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Turn your backyard into a biodiversity hotspot

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Re: Turn your backyard into a biodiversity hotspot

#171

Post by taeric »

bombcar wrote: post #141
taeric wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Native plants may be easy; but by that measure, invasives are where its at. :D That said, bringing down trees is always odd to me. Definitely bring down any that pose a risk to your house. But otherwise, seems more effort than it is worth. I should probably be a lot better at pruning, as that is a ton of work. And, while intellectually I know the answer is that you are unlikely to kill the tree, I am always worried a…

Trees can also be quite dead and need to come down without much external visible issues. https://treeandneighborlawblog.com/ Has interesting stories tangentially related to tree duties.

Somewhat interestingly, trees can also be quite dead and perfectly safe not being brought down. Even healthy for the forest. I'm looking at a dead tree just outside my house that is quite pretty and perfectly fine where it is.

Re: Turn your backyard into a biodiversity hotspot

#172

Post by troyvit »

taeric wrote: post #25
bmitc wrote: post #3

After getting a house with a decent sized yard and trees, I have been having a lot of fun with planting native plants. While my neighbors are cutting down trees, which is honestly hard to watch, and paying landscapers to plant non-native plants, I'm spending a lot of time researching and planting native plants. It is honestly one of the more fulfilling things to walk outside and see all sorts of bees, butterflies, mo…

Native plants may be easy; but by that measure, invasives are where its at. :D That said, bringing down trees is always odd to me. Definitely bring down any that pose a risk to your house. But otherwise, seems more effort than it is worth. I should probably be a lot better at pruning, as that is a ton of work. And, while intellectually I know the answer is that you are unlikely to kill the tree, I am always worried a…

> Native plants may be easy; but by that measure, invasives are where its at. :D

I can only agree. I ate a ton of dandelion last summer and can't wait to do it again this year.

Re: Turn your backyard into a biodiversity hotspot

#173

Post by slowhand09 »

I prob have 20 kinds of weeds, 20 native species of plant. I've had whitetail deer, eastern red fox, river otter, snapping turtles, box turtles, muskrat, brown rat, bald eagle, turkey vulture, black vulture, crow, osprey, blue heron, white heron, green heron, snowy egret, redtail hawk, sparrow hawk, tons of songbirds, racoon, possum, black squirrel, grey squirrel, chipmunk, multiple water snake species, rough green snake, ring-tail snake, black racer, milk snake, worm snake, blue-belly skinks, toads, frogs, eels, blue crabs, sand crabs, horseshoe crabs, shrimp, oysters, clams, multiple species of jellyfish, rays, skates, pipefish, striped bass, catfish, crappie, bluefish,... I'm pretty sure I've missed several. Where should I start to become biodiverse?

Re: Turn your backyard into a biodiversity hotspot

#174

Post by djtriptych »

RHSeeger wrote: post #156
djtriptych wrote: post #149

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is it fair to call it personal opinion if it's also the ecologist consensus viewpoint?

Of course. To some people, that viewpoint is what defines it as good. For others, it's beauty. For others, it's pure diversity. For others, it's minimizing the work involved. The choice of what is considered "good" here is a very personal thing.

Still, it's dismissive to place it into a class of personal opinion, when the colloquial understanding, especially here, is that there is no expectation of evidence behind it.

I think a fairer term here is 'argument'.

Re: Turn your backyard into a biodiversity hotspot

#175

Post by chiefalchemist »

circlefavshape wrote: post #38
jlglover wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I completely agree with most of your points. I have a spot in my garden where I want to plant a large native tree, probably an oak. I would love to plant all natives, except that they quickly get eaten by deer in my neighborhood. Even many "deer resistant" varieties like coneflower and beebalm. Of course, this make no sense, since deer and native plants should have evolved to survive beside one another. I think this…

Couldn't you put a fence around the tree until it's big enough to survive a bit of deer-nibbling?

Yes you can. I did it last year after transplanting a 4' to 5' tree that needed time and space to grow. I see deer "evidence" all around outside the fence. But they can't get close enough to munch.

Re: Turn your backyard into a biodiversity hotspot

#176

Post by everybodyknows »

WaitWaitWha wrote: post #4

I suggest to add a bee home (bee house, bee hotel) to your garden. It is simple, last several years, it can be as small as a bird house, and can be a fun weekend project with the kids. (It can also be purchased.) Please, do not get honey bees, unless willing to take care of them - just like with any animal husbandry. I love them, I am a beek, but I find too many abandoned or swarms from people who bought into the ide…

Any suggestions for a quality supplier? The only bee house from Home Depot has a one-star review (scroll down) from a biologist who seems to know her stuff:

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Bambeco-12-in-Mason-Tower-Bee-Ho...

Re: Turn your backyard into a biodiversity hotspot

#177

Post by everforward »

LegitShady wrote: post #170
nibbleshifter wrote: post #107

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> We have raccoons and they are annoying and can damage property. Nothing a .22 can't fix, surely?

unfortunately my municipality does not allow it.

If you're in the US, you may want to look at air rifles. They're not a firearm due to the lack of combustion, and you should be able to get some powerful enough to take down raccoons and other small game.

Re: Turn your backyard into a biodiversity hotspot

#178

Post by mikesabbagh »

bmitc wrote: post #59
taeric wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Native plants may be easy; but by that measure, invasives are where its at. :D That said, bringing down trees is always odd to me. Definitely bring down any that pose a risk to your house. But otherwise, seems more effort than it is worth. I should probably be a lot better at pruning, as that is a ton of work. And, while intellectually I know the answer is that you are unlikely to kill the tree, I am always worried a…

I'm still not totally certain how to "manage" the trees in our yard. We are in a quite woody area with huge trees. I contacted an arborist place last year and plan on paying them to come out and teach me about the trees on my property. The previous owners cutdown some huge trees, but luckily mainly concentrated on the trees that were super close to the house. It's possible remaining trees could hit the house, and the…

It seems that trees interlock their roots to prevent them from falling. So make sure trees are not lonely. Trees then would have to break to fall. And here you can trim the long branches to decrease the weight.

Re: Turn your backyard into a biodiversity hotspot

#179

Post by mikesabbagh »

bmitc wrote: post #3

After getting a house with a decent sized yard and trees, I have been having a lot of fun with planting native plants. While my neighbors are cutting down trees, which is honestly hard to watch, and paying landscapers to plant non-native plants, I'm spending a lot of time researching and planting native plants. It is honestly one of the more fulfilling things to walk outside and see all sorts of bees, butterflies, mo…

Douglas Tallamy is my new hero
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