was probably devoured by the caterpillar of the Eastern Black Swallowtail butterfly. Many adult butterflies require flower nectar, so the types of flowering plants you grow will determine what kinds of butterflies check out your backyard habitat. Bees are also attracted to flowering plants, especially yellow and blue flowers, and are extremely important for pollination in both natural plant communities as well as cultivated food crops (30% of our diet comes from plants pollinated by bees). Bees are highly sensitive to many commonly used insecticides, so reducing or eliminating use of those chemicals is essential. To attract a wide assortment of birds, determine which species commonly overwinter or migrate through your area and use types of seed and styles of bird feeders suited to those species. Although feeders are good at providing supplemental food during certain times of the year, they can't replace native plant food sources.

All wildlife needs good sources of clean water available close to or within your habitat. Ponds, lakes, streams, or wetlands are all great natural water sources, but manmade features such as installed ponds, fountains, birdbaths, or rain gardens can be both decorative and functional additions to your wildlife-friendly garden. Remember to keep the water fresh by changing or refilling often, especially in hot weather.

Cover and space are important components of a backyard habitat because wildlife needs protection from predators, bad weather, and people, along with safe areas to raise young. A dead or dying tree offers a home to many animals and insects and, unless the tree creates a hazard, should be left in its original location. Providing natural or man-made nesting sites for birds is extremely important because the decline of some bird species is closely tied to loss of good nesting locations. Birds are highly variable in their habits, so make or buy birdhouses designed for the bird species you want to attract. Bat houses are another way of inviting a beneficial creature to spend the night in your backyard; bats are the number one consumers of night-flying insects like mosquitoes and moths.

There are both local and national organi-zations that offer educational and certification programs designed to help individuals and communities develop and preserve residential wildlife habitats. The Habitat Stewards Program is a joint effort of the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (www.ncwildlife.org) and Bass Lake Park in Holly Springs and offers a workshop series on creating backyard habitats; attend all the workshops and earn the Habitat Steward Certificate. The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission website is also a great resource for ways to control "nuisance" wildlife, such as deer in residential yards. The well-established Certified Wildlife Habitat Program is available through the National Wildlife Federation and requires that certain criteria are met before awarding individuals a certificate and signage for their wildlife habitat site (www.nwf.org/backyardwildlifehabitat/).

With a little thought and planning, your whole family can enjoy watching nature thrive in your own backyard!

Cindy Lincoln, PhD is a freelance landscape designer and horticulturalist. She lives and gardens in the Five Points area of Raleigh.