Ecosystem Restoration

GREEN YOUR GRASS – NEWEST STRATEGIES

Though I think that the expanses of turf that constitute most lawns have  all the classy appeal of Astroturf, and are an generally an environmental travesty, there are some things to be said for this stuff: Prevents erosion Slows down runoff Filters water Is better than a non-permeable surface So, […]

IF YOU BUILD IT, BLUEBIRDS WILL COME

This spring we purchased an officially sanctioned bluebird house to support the Bluebird Restoration Association of Wisconsin (BRAW),  and we placed it according to their directions.  As with all real estate, location is key. A pair of bluebirds are looking for 1-3 acres of predominantly open land to call home.  […]

KWIK TRIP POND

We call it The Pond, but that term probably evokes a much grander water body than it actually is. The previous owner built a little dam across the end of a ravine and lined the basin with clay from the neighboring field.  He never actually found the spring he expected, […]

CITIZENS SEARCHING FOR SALAMANDERS

Let’s here it for Volunteer Environmental Monitoring! Volunteers are our eyes and ears into what is happening in the natural world.  With dramatic cuts in government-funded monitoring programs, volunteers have stepped up to the plate.  Grassroots environmental groups continue the monitoring that would have to be abandoned if it depended […]

FROG SONG

The snow has receded to tiny patches on northern hill slopes.  The plates of ice are floating on the mostly-open surface of the pond, and that has freed the Western Chorus Frogs, who began singing three days ago. These are tiny little frogs no bigger than the tip of a […]

9 FINE SITES TO SAVE YOUR SOIL

Food comes from the soil, but where does soil come from?  That’s what I’m learning in my first reading assignment of the Training Program for Master Gardener Volunteers.  (The University of Wisconsin Extension Master Gardener Program provides extensive, free horticultural training to people,who in turnshare their training for gardening-related projects […]