World Peace Wetland Prairie

WPWP and OMNI Center for Peace events coming up

2012-01-18T21:25:00.004-06:00

Please click on individual images to ENLARGE view of Earth Day and peace-garden events' promo designed by Lauren D. Hawkins for OMNI Center for Peace, Justice and Ecology.

Short takes on Cox 218 and AT&T channel 99 something for today through the weekend

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Earth Day at World Peace Wetland Prairie coming up 1-5 p.m. Sunday, April 15, 2012: While you wait for spring, please enjoy OMNI Center for Peace, Justice and Ecology's annual meeting of members and friends on Sunday, January 22, 20l2

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Please click on image to ENLARGE view of Lauren D. Hawkins' new design for OMNI Center for Peace, Justice and Ecology.

New OMNI design by Lauren D. Hawkins in December 2011

2012 -- A year of consequence begins

Members and Friends Gathering graphic
OMNI Members & Friends Gathering ! January 22, 2012
6:00 pm
LifeStyles Building

Sunday January 22, 2012, is the next Members and Friends Gathering. Join your friends at 6:00 pm at the new home of sister -nonprofit LifeStyles, 2590 W. Sycamore. We'll send a map next week. They have a really beautiful and quirky new building that you'll love visiting. It's colorful, friendly and spacious... lots of room for us to do music, have a hot January meal, and fun breakout sessions, where the talking can happen. Join OMNI friends to ponder the future of peace in the uncertain new age.

Breakout sessions have been confirmed, and as always, there's too much good stuff. Here's what we have:

The Future of Peace- Jacob George and Gladys Tiffany talk about the glimmers of positive change happening, and give you something you can do to encourage young Afghan peace workers right now.

The Future of Earth - Robert McAfee, and several area experts are prepared to update you on things we can't help but worry about. Many of them are attending the Citizens First environental caucus
this weekend, and will have current info on upcoming legislation, hopefully including the state water plan, now in the works.

Future Leaders for the Culture of Peace- OMNI's Youth Programs is organizing work with college and high school age students. It's exciting, and if you're that age, or if you have family or friends who are... or if you'd like to find out what's happening, you'll want to be here. Meet the Youth Resource Board, and the Youth Programs VISTA volunteer coordinating the program. Pretty cool.

The Future of the Occupy Movement -- A group of Occupy Northwest Arkansas members are coming to update you on what the local and national movements are planning; including reports on the "Occupy the Courts" that you're invited to join. Friday January 20 at noon, meet on the Town Square in front of Odom Law Office at Mountain and Block. You'll march the short one-block to the Federal Building together. January 20 is the 2nd anniversary of the odious "Citizens United" court decision that made money equal speech.

EARTH DAY 2012 !- Last but not least, Donna Stjerna is working with area enviro groups on the annual Earth Month celebration in April. She has dynamo ideas about centering the whole thing on TREES, and has convinced the whole town to go for it. There's a big concert in the works, and other activities. She could use volunteer help, and of course it'll be really fun. Find out what the plans are, and where you could fit in at this session.
PRAIRIE: Lauren D. Hawkins and Aubrey James Shepherd share photos and information about the prairies surrounding Fayetteville and how to help maintain World Peace Wetland Prairie, a city-owned, neighborhood-maintained nature park that would not exist if OMNI's founder, James Richard Bennett, had not provided a donation of $25,000, (one-fifth of the purchase price of the land) to purchase this karst-based, natural flow-area of a large parcel of seasonal wet prairie in south Fayetteville AR.
Remember that the menu for the evening is veggie lasagna, fresh salad, bread and simple desert.
OMNI cooks do a mean lasagna.
For detail, contact Gladys at 479-935-4422 or gladystiffany@yahoo.com.
OMNI and Community Events
Veggie Potluck
Upcoming Events
Jan 14 - "Immigration and Civil Liberties" forum, 1:30 pm, Fay Library Walker Room. Several very knowledgeable people speaking. Lots' of us need to understand this complex issue to be prepared. More info from Prof. Tom Kennedy, tkennedy@uark.edu .
Jan 14 - Citizens First Congress Environmental Caucus - Russellville. Contact Robert McAfee for more info - robertjmca1@gmail.com .
Jan 14 - Greenbrier Concerned Citizens Advisory Group - 10:30 am 2nd Saturday of each month. Coalition regular monthly meetings- Join us for discussion, coffee and snacks. Greenbrier Event Center. #5 Lois Lane, Greenbrier. 72058.
Jan 15 - HOWL moves to OMNI - 6:00 pm - After years of meeting at Nightbird Books (love 'em), HOWL will now move to OMNI on 3rd Sunday evenings. Wonderful women writers will read their own or somebody's fascinating writing. Everyone welcome to listen in.
Jan 16 - DREAM Act Summit - Little Rock. Contact Fernando Garcia for more info. fergarcia.wj@gmail.com
Jan 20 - Occupy the Courts - noon - Corporations are not people. Money is not speech. Meet on Town Square at Mountain & Block Sts, march to Federal Building.
Jan 22 - WE Connection presentation 2:00 pm - Showing of movie "Thrive" Beginning early to allow time for the movie, a bit of conversation, and preparation for the Member Gathering.
Jan 22 - don't forget the wow-level OMNI Members and Friends Gathering at 6:00 pm
Jan 25 - Visiting Tibetan Lama - 6:00 pm - Geshe Dakpa Togyal speaks at Fayetteville Library. Author, teacher, on Jan 25 he speaks on "Modern Ethics & Traditional Wisdom." His visit concludes Jan 30 with a talk at UA on "Nonviolence." More info coming.
Jan 28 - Bicycle Coalition of the Ozarks Annual Member Meeting - 3:00 @OMNI Center. Everyone invited.
Feb 26 - Climate Change Book Club - 2:00 pm, Fay Public Library Walker Room. Discussing the book "End of Growth." You do not need to read the book to join in.

Praying mantid green type

2012-01-08T23:29:00.001-06:00

Non-native Lion's Tooth a valuable plant for nurturing bees and for human and rabbit food

2012-01-02T16:25:00.005-06:00

Articles on dandelions:
Alternative Nature
Wildman Steve brill

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A lone dandelion brightens Dec. 31, 2011, at World Peace Wetland Prairie

December 20, 2011, meeting of Fayetteville AR city council draws comment on several important local issues on a 3-hour, 37-minute video

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Good vines deserve help for their wildlife value

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Anyone who cares about the future of monarch butterflies has to have Honeyvine milkweed (Cynanchum laeve) where it can climb and provide vegetation required by monarch caterpillars. In Fayetteville, Arkansas, it may climb to 20 feet on some trees. But in late fall one can pluck the seed pods to save and cut down the skinny little vine. It will come up from its roots in April or May and bloom sometime in summer on the extreme ends. A place where I had previously found it on the edge of a thicket near a stream bank was brush-hogged for the first time in many years and voila' some honeyvines came up all through the patch of now denuded ground and many monarch caterpillars prospered on it and many made their way to the nearest remaining shrubs and trees to form chrysalises in late summer and flew south in early and mid fall. It may be considered invasive in some places, but I have not seen evidence that it strangles any woody vegetation it climbs. It dies back and has to regrow, while the Japanese honeysuckle and a few other non-native vines live through the winter and actually kill saplings after a few years. I wish it were able to survive the winter and keep growing, but not in this climate. Lonicera sempervirens, the native trumpet honeysuckle vine, Cynanchum laeve and passionflower vines are excellent choices of low-maintenance fence or tree-line plantings with incredible wildlife (especially native bees, native flower flies and butterflies) value. http://www.flickr.com/photos/7295307@N02/6429137355/in/photostream/

Park Board approves acceptance of money instead of land for project on Hollywood Prairie despite plea to preserve wetland

2011-12-13T23:01:00.001-06:00

Video added: Joe Neal introduces 'In the Province of Birds' at 7 p.m. Friday, December 9, 2011, at Nightbird Books on Dickson Street in Fayetteville AR

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Hi Aubrey -- just wanted to let you know that Half Acre Press has a new book out from Joe Neal, In the Province of Birds, in case you'd like to mention it on your blog. There will be a booksigning and slideshow/bird talk by Joe at Nightbird Books on Friday, December 9 at 7 pm. Hope to see you there!

Thanks,
Liz

---------------------------------------------------
Liz Lester
479-236-0992
Liz Lester Design
lizlesterdesign@yahoo.com
www.lizlesterdesign.com

Half Acre Press
liz@halfacrepress.com

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World Peace Wetland Prairie volunteers receive certificate for work on city-owned, neighbohood-maintained park

2011-12-08T15:03:00.003-06:00

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Lauren D Hawkins receives World Peace Wetland Prairie volunteer award from Mayor Lioneld Jordan

Enduring green network discussed during Nov. 14, 2011, Mayor's town-hall meeting in Fayetteville AR

2011-12-06T22:43:00.000-06:00

Nature videos for next week's showing on Fayetteville Public Access Television include frostflowers from 2010 and 2011

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Verbesina virginica frost flowers on November 30, 2011, melting in 10 a.m. sunshine

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Same Verbesina virginica on Oct. 14, 2011

Flower, Garden and Nature Society to hear presentation by Steve Sampers, president of Northwest Arkansas Master Naturalists

2011-11-19T01:17:00.002-06:00

Please click on individual images to ENLARGE for better view of Heirloom Italian arugala (Diplotaxis tenuifolia) with two individuals from different flower fly species nectaring and for easier reading of meeting announcement.

Please click on individual images to ENLARGE view of two species of flower fly nectaring on Diplototaxis tenuifolia, an heirloom variety of Arugala.

Coming winter makes protecting wild natural places important even in cities

2011-11-18T10:55:00.000-06:00

Flower fly in fall an example of important pollinator whose habitat needs protection. Click on individual images to ENLARGE.

November 10, 2011, meeting of Fayetteville, Arkansas, environmental-action committee includes discussion of stormwater problems, certifying the city as urban wildlife habitat and promoting locally produced food

2011-11-17T08:37:00.001-06:00

Carlos Velazquez describes plight of Inuit people in the Arctic Circle at Fayetteville Public Library on November 3, 2011, thanks to OMNI Climate Change Task Force and OHG of the Arkansas Sierra Club

2011-11-03T23:15:00.001-05:00

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You too can select native plants that will be blooming in October and November some years

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Late-blooming native wildflowers.

WPWP facebook page

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WPWP nature park on Facebook

Flower flies perform much like bees and many species look much like bees

2011-10-23T12:20:00.002-05:00

Please click on individual images to ENLARGE October 22, 2011, photos of Syrphidae family member Helophilus sp.

To view many species of flower flies see http://www.cavette.net/photos/syrphids/

Brief video recorded October 10 & 13, 2011, to run October 17-21 on public-access television in Fayetteville AR

2011-10-14T17:29:00.000-05:00

Verbesina virginica still providing nectar for pollinators on October 14, 2011, in places where plant is protected from premature destruction

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Fayetteville Environmental Action Committee meeting at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, October 13, 2011, agenda provided by John Coleman

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Please click on individual images to ENLARGE. Click on enlargement for even closer view of tiny brown, hairy spider lurking on Ironweed at World Peace Wetland Prairie on October 9, 2011.

See you this Thursday at 5:30 in Room 111.

Agenda:
 
1. Introduction of new member
2. Wildlife Habitat/EAC Ordinance language
3. Resource Management Plan Update
4. Miscellaneous Items
 
 
John

Doe deer get a bit excitable when food is scarce during a drought, the fawns are about grown, but the old buck is back on the ranch, scraping trees and jousting with the yearling bucks

2011-10-10T21:17:00.001-05:00

Fayetteville City Council approves OMNI Center donation of Hank Kaminsky sculpture to WPWP on September 6, 2011

2011-10-10T11:25:00.004-05:00

Fayetteville park-board video below:

Fayetteville art-council video below:

Video clips of monarch butterflies before release and other wild things and people in Fayetteville AR

2011-10-07T15:37:00.003-05:00

If butterflies could vote (and other beneficial insects and all wildlife) Fayetteville's sales-tax renewal would pass ON CONDITION that park mowing would be reduced while most park and other city services would be increased

2011-10-05T23:11:00.002-05:00

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Beneficial insects depend on native plants through fall. Mowing or brushhogging or burning before winter decreases populations of these and many other valuable native species.

Clouded sulphur butterfly on Grindelia (gum plant) flower Oct. 4. 2011

Monarch butterfly caterpillar on Asclepias incarnata (swamp milkweed) Oct. 4, 2011)

Monarch butterfly on Evening Primrose on Oct. 4, 2011, fresh from chrysalis ready to fly to Mexico for winter

Rare fall flower on Aslcepias viridis (spider milkweed) Oct. 4, 2011, offering fresh leaves to last generation of monarch caterpillars

Pearl crescent butterfly resting on plant long past flowering stage on Oct. 4, 2011

Tiny insects on small or tiny flowers make great photo subjects and keep pollinating flowes while finding sustenance

2011-10-02T20:33:00.001-05:00

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Video mostly based on nature photos from World Peace Wetland Prairie and Pinnacle Foods Inc. wet prairie adjacent to west side of WPWP to be run Monday through October 7, 2011, on Fayetteville AR public access television at channel 218 on Cox Cable and on ATT U-verse 99 but nowhere else on the Internet except on the You Tube link below: All residents of Fayetteville are eligible for 5-minute short video takes FREE on Fayetteville public television with recording from 5 to 6 p.m. Mondays and 11 a.m. to noon on Thursdays to be broadcast the following week

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Biden's aristosa with interesting insect at Pinnacle wet prairie west side of World Peace Wetland Prairie

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Burrowing crayfish common at World Peace Wetland Prairie, Pinnacle Prairie and in many older subdivisions where the soil hasn't been removed and red-dirted in Northwest Arkansas as well as fields and pastures

2011-09-22T15:15:00.007-05:00

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Many more burrowing crayfish photos on Flickr

Flickr set of Ozark burrowing crayfish at this live link on Aubunique Flickr account.

Wood nymphs elusive grassland-dependent butterfly. They live all summer and their caterpillars hibernate through winter

2011-09-15T13:15:00.001-05:00

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Cercyonis pegala aka Wood nymph butterfly

Fayetteville City Council approves OMNI Center donation of Hank Kaminsky sculpture to WPWP

2011-09-13T00:16:00.000-05:00

Pretty pollinators abound as summer drifts toward fall

2011-09-12T00:48:00.002-05:00

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American snout butterflies

Libytheana carinenta aka American snout butterfly

Snout's caterpillars thrive on various species of Hackberry (Celtis) trees

Short video clips recorded September 8, 2011, by Fayetteville AR Public-Access Television featuring photos mostly from WPWP

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September 9, 2011, at World Peace Wetland Prairie

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Milton visited World Peace Wetland Prairie on Friday morning and saw some of the creatures in these photos himself

Amber Tripodi, doing research for her doctoral dissertation, talks about American bumble bee and carpenter bee at WPWP on September 7, 2011

2011-09-07T18:25:00.003-05:00

Tetraopes tertropthalmus, the red milkweed beetle, has unique way of avoiding the poisonous effect of milkweed plants

2011-09-06T10:29:00.000-05:00

Please click on individual images to ENLARGE. Click on enlargement for even closer view of Tetraopes tertraopthalmus and use live link to read about its live cycle.

Public-television short videos for September 5-9, 2011: All residents of Fayetteville, Arkansas, can record a short take each Monday 5-6 p.m. or Thursday 11 a.m. to noon

2011-09-04T14:55:00.000-05:00

Today at World Peace Wetland Prairie entry area gardens

2011-09-01T09:33:00.001-05:00

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Town Branch Neighborhood Association meeting at 6 p.m. Tuesday, August 30, 2011, to discuss plan for apartment complex adjacent to National Cemetery, streamside-protection ordinance, neighborhood watch, urban wildlife-habitat certification of private property, natural-yard option approved by City Council and anything of importance in our neighborhood and city

2011-08-25T14:13:00.002-05:00

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Spider on Evening primrose August 26, 2011

Bumblebee and tiger swallowtail on native thistle Aug. 26, 2011

Monarch thistle August 26, 2011

Sunday morning August 21, 2011, at World Peace Wetland Prairie

2011-08-21T14:14:00.001-05:00

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Huge short-horned grasshopper BEHIND wing of clear-wing moth

Female tiger (dark variety) swallowtail on thistle

Leaf-footed bug dragging shell of insect already eaten on Verbesina virginica

Bumblebees and tiger swallotail on thistle at Peace Circle Garden WPWP

Tightly cropped view of female black version of tiger swallowtail

Traditional landscapes suck Energy, Water and Money, says Neil Diboll at The Native Plants in the Landscape Conference

2011-08-20T20:57:00.000-05:00

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« Welcome to The Native Plants in the Landscape Conference

The Future of Gardening by Neil Diboll

The Future of Gardening: Why Going Native is the Answer

Presented at the 20^th Millersville Native Plant Conference
Millersville, PA
June 4, 2010

by Neil Diboll
Prairie Nursery, Inc.
P.O. Box 306
Westfield, WI 53964
www.prairienursery.com
800-476-9453 (800-GRO-WILD)
Traditional landscapes suck. They suck Energy, Water, and Money. These three “Future Factors” will determine to a large degree the shape and structure of our landscapes in the coming years.
The old whipping boy, the lawn, indeed deserves a good whipping. It is emblematic of an expensive, unsustainable, energy and chemical hungry landscape that supports few forms of life and consumes valuable resources that could be better invested elsewhere.
Size of the American Lawn
There are over 50 million acres of lawn in the United States, twice the size of the state of Pennsylvania.
The total American corn crop for 2009 was 86 million acres.
The total American soybean crop for 2009 was 77 million acres.
The total American wheat crop for 2009 was 65 million acres.
Lawn is the fourth largest crop grown in America today.
Water Use by the American Lawn
Thirty percent of the water consumed on the East Coast of the US goes to watering lawns. Sixty percent of the water used on the West Coast is dedicated to maintaining green lawns, in a region that is facing looming water shortages.
A 1000 square foot lawn requires an average of 10,000 gallons of water per year to maintain in good condition.
One acre of irrigated lawn requires nearly half a million gallons (435,000) of water every year!
Chemical Fertilizers and Pesticides Applied to the American Lawn
The average lawn receives 10 times as much chemical fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides as the typical farm field, according to a Yale University graduate study.
Over 80 millions pounds of chemical pesticides are applied to American lawns each year according to the USEPA.
More than 70 million tons of chemical fertilizers are applied to American lawns per year.
The USEPA estimates that 40 to 60 percent of the Nitrogen fertilizer applied to lawns ends up in our surface water and groundwater.
Forty four percent of the Nitrogen and 28 percent of the Phosphorus applied in the Mississippi River watershed ends up in the Gulf of Mexico, greatly exacerbating the anoxic “dead zone” that preceded the BP oil spill of 2010.
Solid Waste Created by Lawns
The EPA also estimates that grass clippings and yard debris account for 20 to 40 percent of the landfill space consumed in America.
Energy Consumption by Lawns
The amount of energy required to mow and maintain manicured lawns is surprisingly large, and is used in every phase of lawn care:
Mowing: Gasoline or diesel fuel to is required to power riding mowers and most push type rotary mowers. Electricity that powers electric lawn mowers is produced primarily by fossil fuels such as coal and natural gas, and by nuclear power plants.
Pesticides: Most herbicides and insecticides are derived from or combined with petroleum-based compounds. Of the 80 million pounds of pesticides applied to lawns in American every year, most are synthesized from oil.
Fertilizers: Fertilizers are applied to lawns in staggering quantities. The energy required to mine and transport the 70 million tons of chemical fertilizers that are dumped on lawns every year is significant. Most Nitrogen fertilizers are produced using the Haber Process, in which Nitrogen in the air is converted into a solid or liquid form that can be readily handled and applied. The Haber Process is extremely energy intensive, and vast quantities of natural gas are consumed to produce nitrogen fertilizer for lawns.
Irrigation: Even watering the lawn consumes energy. Electricity is used to purify water at treatment plants, and to pump water to homes and businesses. The underground plastic pipes that are used in lawn irrigations systems are produced from petrochemicals derived from crude oil.
Carbon Footprint of Lawns
As an energy-dependent landscape, the carbon annual footprint consumption of lawns is high compared to prairies and other natural landscapes that require only occasional mowing, no fertilizers, no irrigation, and few if any pesticides. Prairies release carbon into the atmosphere when burned, and when dead organic matter such as leaves and stems decompose through microbial action. However, these releases are offset by new plant growth which absorbs carbon dioxide from the air and incorporates it into new leave, roots, and stems.
The incredibly rich prairie soils of the American Midwest are a result of the accumulation of organic matter in the soil over hundreds and thousands of years. Unlike most forest ecosystems, in which organic matter is sequestered in the upper 12- 18 inches of soil, prairie soils typically exhibit high organic matter content from three to six feet in depth. They also have significantly higher total organic matter content than forest soils. This would indicate that over time, prairies are one of the most efficient plant communities at removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and providing long term carbon sequestration in the soil.
Economic Costs of Lawn
Americans spend over $25 billion per year on lawn care (USEPA).
Americans spend over $2 billion per year on lawn and garden chemicals.
A 4000 square foot lawn (1/10 acre) produces an average of 1200 pounds of grass clippings per year. The City of Philadelphia Streets Department reported in 2005 that it costs $75 per year to dispose of this material.
Wildlife and Lawns
The US EPA estimates that between 60 and 70 millions birds are poisoned annually due to the application of lawn pesticides.
On lawns that receive regular applications of pesticides, 60 to 90 percent of the earthworms in the soil are killed.
Air and Noise Pollution
In summer months, 5 percent of air pollution is attributable to gas powered lawn and garden equipment (National Vehicle and Fuel Assessment Lab, Ann Arbor, MI)
Per hour of operation, a typical lawnmower emits 10-12 times as much hydrocarbons as an automobile.
Health and Safety
Of the most commonly used lawn pesticides, 13 are known to cause cancer, 14 can cause birth defects, 11 can interfere with reproduction, and 21 can cause damage to the nervous system. (US EPA)
111,000 Americans are sickened every year due to exposure to pesticides. (US EPA)
Over 230,000 people are treated in the Emergency Room every year for accident related to lawn equipment. (US EPA)
Time
The average homeowner spends 40 hours a year mowing his or her lawn – the equivalent of a week’s vacation!
HOW DID WE ARRIVE AT OUR LAWN-DOMINATED LANDSCAPE MODEL?
AN HISTORICAL OVERVIEW
The New World of North America once appeared to be a seemingly inexhaustible resource that held immense promise for the early colonists and settlers. True to their culture, the northern Europeans that swarmed into the vast hinterlands of America created a landscape in the image of their forebears: cut, grazed, plowed, and fenced into submission. The newly broken land yielded great bounty for a growing nation. As the country expanded, the towns and villages took on the names and character of our former homes across the Atlantic: Amsterdam, Birmingham, Gloucester, Berlin, Warsaw, and Rome, to name but a few.
Our goal as a nation and a culture was to tame the wilderness and make it safe for civilization. In so doing, we re-created the Old Country in the New World. As we brought the wilderness under our heel, we took little time to appreciate its unique character and beauty. Most settlers sought bounty, not beauty. In the rush to convert forests and meadows into farms and fields, the flowers mostly went unnoticed. Unplowed, unproductive wild land was a sign of sloth, savagery, and the devil’s work. Indeed, our mandate was to subdue the earth. And subdue it we did.
When our work was finally done, we sat back to take stock of our immense labors, and it appeared that it was good. Mostly. What we had not considered were the terrible losses associated with our great gain. We had gained ascendancy over our young country. In the process, we lost the character of a continent.
Yea, even unto our gardens, we banished the wildflowers and wild things to the far reaches of the countryside and to the corners of our consciousness. And nothing suffered the utter demise and near-total destruction such as that which was visited upon the American Prairie.
The American Prairie: the once-vast kingdom of flowers, grasses, bison and butterflies. This unbelievably rich, unique ecosystem blanketed millions of acres of America’s heartland. These were the flower gardens of North America. Hidden deep underground, among the intertwined roots of a universe of prairie plants, lay the black gold that was to become the currency of the prairie farmer. Here was the inheritance of a million sunny days, hoarded away in the bank account of the prairie soil.
Agricultural, the Industrial Revolution, and the Rise of the American Middle Class
The farmers that tapped into this prairie trust fund found the dividends to be prodigious. No fertilizers were needed to grow bumper crops. The immense yields increased agricultural productivity to levels previously unheard-of, revolutionizing the farmer’s relationship with the land. Now one family could produce food for dozens of others. The day of the subsistence farm was over. Human labor was set free to tend the factory instead of the field. The dawn of the American Industrial Revolution was reflected in the glow of the forge that John Deere used to construct the first sod-busting steel plow in 1836. With the industrial dawn came the sunset of the American Prairie.
The Eastern Tallgrass Prairie of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska was all but obliterated in the span of a few short decades at the close of the nineteenth century. That which was not plowed under was closed in with fences and grazed to the ground by millions of cattle. What were once wide open spaces became food factories and feedlots. Still, we knew not what we had done.
A full century later, we are just beginning to grasp the scope of the loss. The Eastern Tallgrass Prairie is now one of the rarest plant communities in the entire world. Rainforests are commonplace by comparison. Less than 1/10th of 1% of the Tallgrass Prairie remains today. The small refuges where it can be found occur only in small tattered fragments, ripped from the original cloth. Only those pieces that could not be drained, plowed, grazed, or otherwise turned to the service of mankind remain. There was simply no place for wildness in this new American landscape.
The conversion of the New World into the Old Country was complete. All that remained now was to tend the fields and the gardens of plants brought over from Europe, and to make sure that the lawns that replaced that prairie were kept mown and in order.
Order. The watchword of a Puritanical culture that sought to carve structure from the chaos of wilderness. Everything in control. Nothing out of place. Even our gardens reflect this directive. Designs are precise, with each plant in its pre-ordained place, ensconced in a thick bed of bark mulch. The vegetable world must supplicate itself to our omnipotence. Those plants that fail to stay in their assigned seats are branded as weeds, and banished from the garden. And if they should grow wild in nature, how could such peasant plants of common breeding be sufficiently refined to have a place in our gardens?
If the garden is truly the place where people and nature meet, it is almost always the gardener who determines the terms of the meeting. Will the gardeners of the earth choose to work with Nature to create beauty in the landscape? Or will we attempt to overpower her with an arsenal of chemicals, machines, and “maintenance programs?”
We are finally coming to realize that the practice of paying homage to a uniform, idealized landscape of seamlessly interconnected lawns is an illusion. This becomes eminently clear when one realizes that the centerpoint of this landscape is a nearly lifeless, two dimensional expanse of turf, to which we slavishly devote much of our increasingly rare and precious free time. We pour on the chemicals, mow the grass to within an inch of its life, and kill any and all bugs that have the temerity to share the landscape with us. Perhaps most annoying, this national pastime called Lawn Care is really quite expensive.
For many, their lawns are like an addiction. They will pay almost any price to satisfy the cravings. The price is paid in money, time, environmental degradation, and in some cases, one’s health. We have so completely divorced ourselves from Nature that the only connection to the natural world is by watering and mowing their green carpets!
It is indeed a costly divorce from Nature. Enforcement of our unnatural landscapes consumes billions of dollars every year. Lawns, ornamental plantings, and even perennial gardens require constant attention if the desired order is to be maintained. Without intervention by the human hand on a regular basis, these landscapes soon fall victim to the invading hordes of weeds, trees, brambles and vines. Left unguarded, the walls of the domestic garden are stormed by the Vandals and Visigoths of the Vegetable Kingdom. Without the indulgences of their human benefactors, the meeker and fairer plants of the garden are quickly pillaged and displaced by the roving thugs of the plant world.
History of the American Lawn
The modern lawn has it origin in the country estates of landed gentry in England in the 16^th and 17^th centuries. It was a status symbol of the wealthy, for the working classes typically possessed no land, and could ill afford a lawn eve if they did. With our Anglo-American heritage, we looked to the mother country for our social cues in the 18^th century as the American middle class emerged during the industrial revolution. The newly wealthy purchased homes and estates and installed lawns as one of their symbols of having “made it.” Lawns quickly became one of the status symbols associated with the new middle and upper classes.
The great American landscape architect, Frederick Law Olmstead, referred to the lawn in the late 18^th century as “The Great Democratizer” of a newly ascendant nation. Rather than installing fences and barriers between neighboring properties as was common in Europe, Americans had a seamless carpet of green grass unifying their properties, all sharing in the new ethos of a mutual affluence.
The lawn quickly became a socio-economic symbol, denoting order and devotion to a non-economic crop that only those with expendable income could afford. As the middle class in America grew after World War II, the occupants of newly-built suburbs embraced the lawn as one of their icons of success and comfortable living.
The lawn was now cemented into American culture. Woe be unto he who violated the unspoken contract of “keeping up appearances” and allowing one’s turf to “go native” and grow beyond the socially acceptable four inches in height. An un-mowed, unkempt lawn was a sign of slovenliness and anti-social tendencies. Social breakdown and chaos could not be far behind.
This is why the lawn is so ardently defended by so many. It is a symbol of an entire social class and lifestyle. It is far more than a near-lifeless green expanse that requires an inordinate amount of time, money and chemicals to maintain. It embodies the hopes and dreams of average Americans, and symbolizes the triumph or order over entropy. It is a shared middle class bond that transcends politics, religion, and ethnicity. In many communities you are judged by your lawn first, and your character as a human being second. And do not for one minute believe that the first does not influence the second.
Why do we Persist with Our Addiction to Lawns? What About Wildlife?
1)    It’s simple and easy! We know how to do it: Fertilize it, spray it, and mow it!
2)    You don’t really have to know anything about plants or gardening to grow and manage a lawn – just follow the directions provided by the purveyors of fertilizers, herbicides, fungicides, and insecticides provide you!
3)    Lawn is a cheap fix. Although less costly to install than native landscapes, lawn has a high life cycle cost over a period of many years. Native landscapes typically have low long-term maintenance costs, with lower life cycle costs.
4)    Lawns don’t attract bugs or wildlife (except for geese), so you know you and your family will be safe from snakes, vermin, and those annoying insects! So what if insects are the foundation of the food chain, and support a myriad of birds and other desirable creatures. We’ve been brainwashed that bugs are bad, so we have to make sure they don’t inhabit our outdoor living spaces.
5)    NO BUGS, NO BIRDS!
6)    Everybody says they love Nature, but nobody ever invites her over to their yard.
7)    I knew my prairie was a success when I saw Meadow Jumping Mice (Zapus hudsonianus) and Hog Nosed Snakes (Heterodon platirhinos) in it. These creatures provided evidence that I now had a functioning ecosystem, not just a garden. If you like hawks and owls, you better be able to feed them: rodents and reptiles are some of their preferred foods.
WE ARE NOT A NATION OF GARDENERS:
WE ARE A NATION OF MOWERS!
WHY DO WE CARE WHAT WE PLANT IN OUR GARDENS
AND LANDSCAPES?
Many of us care deeply about the state of our planet and the loss of biodiversity that is occurring on a global scale. Although we all think globally, most of us can only act locally. Together, we can have an impact in our own gardens and landscapes, as well as those of our friends and neighbors. For those of us in the landscape design business, we can promote sustainable landscapes composed of native plants that require little or no fertilizers, pesticides, watering, or mowing (just burning!). This alone, when compounded over time as more people opt for sustainable landscapes, can have an impact.
The looming question for us today is the on-going loss of biodiversity. Restoring native ecosystems is one way we can help support not just native plants, but also invertebrates such as rare butterflies and moths, bees, wasps, and all manner of the generally unloved lower castes of bugs and creepy crawly things. Yet they are all important, and each has an important place in the web of life.
Homo sapiens, is presently presiding over what is believed to be the Sixth Great Extinction. Although we have yet to reach the catastrophic levels of past extinction events, we are well on our way and showing only a few signs of abatement in our drive to subdue and conquer the earth, as we serve our ever-expanding need for food, fuel, water, and living space.
But does it really matter what we do as individuals? A society is composed of all its individuals, and their actions determine the face of that society. Most of us are working to restore the integrity of native ecosystems because we believe it is the “right” and good thing to do, and that we are “doing it for the planet.” But does it really matter? Does the planet really respect our actions? Or is it all irrelevant?
The Earth has been subjected to massive extinctions in the past, some fairly recent in geological history. The planet has always recovered, with the development of new species and a wealth of new life forms. Nature does indeed abhor a vacuum, and she apparently fills it rapidly. All of the work I am doing on my property to control invasive species and restore native plants will someday be negated by the next advance of the glacier, as unlikely as that may seem at this point in geological and meteorolical history. Of course, my landscape will probably be invaded by garlic muster, buckthorn, honeysuckle and other non-native thugs soon after my demise, unless some equally deranged and determined individual picks up where I leave off.
SO WHY RESTORE THE PLANET? DOES IT REALLY MATTER?
If one takes a long-term geological perspective, it doesn’t really matter what we do. Even if we nuke the joint, something will survive and a whole new set of life forms will evolve. Maybe the next sentient beings will be smarter than us, and actually take care of the planet.
We Restore the Earth Because It Is Good for Us!
We need a quality of life that includes clean air, clean water, trees, flowers, ferns, birds, and all the wonderful life forms with which we share the planet. We aren’t just preserving habitat and restoring native plant communities out of the goodness of our hearts – Our very economic and psychic survival depend upon it!
We have yet to fully value the economics of a healthy environment. But as the planet is further degraded, the value of high quality living spaces only increases.
THE BOTTOM LINE: Ultimately, our future landscapes will be in large part determined more by economics than ecology. This is an unfortunate consequence of the human condition. As a quality living space becomes more valuable, more value will be placed upon it. We will protect it more diligently. It will sell for a higher price. People will begin to view the natural environment more as an asset, rather than as a resource to be exploited.
All of this will most likely be precipitated by shortages of water, rather than a shortage of oil or other energy source. You can live without oil, but you cannot live without water. As the price of water increases, the incentive to conserve it will increase. We will need landscapes that do not require huge inputs of water and chemicals to sustain them. We will need to overcome our cultural taboos of “messy” natural landscapes and move beyond viewing lawns as status symbols and a rite of passage into the middle and upper classes.
Someday pride of place will belong to those with the least lawn, lowest water bill, and no chemicals in their garages. Society will value those who work to preserve our environment, rather than those who can make the most money by despoiling it. I personally cannot wait much longer for that day to come.
AT A GLANCE:
TODAY: LAWN, an ecological and economic disaster

TOMORROW: SUSTAINA LE ECOSYSTEMS, composed of native plant
communities that require little or no fertilizers, pesticides, or irrigation, o
TODAY: MONOCULTURES of mowed lawns

TOMORROW: DIVERSE ECOSYSTEMS that support a wide variety of life
TODAY: FEAR and mistrust of the natural world and its attendant organisms (bugs,
mice, snakes, etc)

TOMORROW: RE-INTEGRATION of people into nature and an understanding that
everything is connected and interdependent
WE MUST ENTER INTO A JOINT VENTURE WITH NATURE TO PRESERVE OUR PLANET AND THE SYSTEMS UPON WHICH ALL LIFE DEPENDS.

ONLY THEN WILL WE LIVE IN HARMONY WITH OUR FELLOW CREATURES ON THIS PLANET.

OUR QUALITY LIFE AND LONG-TERM SURVIVAL DEPENDS UPON THE SURVIVAL OF THE SYSTEMS AND ORGANISMS THAT SUPPORT US.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 26th, 2011 at 3:39 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

University of Vermont Extension
Department of Plant and Soil Science

Summer News Article
FUEL-EFFICIENT LAWNS AND LANDSCAPES
Dr. Leonard Perry, Extension Professor
University of Vermont
With the price of gasoline and natural gas on the rise, most are looking for ways to cut their costs and save energy. If you have a lawn or garden, you may not realize just how much fossil fuels you are using. By knowing where these are used, you can look for ways to reduce consumption. This will reduce your costs, and help the environment.
In a recent PPPro online newsletter Paul Tukey, editor of People, Places and Plants magazine, provides some sobering facts and helpful suggestions. Each year, a family with a one-third acre lawn will on average:
*consume five gallons of gas for mowing and trimming;
*apply the equivalent of seven gallons for fertilizing;
*burn up to five gallons for watering; and
*consume an additional gallon for cleanup.
That’s 18 gallons of fuel per household. With 120 million U.S. households, that’s the equivalent of almost 2.2 billion gallons of fuel used just for lawn care each year. This does not count other landscaping activities. So just how do we use so much?
Yale University has estimated that the United States uses more than 600 million gallons of gas to mow and trim lawns each year — about two gallons of gas for every man, woman and child, or five gallons per household. Mowers also consume engine oil in their crankcases, and two-stroke mowers consume oil in their fuel.
In addition to fuel consumption, mowers and outdoor power equipment contribute heavily to air pollution. Operating a typical (4 HP) gasoline-powered lawnmower for one hour produces as much smog-forming hydrocarbons as driving an average car between 100 and 200 miles under average conditions. Gasoline-powered string trimmers are actually more polluting than many lawn mowers. One estimate (mindfully.org) states that “the 20,000,000 small engines sold in the U.S. each year contribute about one tenth of the total U.S. mobile source hydrocarbon emissions, and are the largest single contributor to these non-road emissions.” These include power blowers, rakes, and brooms.
Creating synthetic nitrogen for fertilizers requires the heating of natural gas to combine atmospheric nitrogen and hydrogen into ammonia. The amount of natural gas required to make approximately 200 bags of lawn fertilizer would heat your home for a year. Each 40-pound bag contains the fossil-fuel equivalent of approximately 2.5 gallons of gasoline. Transporting these bags of fertilizer from the factory and to your home requires additional fuel.
According to a California study, in many areas — especially in the West, where water must be moved great distances from reservoirs — the amount of fuel needed to pump the water is at least equal to the fuel used in mowing.

So what can you do? Here are ten tips to have a “fuel-efficient” landscape.
*Use an electric or non-powered push mower. An electric mower maintaining one-third of an acre for a season consumes only $3 of electricity on average. Electric mowers are 75 percent quieter than gas mowers. Push mowers, of course, consume no fuel and make little noise.
*Similarly, use traditional hand rakes and brooms instead of power ones and blowers to save fuel, and at the same time reduce air and noise pollution. If you employ a landscape maintenance firm, encourage their use of these too. Minimize the need for string trimmers. Mulch along walks and around structures such as lamp posts to avoid having to trim weeds in these areas.
*If you have an old mower, consider replacing it. Newer small engines run much cleaner. EPA emission standards for such engines, to be in effect by 2007, are expected to reduce ground-level ozone emissions by 70 percent or 350,000 tons each year.
*Reduce the area mowed through use of groundcovers. This is especially true in areas with water shortages. Allow parts of large areas to grow, only mowing once or twice a season, creating a natural meadow. You can still mow areas near drives and homes to maintain the more formal manicured effects in such highly visible and high traffic areas.
*Save rainwater and gray water. Gray water is that water from home use, except from toilets, and can make up from 50 to 80 percent of home waste water. It comes from sinks, showers, and laundry and can be used for irrigating landscapes and lawns.
*Water deeply once per week on average, rather than frequently. Drip irrigation and mulches also conserve water. Using less water saves on energy use, whether you’re buying water that has to be pumped, or are paying an electric bill to pump your own.
*Use natural, organic fertilizers not derived from fossil fuels.
*Recycle grass clippings, mow higher and mix 5 percent clover into your lawn seed. All these help recycle nutrients back into the soil. Mulching-type mowers allow you to leave grass clippings on the lawn. If you don’t have such a mower, and remove the clippings, add them to compost or use them to mulch gardens.
*Compost all yard wastes, except for diseased plants and plant parts. They can go into compost piles, saving gasoline hauling such to landfills and recycle centers. If your landscape generates many twigs and other brush, consider buying or renting a home-size brush chipper.
*Finally, consider landscaping to reduce up to 25 percent of home energy consumption. Foundation plantings can lessen heat loss from buildings. Evergreen windbreaks can reduce heating costs in winter in windy areas. Deciduous shade trees can reduce energy needs for cooling in summer. According to the Department of Energy, only three properly placed trees may

Return to Perry's Perennial Pages, Articles

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"You can't learn much from a lawn,
but a garden has a whole world of wonders."

history

Lawns started out as grazing areas around the manors of the landed gentry. Having a nice lawn around the house was a sign of power as you owned sufficient land to raise sheep and cow.
As the industrial revolution took hold and animals were less a sign of wealth, the lawn itself became the status symbol. You could indulge yourself in sparing land and time to recreational grounds.
As people moved to the cities so did the grass, on ever smaller plots. First lawns were cut by hand and later with the mechanical lawnmower, (an automated, resource depleting, pointless cow.)
The 20th Century saw an explosion of lawn making as commercial interests produced endless grass seed, fertiliser, pesticides, mowers, spreaders and irrigation equipment whilst developers discovered they could pass off cheap ‘gardens’ by spreading 3 inches of soil over hard subsoil and laying turf on top.
Nowerdays, many lawns are rarely used and some are so covered with chemicals children have been permanently injured after walking barefoot on them.[1]

the modern lawn - a waste of resources

The modern pure grass lawn is artificial... you need effort and chemicals to maintain a monoculture.

Misuse and the inherent toxicity of standard pesticides cause short and long term poisoning, cancer and disease in people and wildlife. [a]

Extensive use and overuse of fertilisers (due to lack of restrictions) causes water pollution problems and wastes resources. [b]

Endless summer irrigation to keep lawns green wastes massive amounts of water and depletes water tables. [c]

Lawnmowers, strimmers and other lawn machinery unregulated for environmental emissions, use vast amounts of petrol and are a significant factor in urban air and noise pollution. [d]

The lawn is the worlds third agriculture. It is probable that westerners spend more person hours, energy and resources on their lawns than any agricultural resource of the third world.[8]

In the early 1990’s in the United States…

$ 25 billion a year was spent on lawn care products.
Of this,
$ 5,250 million was spent on fossil fuel-derived fertilisers and...
$ 700 million was spent on 28 million kgs of poisonous synthetic pesticides.

Meanwhile 20 million acres were planted in residential lawns
and the average city sprayed its lawns with 30 to 60 % of its fresh water supply.[2]

The lawn is a green desert. Adoption of a monoculture for a garden drastically reduces the habitats available for wildlife. Birds, bees, butterflies and other animals all begin to disappear. Often leaving an unstable ecosystem where common ‘pest’ species seem to flourish.

alternatives

Aside from keeping animals or ripping up the turf to plant trees and bushes, build vegetable beds, a pond or a greenhouse there are many things you can do to keep the same purpose of a lawn whilst adding diversity and removing chemical and mechanical dependence. (Unless the area you have is subject to heavy traffic and abuse, where turf is probably the most suitable thing to use.) If you just want somewhere to sit, try making a bench a focal point of your garden.
Lawns can be made more edible, medicinal, beautiful and nice smelling by adding low growing aromatic herbs and flowers. The plants below have been specially selected because they will tolerate at least infrequent mowings. For best results don’t cut as often or as short as a normal lawn and try to lay off for at least 3 weeks in the summer to let the taller plants flower and set seed. You could try sowing them into small gaps in the grass or better still plant them out. For low maintenance choose plants that will like your local conditions.

	lively lawns Apart from the obvious dandelions (Taraxacum officinale), daisy (Bellis perennis) and plantains (Plantago major, plantago media) which are all excellent in lawns, freely self seed, add variety and can also be eaten once you get past seeing them just as ‘weeds,’ try… White Clover, Trifolium repens: 10cm H, spreads, adds nitrogen to the soil, attracts bees and butterflies. You can eat the flowers and leaves, (bit fiddly though) Camomile, Chamaemelum nobile: 15cm H 30cm W, Plants for a future[9] recommend for smell but not for medicine, (no flowers), a cultivar called ‘Treneague’ which is low growing, spreads and will succeed if the grass is cut low and often, however you'll have to find a cutting, there are no seeds. Wild thyme, Thymus serpyllum: 10cm H 30cm W Forms spreading clumps, pink flowers attract bees in summer, drought tolerant, needs sun. High in antioxidants and an essential kitchen herb. Lemon thyme, Thymus x citiodorus: 10cm H 30cm W. Likes light well drained soil and full sun, can be planted by division. Coltsfoot, Tussilago farfara: 25cm H, spreads invasively. Tolerates shade, does well in all soils, flowers edible mar-apr, leaves appear afterwards, used for treatment of respiratory problems. Rough Hawkbit, Leontodon hispidus: 40cm H 30cm W. Similar to dandelion, prefers chalky soil, flowers all summer, attracts bees & butterflies, edible leaves most of the year.
	Salad burnet, Sanguisorba minor: 55cm H 30cm W. Prefers chalky soil and slightly longer grass, flowers May-Aug and provides edible young leaves all year round. Self Heal, Prunella vulgaris: 15cm H spreading to form clumps 30cm W. Prefers moist soil, tolerates low cutting and shade, flowers mid to late summer, attracts bees & butterflies, eaten in salads and an healing herb for cuts and wounds. Yarrow, Achillea millefolium: upto 60cm H spreads, hardy, drought resistant, good in poor soils, and a very useful medicinal herb. beautiful bulbs By lengthening the time between mowings you can also grow taller plants such as bulbs. Planted surreptitiously they are a nice surprise. All below are edible and most spread naturally. It is advisable to plant bulbs of similar flowering times together to make any lawn maintenance more straightforward. Field & Crow garlic, Allium oleraceum & A. vineale: 60cm H, 5cm W. Both almost invasive in grass if left to form bulbils in jul-aug, tolerant of mowing, leaves edible autumn to following summer. If cows eat them, their milk is tainted. Quamash, Camassia quamash: 50cm H 10cm W. Does well in short grass and under trees, flowers late spring, very edible bulbs when cooked.
	Dog's Tooth Violet, Erythronium den-canis: 15cm H 10cm W. appears in spring for a few months each year. bulbs edible raw or cooked, also try E. revoltum 'pagoda' for a bigger, version. Tassel Hyacinth, Muscari botryoides: 40cm H clumps 20cm W. Easy to grow, does well in short grass, almost invasive, 3.5cm bulbs edible, but a little bitter. Or for beauty, there are many other bulbs, such as daffodils, bluebells, crocus etc that can be planted into the lawn. wonderful wildflowers Perhaps you could turn some of your lawn into a ‘wildflower meadow’. This will attract butterflies and insects as well as bringing nature a bit closer to home. Choose a sunny position on poor soil to get the most flowers. Mow only after the seeds have set (around August) and remove the clippings to keep fertility low. Sow a mix of wild flowers into bare earth, or if grass is already established, grow in pots and plant out in Autumn or Spring, this is more work but gets better results. Most of the above taller lawn plants will do well as these edible ones below... Meadowsweet, Filipendula ulmaria: 120cm H. Likes moist rich soil non acid soils, a useful medicinal and culinary herb. Sheep sorrel, Rumex acetosella: 30cm H. prefers suny and moist spot, sharp edible salad leaves all year round. Red clover, Trifolium pratense: 60cm H. attracts butterflies, moths and bees, put round apple trees for better fruit, edible leaves, fixes nitrogen. Alternatively you could purchase a conservation wildflower mix from a local supplier, you won't be able to eat them though. For some more lawn fun see the guerrilla gardening pages. Notes [a] Many pesticides have never been adequately tested for toxicity to humans or wildlife. According to the National Coalition Against the Misuse of Pesticides, 13 of the most commonly used lawn care pesticides can cause cancer, 14 can cause birth defects, 21 can damage the nervous system, 15 can injure the liver or kidney, and 30 are sensitizers or irritants. [3] The pesticide MCPA, used as an ingredient is some lawn pesticides, has been found to damage the blood brain barrier which protects against neurological illness.[4] Organophosphate pesticides have been shown to cause memory loss and short attention spans.[5] Other studies have linked long term pesticide use with prostate[6], brain and lung cancer.[7] It is estimated that each year in the US, 67 million birds are poisoned by legally used pesticides.[3] Pesticides are often misused especially by homeowners, increasing the risks. [b] Fertiliser is often over applied, causing runoff problems in nearby watercourses, as well as the obvious waste of fossil fuels in its manufacture and transport. [c] It is estimated that 44% of domestic water consumption in California is used for lawns[8] In many areas ground water tables are being depleted. [d] The manufacture of garden machinery uses energy, depletes resources and creates pollution as do the engine fumes or the power plants producing the electricity they run on. In the early 90’s it was estimated that 580,000,000 gallons of petrol were used to run lawnmowers in the US every year.[2] References [1] The Pesticide Scandal, Sayan, Kathyrne, Family Circle 2 April 1991. [2] Redesigning the American Lawn, F. Herbert Bormann, Diana Balmori, Gordon T. Geballe, Yale University Press, 1993 [3] Spring, 1997 edition of The Arlington Environment, Volume Four, Number Four [4] Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology, 65:23, 1982 [5] Annual Reviews in Public Health, 7:461, 1986 [6] Occupational Environmental Medicine, 56(1):14-21, 1999 [7] Journal of the National Cancer Institute, 71(1), July 1983 [8] Permaculture a designers manual, Bill Mollison, Tagari publications, 1988. [9] Plants for a future- edible and useful plants for a healthier world, Ken Fern, Permanent publications, 1997.

home . sitemap . search . contact us . top

		Gardening

		What to do with a Lawn

THIS ZONE
climate
cultivation
natural patterns
pests
lawns
seedsaving
soil
sprouting

THE SITE
home
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monocult
actions
evolution

RESOURCES
sitemap
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search

US
contact us
our aims
logo/banner

"You can't learn much from a lawn,
but a garden has a whole world of wonders."

history

the modern lawn - a waste of resources

The modern pure grass lawn is artificial... you need effort and chemicals to maintain a monoculture.

Misuse and the inherent toxicity of standard pesticides cause short and long term poisoning, cancer and disease in people and wildlife. [a]

Extensive use and overuse of fertilisers (due to lack of restrictions) causes water pollution problems and wastes resources. [b]

Endless summer irrigation to keep lawns green wastes massive amounts of water and depletes water tables. [c]

Lawnmowers, strimmers and other lawn machinery unregulated for environmental emissions, use vast amounts of petrol and are a significant factor in urban air and noise pollution. [d]

The lawn is the worlds third agriculture. It is probable that westerners spend more person hours, energy and resources on their lawns than any agricultural resource of the third world.[8]

alternatives

	lively lawns Apart from the obvious dandelions (Taraxacum officinale), daisy (Bellis perennis) and plantains (Plantago major, plantago media) which are all excellent in lawns, freely self seed, add variety and can also be eaten once you get past seeing them just as ‘weeds,’ try… White Clover, Trifolium repens: 10cm H, spreads, adds nitrogen to the soil, attracts bees and butterflies. You can eat the flowers and leaves, (bit fiddly though) Camomile, Chamaemelum nobile: 15cm H 30cm W, Plants for a future[9] recommend for smell but not for medicine, (no flowers), a cultivar called ‘Treneague’ which is low growing, spreads and will succeed if the grass is cut low and often, however you'll have to find a cutting, there are no seeds. Wild thyme, Thymus serpyllum: 10cm H 30cm W Forms spreading clumps, pink flowers attract bees in summer, drought tolerant, needs sun. High in antioxidants and an essential kitchen herb. Lemon thyme, Thymus x citiodorus: 10cm H 30cm W. Likes light well drained soil and full sun, can be planted by division. Coltsfoot, Tussilago farfara: 25cm H, spreads invasively. Tolerates shade, does well in all soils, flowers edible mar-apr, leaves appear afterwards, used for treatment of respiratory problems. Rough Hawkbit, Leontodon hispidus: 40cm H 30cm W. Similar to dandelion, prefers chalky soil, flowers all summer, attracts bees & butterflies, edible leaves most of the year.
	Salad burnet, Sanguisorba minor: 55cm H 30cm W. Prefers chalky soil and slightly longer grass, flowers May-Aug and provides edible young leaves all year round. Self Heal, Prunella vulgaris: 15cm H spreading to form clumps 30cm W. Prefers moist soil, tolerates low cutting and shade, flowers mid to late summer, attracts bees & butterflies, eaten in salads and an healing herb for cuts and wounds. Yarrow, Achillea millefolium: upto 60cm H spreads, hardy, drought resistant, good in poor soils, and a very useful medicinal herb. beautiful bulbs By lengthening the time between mowings you can also grow taller plants such as bulbs. Planted surreptitiously they are a nice surprise. All below are edible and most spread naturally. It is advisable to plant bulbs of similar flowering times together to make any lawn maintenance more straightforward. Field & Crow garlic, Allium oleraceum & A. vineale: 60cm H, 5cm W. Both almost invasive in grass if left to form bulbils in jul-aug, tolerant of mowing, leaves edible autumn to following summer. If cows eat them, their milk is tainted. Quamash, Camassia quamash: 50cm H 10cm W. Does well in short grass and under trees, flowers late spring, very edible bulbs when cooked.
	Dog's Tooth Violet, Erythronium den-canis: 15cm H 10cm W. appears in spring for a few months each year. bulbs edible raw or cooked, also try E. revoltum 'pagoda' for a bigger, version. Tassel Hyacinth, Muscari botryoides: 40cm H clumps 20cm W. Easy to grow, does well in short grass, almost invasive, 3.5cm bulbs edible, but a little bitter. Or for beauty, there are many other bulbs, such as daffodils, bluebells, crocus etc that can be planted into the lawn. wonderful wildflowers Perhaps you could turn some of your lawn into a ‘wildflower meadow’. This will attract butterflies and insects as well as bringing nature a bit closer to home. Choose a sunny position on poor soil to get the most flowers. Mow only after the seeds have set (around August) and remove the clippings to keep fertility low. Sow a mix of wild flowers into bare earth, or if grass is already established, grow in pots and plant out in Autumn or Spring, this is more work but gets better results. Most of the above taller lawn plants will do well as these edible ones below... Meadowsweet, Filipendula ulmaria: 120cm H. Likes moist rich soil non acid soils, a useful medicinal and culinary herb. Sheep sorrel, Rumex acetosella: 30cm H. prefers suny and moist spot, sharp edible salad leaves all year round. Red clover, Trifolium pratense: 60cm H. attracts butterflies, moths and bees, put round apple trees for better fruit, edible leaves, fixes nitrogen. Alternatively you could purchase a conservation wildflower mix from a local supplier, you won't be able to eat them though. For some more lawn fun see the guerrilla gardening pages. Notes [a] Many pesticides have never been adequately tested for toxicity to humans or wildlife. According to the National Coalition Against the Misuse of Pesticides, 13 of the most commonly used lawn care pesticides can cause cancer, 14 can cause birth defects, 21 can damage the nervous system, 15 can injure the liver or kidney, and 30 are sensitizers or irritants. [3] The pesticide MCPA, used as an ingredient is some lawn pesticides, has been found to damage the blood brain barrier which protects against neurological illness.[4] Organophosphate pesticides have been shown to cause memory loss and short attention spans.[5] Other studies have linked long term pesticide use with prostate[6], brain and lung cancer.[7] It is estimated that each year in the US, 67 million birds are poisoned by legally used pesticides.[3] Pesticides are often misused especially by homeowners, increasing the risks. [b] Fertiliser is often over applied, causing runoff problems in nearby watercourses, as well as the obvious waste of fossil fuels in its manufacture and transport. [c] It is estimated that 44% of domestic water consumption in California is used for lawns[8] In many areas ground water tables are being depleted. [d] The manufacture of garden machinery uses energy, depletes resources and creates pollution as do the engine fumes or the power plants producing the electricity they run on. In the early 90’s it was estimated that 580,000,000 gallons of petrol were used to run lawnmowers in the US every year.[2] References [1] The Pesticide Scandal, Sayan, Kathyrne, Family Circle 2 April 1991. [2] Redesigning the American Lawn, F. Herbert Bormann, Diana Balmori, Gordon T. Geballe, Yale University Press, 1993 [3] Spring, 1997 edition of The Arlington Environment, Volume Four, Number Four [4] Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology, 65:23, 1982 [5] Annual Reviews in Public Health, 7:461, 1986 [6] Occupational Environmental Medicine, 56(1):14-21, 1999 [7] Journal of the National Cancer Institute, 71(1), July 1983 [8] Permaculture a designers manual, Bill Mollison, Tagari publications, 1988. [9] Plants for a future- edible and useful plants for a healthier world, Ken Fern, Permanent publications, 1997.

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Swallowtails galore because of the variety of trees on and around World Peace Wetland Prairie

2011-08-19T22:31:00.001-05:00

Please click on image to ENLARGE. Click on enlargement for closer view of swallowtail butterfly.

Did you do a short take for Fayetteville Public Access Channel this week? Mine is linked below and it will run on CAT 218 from August 22 through August 26, 2011. Free air time for all!

2011-08-19T16:12:00.001-05:00

A few Insects on WPWP on August 16, 2011

2011-08-16T18:47:00.000-05:00

Some creatures that need a continuous wildlife corridor through Northwest Arkansas: To learn more, please attend program at Fayetteville Public Library starting at 6 p.m. today; it is free to everyone

2011-08-15T10:43:00.000-05:00

Clearwing moth on native thistle at World Peace Wetland Prairie on August 15, 2011

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Female black form tiger swallowtail and male share a thistle on August 12, 2011, at World Peace Wetland Prairie. Photo by Aubrey James Shepherd

Monday, August 15, 6-7:30pm –“Critical Links; Wildlife Corridor Strategies for Northwest Arkansas”

Representatives of the Fayetteville Community Wildlife Habitat™ Project partnership, including the Environmental Action Committee and the Fayetteville Natural Heritage Association, will discuss the regional green infrastructure map and the importance of individual pieces of property in wildlife-corridor preservation.

For information on the Fayetteville Community Wildlife Habitat™ Project, go to http://habitat.accessfayetteville.org or contact Terri Lane at treehuggerlane@cox.net.

Next week's shortakes on public-access television previewed on You Tube: See link below

2011-08-12T20:34:00.000-05:00

Pinnacle Foods Inc. recognized by Mayor Lioneld Jordan for its contributions to Fayetteville's economy and its effort to protect Fayetteville's water quality and urban wildlife habitat by reducing mowing of its prairie adjacent to World Peace Wetland Prairie

2011-08-10T10:29:00.001-05:00

Please click on image to ENLARGE.

For thousands more photos from Pinnacle Wet Prairie, including some from this event at the bottom, please click Flickr link.
For more than 800 photos made July 4, 2011, at Pinnacle wet prairie, please see Flick set.
For direct links to You Tube videos from Aug. 5, 2011, at Pinnacle Foods, please click on You Tube link.

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Doug Bryson and Lioneld Jordan

Recognition of Pinnacle Foods Inc's. significance to Fayetteville

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Swallowtails and birds appreciate native thistle on World Peace Wetland Prairie on August 7, 2011

2011-08-07T23:40:00.002-05:00

Antheraea polyphemus a short-lived but giant moth whose caterpillars mostly feed on various oaks and many other trees: One magnificent reason never to rip off dead leaves or spray anything on your trees just because caterpillars are eating the foliage, and don't destroy crumpled leaves hanging or on the ground because they may be a beautiful moth's caterpillar in its chrysalis

2011-08-07T18:25:00.003-05:00

Please click on individual images to ENLARGE. Click on enlargement to get even closer of view of Antheraea polyphemus, the giant Polyphemus moth, at World Peace Wetland Prairie on August 7, 2011.
For more about the life cycle of the Polyphemus moth, please see Fairfax, Virginia, public-school Web site.

Offering fruit to Polyphemus moth futile. Their caterpillars store up the food and the moth lives only a short time with the goal of mating and laying eggs on a suitable host tree

2011-08-06T09:05:00.002-05:00

For information about Antheraea polyphemus, the Polyphemus moth, see Wiki
Please click on individual images to ENLARGE. Click on enlargement for closer view.

Males have bushier antenae than females have

Mouth parts don't allow such moths to feed

Fayetteville's City Council approves, after park board and art council approve Kaminsky sculpture for World Peace Wetland Prairie, and Fayetteville Art Council agrees to send plan to City Council, which later approved it on September 6, 2011

2011-08-05T08:17:00.005-05:00

The Current magazine runs full page on World Peace Wetland Prairie in August 2011 edition

2011-08-03T21:20:00.005-05:00

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Currentland is the online edition of The Current magazine.

Watering at night keeps a few things blooming at World Peace Wetland Prairie

2011-08-02T11:41:00.000-05:00

Wasps enjoy blue fennel on August, 2, 2011

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Wasp on Blue Fennel at World Peace Wetland Prairie peace circle

Swallowtail on Flox

Two species of skipper moths on basketflower

Swallow on Flox

Clearwing moth resting before beginning day's work

Cicadas sing, damselfly listens on July 31, 2011, at World Peace Wetland Prairie: Handheld video

2011-07-31T13:15:00.000-05:00

Two five-minute nature videos recorded on 28 July 2011 to be run on Fayetteville Public Television from Monday, August 1, 2011, through Friday, August 5, 2011

2011-07-30T20:47:00.001-05:00

Spicebush swallowtails appreciate basketflowers in bloom on July 21, 2011, at WPWP, where sassafras is the host plant in the absence of a big population of spice bushes: Save the sassafras but sacrifice a root now and then to grind into gumbo file!

2011-07-21T14:38:00.006-05:00

Please click on individual images to ENLARGE. Click on enlargement for closer view of spicebush swallowtail butterfly on American basketflower on July 21, 2011.
For information about the spicebush swallowtail and its caterpillar, please see this link.
For Hank Williams and the root of the sassafras, please see Jambalaya, crawfish pie and filet gumbo.

spicebush swallowtails nectar on American basketflower and other native wildflowers

But spicebush swallowtails don't need spice bush host plants if you have plenty of sassafras trees

So, being from Louisiana, I can't imagine anything better than file gumbo and spicebush swallowtails, both dependent on the sassafras bush or tree. At WPWP, they become 'trees' in only a few years.

t: gumbo file

New National Wildlife Federation habitat-certification sign added to World Peace Wetland Prairie by Fayetteville City Park crew

2011-07-19T11:09:00.001-05:00

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Park workers installed sign July 19, 2011

Silver-spotted skippers on American basketflower

Tallest basketflower opens fully overnight, others progress

2011-07-17T07:46:00.003-05:00

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Great-spangled fritillary on basketflower

American basketflower in bloom on World Peace Wetland Prairie as well as many other places in Northwest Arkansas

2011-07-16T00:33:00.003-05:00

Please click on individual images to ENLARGE. Click on enlargement for closer view of Centaurea americana.

Centaurea americana

American basketflower

Cecropia moth's caterpillar may be the most beautiful caterpillar in the Ozarks. Today, I got lucky!

2011-07-09T13:20:00.004-05:00

Please click on image to ENLARGE view of Cecropia moth's caterpillar. Use link to read about its life cycle and see image of the moth on another blog.
For an extensive study of this species, please see this link.

See link to read more about Cecropia moth caterpillar

Cecropia moth and its caterpillar

Butterflies struggle in wind while competing for best nectaring spots on butterfly milkweed

2011-06-28T18:47:00.002-05:00

Environmental Action Committee presents Amber Tripodi presenting on native bees and the decline of bees in Arkansas at 6 p.m. Monday at the Fayetteville Public Library

2011-06-26T22:59:00.000-05:00

The Fayetteville Environmental Action Committee is hosting the following event...

Wildlife Habitat TM Project Speaker Series Continues MONDAY NIGHT

Amber Tripodi will present "Native Bees and Bees' Decline" at the Fayetteville Public Library, Monday, June 27th from 6-7:30pm.

She will share her work on bee conservation in Arkansas and discuss how homeowners can provide habitat for these important pollinators in our community.

Clearwing moth on Bee balm on June 26, 2011, at World Peace Wetland Prairie

Free and open to public.

Please click on image to ENLARGE view of Arkansas native clear-wing moth. Click on enlargement for even closer view.

Amber Tripodi

Add caption

Ph.D. Program with Dr. Szalanski
Bumble Bee Genetics

ADDRESS:

Department of Entomology
319 Agriculture Building
University of Arkansas
Fayetteville, AR 72701

PHONE: 479.575.4214
FAX: 479.575.2452
E-MAIL: atripodi@uark.edu

Curriculum Vitae

EDUCATION:

M.S. Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado-Denver, 2009
B.S. Biology, Entomology Minor, University of Arkansas, 2005

RESEARCH PROJECT:

Population Genetics of Bumble Bee (Bombus sp.) Pollinators in the United States

REFEREED PUBLICATIONS

Szalanski, A.L., A.D. Tripodi, and J.W. Austin. Multiplex PCR diagnostics of the bed bug Cimex lectularius L. (Heteroptera: Cimicidae). Journal of Medical Entomology (accepted).
Magnus, R.M., A.D. Tripodi, and A.L. Szalanski. 2011. Mitochondrial DNA diversity of honey bees, Apis mellifera L. (Hymenoptera: Apidae) from queen breeders in the United States. Journal of Apicultural Science (in press).
Tripodi, A.D and H. Sievering. 2010. The photosynthetic response of a high-altitude spruce forest to nitrogen amendments with implications for gross primary productivity. Tellus, Series B, 62: 59-68.
Etges, W.J. and A.D. Tripodi. 2008. Premating isolation is determined by larval rearing substrates in cactophilic Drosophila mojavensis. VIII. Mating success mediated by epicuticular hydrocarbons within and between isolated populations. Journal of Evolutionary Biology, 21 (6): 1641-1652.
Tripodi, A.D ., J.W. Austin, A.L. Szalanski, J. McKern, M.K. Carroll, R.K. Saran, and M.T. Messenger. 2006 Phylogeography of Reticulitermes termites (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae) in California inferred from mitochondrial DNA sequences. Annals of the Entomological Society of America, 99 (4): 697-706.

PRESENTATIONS:

Tripodi, A.D. , R. Magnus, and A.L. Szalanski. 2010. Genetic diversity of bumble bees from central United States. Annual meeting of the Entomological Society of America, San Diego, CA.
Tripodi, A ., R. Magnus, and A.L. Szalanski . 2010. Genetic diversity of bumble bees in south central United States. International Conference on Pollinator Biology, Health and Policy. State College, PA.
Tripodi, A., J. McKern, A.L. Szalanski, and J.W. Austin. 2005. Phylogeography of Reticulitermes termites from California. Annual meeting of the Entomological Society of America, Fort Lauderdale, FL.
Tripodi, A.D. and Etges, W.J. 2005. Assessment of the Cuticular Hydrocarbons Involved in Mate-choice within and between Two Populations of Drosophila mojavensis. Annual Midwest Ecology and Evolution Conference, Carbondale, IL. Honorable Mention, Population Biology and Ecology Poster Section.

RESARCH GRANTS AND FELLOWSHIPS:

University of Arkansas, Doctoral Academy Fellowship, 2010-
Research Undergraduate Experience (REU) Grant, National Science Foundation, PI: William Etges, $4,200. 2004
Student Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF), SILO Advisory Council,Assessment of the Cuticular Hydrocarbons Involved in Mate-choice within and between Two Populations of D. mojavensis., Mentor: William Etges, $2,900. 2004

AWARDS AND HONORS:

Lloyd O. and Ruby P. Warren Endowed Scholarship $3,500 2002-2005
Brandon Burlsworth Memorial Scholarship $5,000 2003-2004
Carl F. Hoffman Award $50 2004
John and Trannye Odum White Scholarship $700 2004-2005
Marion A. Steele Scholarship $1,000 2004-2005
Vol Boatwright Scholarship $1,250 2004-2005
Biological Sciences Scholarship Award, Zoology $100 2005

PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS

International Union for the Study of Social Insects
Entomological Society of America

Researcher studies Arkansas bumble bee population

By The Associated Press

Today's Most Discussed Stories

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The number of bumble bees is declining worldwide, and one University of Arkansas researcher says she will determine if that’s the case in the Natural State.
Ph.D. student Amber Tripodi said Monday she hopes to determine how bumble bees are distributed throughout the state by sampling bumble bees in every county as part of a new study.
Tripodi said the last time county-level data was compiled was in a 1964 survey, but that her study will have more accurate coverage of the entire state.
Tripodi said she is looking for volunteers to help provide samples from every county.
She said she began collecting samples in May and has already received 100 bees from across the state.
Tripodi said establishing baseline populations will help determine how bee populations change over time.
This article was published April 25, 2011 at 6:22 p.m.

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Dogbane more plentiful than milkweed in Northwest Arkansas, so why keep it in your garden? Maybe in order to see some of the world's most beautiful beetles

2011-06-26T00:51:00.000-05:00

Please click on individual images to ENLARGE view of Dogbane beetle. Click on enlargement for even closer view. Below please see like-minded blogger's post on same subject.

Dogbane beetle aka Chrysochus auratus

Guest Blogger: Dogbane for Dinner

July 15, 2010 by annemccormack 13 Comments

Our guest blogger for today is Anne McCormack. I have known Anne (or known of her) for more than 25 years now, first as a long-time editor of Nature Notes, the journal of the Webster Groves Nature Study Society, and more recently on a personal basis as I, myself, have followed in her editorial footsteps. Anne is an astute naturalist whose breadth of knowledge spans not only botany but also entomology and ornithology, all of which she write about in her own blog at Gardening with Binoculars.

I planted Common Dogbane (Apocynum cannibinum) because some of my butterfly-watching friends reported numbers of juniper hairstreak butterflies on the patch of dogbane at Powder Valley Nature Center in Kirkwood. I assumed incorrectly that dogbane was a host plant for hairstreaks, and believing it to be little more than caterpillar food, I placed it in a hot, dry, narrow strip along the driveway. Ragged, caterpillar-chewed leaves wouldn’t be noticed there, and I forgot about it. After a few seasons, it was still a modest-sized clump, but the leaves were in great shape. In fact, it had grown into an attractive bush of airy, elegant lime-green foliage, wine-red stems, and tiny white flowers. It’s quite a contrast to its relative, Common Milkweed, growing next to it, which looks as if it were designed by Dr. Seuss—even before it gets chewed to bits. At this point I decided it was time to look it up and see why it had failed to support hordes of munching caterpillars. As you have already guessed, gentle reader, the Juniper Hairstreak’s host plant is juniper, not dogbane, but good old Common Dogbane is a great nectar plant. Now that Dogbane and I understand each other better, I can appreciate the amount of traffic its tiny white blooms bring in, like this Peck’s Skipper butterfly. Ants, butterflies, tiny native bees, honeybees, and this mason wasp are busy there all day long. Along with several species of moth, it is the host plant for the Dogbane Beetle, which spends its larval stage devouring the roots and its adulthood dining on the leaves of Dogbane, and nothing but Dogbane. Dogbane Beetle can be confused with Japanese Beetle by beginners like myself, but unlike its fellow Coleopteran, Dogbane Beetle is harmless. That makes its iridescence all the more gorgeous, as shown in this wonderful photo by Courtnay Janiak. It’s a native insect that has shared a long evolutionary history with this under-appreciated native plant. American Indians valued it for its bark, which is tough but peels off in long strips. They plaited it for bowstrings and anything that called for twine; hence, its other common name, Indian Hemp. Don and Lillian Stokes, in their 2002 PBS show about bird watching, demonstrated how birds seek out the dry stems of this perennial, pulling off strips for nests in early spring. Nesting material can be hard to come by for birds in the tidy suburbs, so I don’t clean up the stems after frost. “Bane” in the name refers to the toxin cymarin in the plant’s leaves, though the plant would have to be covered in braunschweiger before my dog would be interested. Edgar Denison, in Missouri Wildflowers, translates the genus name Apocynum as “away dog.” The species name cannibinum refers to hemp. Its seedpods remind me of French green beans. These split at the end of the season, and the seeds fly away on fibers similar to milkweed seeds. Collect some and try this plant in your butterfly or native plant garden. Give it a spot where it’s easy to watch the colorful visitors.

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Filed under Apocynaceae, Chrysomelidae, Coleoptera, Hesperiidae, Hymenoptera, Lepidoptera, Plantae, Vespidae Tagged with beetles, Botany, entomology, guest blogger, indigenous cultures, leaf beetles, Missouri, native gardening, nature, skippers, wasps

About annemccormack
Birds, native plants, and everything about nature!

Video of slide show to run June 27-July 1, 2011, on Fayetteville Public Television

2011-06-24T20:38:00.002-05:00

Painted lady butterfly enjoys purple coneflower in Elleya Richardson Memorial Butterfly Garden on June 19, 2011, at World Peace Wetland Prairie

2011-06-19T22:01:00.004-05:00

Painted ladies on all continents except Australia and Antarctica
Vanessa cardui caterpillars worldwide utilize up to 100 host plants.

Please click on individual images to ENLARGE. A click on the enlargement enlarges another step.

Vanessa cardui on Echinacea purpurea

Shortakes recorded Monday, June 13, 2011, to run June 20-24, 2011, on Public Access Television at 218 on Cox Cable and U-verse 99 on AT&T as well as simulcast on the Your Media Web site

2011-06-17T17:27:00.002-05:00

Diversity of insects using peace-circle garden of World Peace Wetland Prairie a privilege to witness on Jun 16, 2011

2011-06-16T18:53:00.001-05:00

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Asclepias hirtella in bloom at World Peace Wetland Prairie at 8:38 p.m. June 16, 2011

2011-06-16T10:31:00.000-05:00

Please click on individual images to ENLARGE view. Click again on enlargement to view tall-green prairie milkweed even closer.

DSCN5022monarch caterpillar eats flower of Asclepias tuberosa, native milkweed.MOV

2011-06-14T23:09:00.002-05:00

Syria day in Fayetteville, Arkansas: 'The people united shall never be defeated' video on You Tube (Aubunique channel) More video to come

2011-06-11T13:49:00.002-05:00

World Peace Wetland Prairie and Pinnacle Prairie wetland native plants featured on next week's short takes on Fayetteville Public Television

2011-06-09T23:02:00.002-05:00

World Peace Wetland Prairie one of four Fayetteville public nature sites being visited by graduate student doing species study for the Fayetteville Environmental Action Committee, reports EAC's habitat-committee chairman, Terri Lane

2011-06-08T11:11:00.004-05:00

Please click on image once to ENLARGE. Click on enlargement for even closer view.

Monarch butterfly caterpillars on Asclepias tuberosa on June 8, 2011, at World Peace Wetland Prairie

As part of the Habitat Project, we are working on a "Species Watch" to begin gathering data related to the status and needs of various local species. I will talk more about this tonight.
(EAC meeting is set for 5:30 p.m. Thursday, June 9, 2011)

I have coordinated with a doctoral student from the UofA, Amber Tripodi, who studies native bee's. We gave her 4 locations throughout the city that represent, more or less, North, South, East, and West, and that serve as habitat hubs already. Those are; the Paul Noland WWTP, Woolsey Wet Prairie, Lake Fayetteville Prairie Restoration Site, and the World Peace Wetland.
She is monitoring each site, every two weeks throughout the summer, and will be putting together a report of her findings. She will also be our speaker series presenter on June 27th.
FYI, Below is her first unofficial report.
Terri
Terri,
The habitat sites are fun, and I've been hitting Noland, Wet Woolsey, Lake Fayetteville and World Peace every two weeks. They are such different sites, so the bee report is across the board. Noland is my favorite for bees, so far, but Wet Woolsey and World Peace are awesome too. I have yet to find a single bumble bee at the Lake Fayetteville site, but there is little blooming there for now. I'm suspecting that they're all over at the buffet at the Botanic gardens. Still, I think it makes an interesting contrast to the other sites, and it'll be fun to see what pops up over the next couple of years! I have been IDing a few of the dynamic insects that I do find there, so you'll still have a few things to add to the species list. Last week I found a really pretty longhorn beetle I hadn't seen before: Purpuricenus humeralis. Neat! I've been keeping a list going for each site, but there's not a lot on it yet. Maybe by the end of this month.

Amber

June 2, 2011, shortakes on public television in Fayetteville

2011-06-04T14:58:00.000-05:00

For larger view and up to full screen, please use You Tube logo at bottom right.

Lonicera sempervirens can be spectacular: One stem end has caught my extra attention the past week

2011-06-03T12:46:00.002-05:00

Peace-garden tour starts at 10 a.m. Use map below to select a starting garden and get an idea of how to find them all

2011-05-28T08:54:00.000-05:00

Please click on individual images to ENLARGE VIEW.

Please click on link to photos from 2010 peace-garden tour.
Please click on link to photos from 2007 peace-garden tour.

View OMNI Peace Gardens Tour in a larger map

6^th Annual Peace-Garden Tour 2011

On May 28^th, from 10am – 3pm the Omni Peace Center for Peace, Justice and Ecology invites everyone in NW Arkansas to attend the 6^th annual Peace Gardens Tour. This year’s tour features 8 beautiful and dynamic gardens in Fayetteville. Attendees will receive a special treat when they visit Marie Riley’s garden, featuring new garden sculptures by Hank Kaminsky, known as, ”The Sacred Ground Project.” The cost for the tour is $10. For ticket information and garden descriptions, please visit www.omnicenter.org or call 935-4422.
The Omni Peace Gardens Network was established six years ago to celebrate the relationship between nature and inner and world peace. The motivation was to offer an opportunity for the public to connect with nature as expressed in beautiful gardens. A garden environment lends itself to self-discovery and helps us define the kind of society we wish to inhabit; one that deepens our reflection about peace and justice and environmental stewardship (hence the name “Peace Garden”). These gardens serve essential human needs while at the same time provide habitat for native species.
In 2006, the first year of the Peace Gardens Tour, five Fayetteville gardeners volunteered to open their gardens to the public where a half hour video of the event was recorded and cablecast on Community Access Television. In 2007, gardeners from east Fayetteville to Prairie Grove participated and last year more gardeners were added to the roster. Also in 2007, Omni agreed to join with the Local Food Movement to combine beauty along with nutrition.
This year’s self-guided Peace Gardens Tour showcases the following gardens:
* ‘Julia Ward Howe Peace Gardens’ (est. )
Peace Gardener Marie Riley

Location: 525 N. Olive, one block north off Maple St.
Description: Dedicated in memory of Julia Ward Howe, who
in 1872 began proclaiming that June 2 every year would be
a Mother’s Day for Peace. Marie has carved out each part of
her garden year after year starting with a corner garden in the
sun featuring knock-out roses, shasta daisies, poppies, grasses,
and salvia. The backyard garden has expanded with the use
of native stone, terracing, and a wide array of shade perennials
and herbs. A new outdoor plaza, and sun garden was added in
2005. Recent additions include a new terraced rock garden, concrete leaves, and mosaics. In addition, Hank Kaminsky’s new sculpture series ‘You Are Standing on Sacred Ground’ will debut in Marie’s garden.
Emily's No-Plant-Left-Behind Peace Garden" (est. 1998)
Peace Gardener: Emily Kaitz Location: 5 E. Davidson, 72701
Description: “The garden is a terraced rock garden in front of my house in a triangular space between 2 driveways. I started it in 1998 when I moved to Fayetteville. It is somewhat chaotic, with a variety of plants including daffodils, grape hyacinth, iris, day lilies, several other varieties of lilies, including the spectacular Leslie Woodruff (from Arthur Evans, Gravette), cornflower, daisies, myrtle, larkspur, coreopsis, peonies, roses, flox, and probably something I'm forgetting. It blooms continuously from March through July. Working in my garden and the natural beauty of the blooming flowers always gives me a feeling of peace and contentment." Every foot of Emily’s yard is enhanced with flowers, terraces, rocks.Starting at noon Emily will host a white wine tasting featuring 5 of her favorite white wines - free to anyone who comes to the garden as part of the tour.
“Blue Birds of Peace Garden” (est. 2004)    Location: 951 Missouri Way, Fayetteville, 72701 Peace Gardeners : Nancy Maier and Marshall Carter
Description: “The focal point of my peace garden is an Ozark flagstone tree-shaped patio designed by Quinn Landrum and built by Quinn and his father, the artist M.M. Kent. The center of the patio is a single orange stone sun with rays extending outwards. The patio is a sunny stop for relaxing, doing yoga, painting the garden, or meditating. Next to the patio is a terraced planting area for sunflowers, lavender, and butterfly bush. The area is surrounded on three sides by a fence and several birdhouses. Before the garden was even completed, a pair of bluebirds had built a nest and raised a family.”  It Includes a Peace Pole. Additional flowers: daisies, Solomon Seal, zinnias, spearmint, geraniums, lilies, sedum. There’re also vegetables: squash, peppers, lettuce, tomatoes. And a Zen white sand garden which adds to the general beauty and cheer.
‘Peace Trees Garden’ ( est 2006)
Location:   2008 W. Cleveland St., Fayetteville, 72701 Peace Gardener Cathy Boyd
Description: Peace Trees Garden is located one house away from the intersection of Cleveland and Sang. On the east side of my house is a lot belonging to me which is excellent for parking and the gate beside the carport leads directly into the back yard. I have owned and lived in this space since 1975. At the time of closing, the house had been vacant for a year and the yard required a brush hog before anyone could step off the back porch. All of the huge oaks and pine trees were here; everything else has been added through the years.
Although only 5 blocks from the university, the garden comprises almost 2 acres and no neighbors are plainly visible. It is a haven of tranquility in a bustling neighborhood and the back porch is a perfect spot for me and my two dogs and three cats to relax. All the cats are keen students of ornithology and the porch is a perfect observation post. The dogs and many people enjoy cooling off in the swimming pool in summer.
“The Garden of Peace and Tranquility” (2009)
Location: 517 E. Prospect Street, Fayetteville (approx. 1 block west of Mission, small red house) Peace Gardeners: Frank and Marty Burggraf /
Description: Despite health issues and the ravages of ice storms, this retired lifelong professor of landscape architecture has transformed this yard containing very little original landscaping into a green oasis in just a couple years time. The Garden of Peace and Tranquility is ever expanding and maturing, and features noteworthy hosta and iris collections, a new vegetable garden, Japanese maples, many perennials and a water feature. A delight.
* Anne Reichardt's Peace & Serenity Stroll Garden
Peace Gardener: Ann Reichardt
LOCATION: 17095 Lake Sequoyah Drive
DIRECTIONS: From the intersection of E. Huntsville Rd. and Crossover Rd. drive east 3 miles to Lake Sequoyah Drive. OR from S. School Ave take Martin L King Blvd. east toward Elkins for 5.4 miles (@ 1.5 mi it becomes Huntsville Rd or Hwy 16 east). Turn left onto Lake Sequoyah Dr. for 2.1 miles; ok to park in Fire Dept. lot on right, house and studio are on left, 2 acre stroll garden is "up back".
DESCRIPTION: Come celebrate our heritage in the garden that was begun 5 years ago to honor the natural character of the rural Arkansas landscape while incorporating Soto Zen accents. Along the strolling boulevards there is a labyrinth consisting of 28 wave-form berms for walking, a carved 9 ft. natural-rock egg-carin with chamber, a 45 ft. "copperhead" arising from an original hand-dug well on the site of the old homestead, a goat-barn and meditation loft, a "mini-Stonehenge" and other elements among painstakingly cleared (from invasives and green briars) native plants which are flourishing. Er-Gene Kahng, violinist for the U of A faculty chamber Orchestra, will play---perhaps with friends--- in the garden's central gazebo mid-afternoon.
* Peace Gardener Unity Center For Conscious Living
4880 W. Wedington Dr., Fayetteville, AR 72704
Contact: Kate Guendling
Unity is located 1.6 miles west of Hwy. 540 on the right/north side of Wedington Road, look for the sign.
It is the position of Unity Worldwide Ministries to urge all Nations, their leaders, and their people to turn to God (by whatever the name) for guidance during these challenging times and to pursue peace, not war, for this is what honors the god of all our faith traditions. Unity stands for peace in our lifetime.
Unity Center for Conscious Living in Fayetteville, Arkansas has named its outdoor labyrinth “Peace in Our Lifetime Garden”. You are invited to step into the labyrinth, walk the sandy path to the center and experience the peace that passes all understanding. In the center of the labyrinth you will find our peace pole presented to us by Omni Center. You are also welcome to visit our community garden, “Unity Organic Garden”.
* World Wetland Peace Prairie
1121 S. Duncan Avenue
A public owned and volunteer maintained public park featuring native wetland prairie which is open free year round during city park hours.

Gladys | Post a Comment | | Email Article

View OMNI Peace Gardens Tour in a larger map

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Carpenter ants protect aphids in exchange for access to honeydew: For more on this phenomen see page 229 of Doug Tallamy's 'Bringing Nature Home'

2011-05-27T12:25:00.009-05:00

Please click on image to ENLARGE and click a second time for further enlargement of flowering quince, also known as Chaenomeles speciosa, with a carpenter ant.

Read Bringing Nature Home by Doug Tallamy

Cottontails selectively prune grass and wildflowers

2011-05-26T09:55:00.000-05:00

Click on image to ENLARGE view of cottontail rabbit at WPWP on May 25, 2011. Click again to fill your screen with rabbit face.

A few of the things in bloom at WPWP on May 24, 2011

2011-05-24T21:04:00.005-05:00

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http://www.rubythroat.org/HoneysuckleTrumpetMain.html

www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=6114266761448704347&postID=2569408401490403305

www.google.com/products/catalog?q=lady++bugs&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=shop&cid=15590191563490217088&sa=X&ei=fmrcTZ-8FIy2sAORzLiwDg&ved=0CEgQ8wIwAw&biw=1086&bih=688#

Amorpha fruticosa is also known as Indigo bush

www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=AMFR

Elderberry flowers

winemaking.jackkeller.net/elderber.asp

Dick Bennett video promoting OMNI's sixth-annual peace-garden tour

2011-05-24T09:19:00.002-05:00

Cicada outgrows exoskeleton on May 22, 2011, at WPWP

2011-05-22T08:43:00.005-05:00

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See today's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for news story.
See Web site featuring Cicada information: Magicicada

Karen Rollet-Crocker to present program on landscaping with native plants at 5:30 p.m. today at her home on Mount Sequoyah

2011-05-10T10:55:00.000-05:00

Landscaping with Native Plants

Native plants in a landscape help preserve our Ozark identity, provide food for our birds and insects and are well suited to our soils and climate. Karen Rollet Crocker, recently retired UA professor of landscape architecture, invites us to see how she is using native plants in her home landscape and to hear what she has learned during her years of designing gardens for others, including the native landscape for Compton Gardens and the heritage gardens at Peel Mansion, both in Bentonville.

Crocker’s talk and demonstration on landscaping with native plants is scheduled for Tuesday, May 10 at 5:30 p.m. at 951 N. Pembroke Road in Fayetteville . The rain date is Tuesday, May 17 at the same time.

Directions: from Mission Blvd (45) go up the hill on Rockwood Trail (.6 mi). At the top turn left on Pembroke and go to the first corner on the left side (west side).

Attendees who want starts of native plants are invited to bring a couple of small pots with soil in which to take them home.

The event is free and open to the public. It is sponsored by the Fayetteville Tree and Landscape Advisory Committee. For information, call 871-7023.

View Larger Map

Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Landscaping with Native Plants
Community Events
Time: 5:30 PM
Location: 951 N. Pembroke Road, Fayetteville
Landscape Architecture Professor Karen Rollet Crocker

Contact: Fayetteville Tree and Landscape Advisory Committee
Phone: 479-871-7023

Amorpha fruticosa or false wild indigo bush: a beautiful display up close

2011-05-08T15:08:00.000-05:00

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These shots from 40 feet with zoom lens don't do justice to the beautiful, tiny flowers

May 7, 2011, photos from WPWP

Doug Tallamy tells us about 'Bringing Nature Home' to provide habitat for wildlife

2011-05-05T12:28:00.006-05:00

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June 9, 2010, photo offers preview of coming month's prairie beauty

2011-05-04T09:51:00.003-05:00

Monarch butterfly on Asclepias tuberosa

Evening primrose a showy spring flower on prairies and forest edges all over the Ozarks

2011-05-01T00:49:00.001-05:00

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Lonicera sempervirens: Native, non-invasive, trumpet honeysuckle also known as coral honeysuckle

2011-04-25T12:12:00.000-05:00

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Photos of people and activities at World Peace Wetland Prairie's 2011 Earth Day

2011-04-20T07:56:00.001-05:00

Photos of Earth Day at World Peace Wetland Prairie.

Slide show of photos from World Peace Wetland Prairie Earth Day 2011.

Friends of World Peace Wetland Prairie ready for Earth Day visitors NOW: Activities begin at 1 p.m. and end after 5 p.m. Please don't miss it today!

2011-04-17T12:48:00.000-05:00

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Please attend Sunday afternoon Earth Day Festival and bring your group's information to share with all

2011-04-15T11:45:00.002-05:00

Please click on image to ENLARGE view of Donna Stjerna and Kelly Mulhollan's poster for Earth Day 2011 at World Peace Wetland Prairie.

2000-2005 archive of stories and photos related to creation of WPWP: www.aubunique.com

Aubrey's photos at flickr.com
Flickr collection of sets of photos from World Peace Wetland Prairie
World Peace Wetland Prairie EARTH DAY 2010 VIDEO
World Peace Wetland Prairie blog
World Peace Wetland Prairie.com
Please use link below the map to see larger view of the WPWP area, which also allows a person to travel the world by 'Google AIR' by simply using the cursor to move in any direction or search for other addresses.

View World Peace Wetland Prairie in a larger map

Sunday EARTH Fest at Word Peace Wetland Prairie

2011-04-15T11:08:00.005-05:00

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Shortakes to run April 11-15, 2011, on Fayetteville public-access televion, channel 218 on Cox Cable

2011-04-10T15:35:00.000-05:00

Blue star blooming early and maybe again later

2011-04-07T16:06:00.002-05:00

Please click on individual images to ENLARGE view of Amsonia blue star.

Video running this week (11 a.m., 5 p.m. and 11 p.m. Monday through Friday on Fayetteville public-access television

2011-04-04T23:06:00.002-05:00

2008 late March video of kids at WPWP and box turtle rescued from water bowl and central flow area thicket of World Peace Wetland Area with valuable native honeysuckle

2011-04-01T21:05:00.002-05:00

2005 editorial in Northwest Arkansas Times

2011-03-31T09:43:00.006-05:00

Please click on individual images to ENLARGE view of March 31 photos from World Peace Wetland Prairie and for easy reading of 2005 editorial in Northwest Arkansas Times.

Seventh-annual Earth Day Celebration at World Peace Wetland Prairie includes many new and exciting activities for all ages

2011-03-25T15:55:00.011-05:00

Please click on image to ENLARGE view of Donna Stjerna and Kelly Mullholan's poster for Earth Day 2011 at World Peace Wetland Prairie.

200-2005 archive of stories and photos related to creation of WPWP: www.aubunique.com
Aubrey's photos at flickr.com
Flickr collection of sets of photos from World Peace Wetland Prairie
World Peace Wetland Prairie EARTH DAY 2010 VIDEO
World Peace Wetland Prairie blog
World Peace Wetland Prairie.com
Please use link below the map to see larger view of the WPWP area, which also allows a person to travel the world by 'Google AIR' by simply using the cursor to move in any direction or search for other addresses.

View World Peace Wetland Prairie in a larger map

Native Plant Society meeting in Bentonville on May 13 through 15, 2011

2011-03-22T12:06:00.001-05:00

World Peace Wetland Prairie

WPWP and OMNI Center for Peace events coming up

Short takes on Cox 218 and AT&T channel 99 something for today through the weekend

Earth Day at World Peace Wetland Prairie coming up 1-5 p.m. Sunday, April 15, 2012: While you wait for spring, please enjoy OMNI Center for Peace, Justice and Ecology's annual meeting of members and friends on Sunday, January 22, 20l2

Praying mantid green type

Non-native Lion's Tooth a valuable plant for nurturing bees and for human and rabbit food

December 20, 2011, meeting of Fayetteville AR city council draws comment on several important local issues on a 3-hour, 37-minute video

Good vines deserve help for their wildlife value

Park Board approves acceptance of money instead of land for project on Hollywood Prairie despite plea to preserve wetland

Video added: Joe Neal introduces 'In the Province of Birds' at 7 p.m. Friday, December 9, 2011, at Nightbird Books on Dickson Street in Fayetteville AR

World Peace Wetland Prairie volunteers receive certificate for work on city-owned, neighbohood-maintained park

Enduring green network discussed during Nov. 14, 2011, Mayor's town-hall meeting in Fayetteville AR

Nature videos for next week's showing on Fayetteville Public Access Television include frostflowers from 2010 and 2011

Verbesina virginica frost flowers on November 30, 2011, melting in 10 a.m. sunshine

Flower, Garden and Nature Society to hear presentation by Steve Sampers, president of Northwest Arkansas Master Naturalists

Coming winter makes protecting wild natural places important even in cities

November 10, 2011, meeting of Fayetteville, Arkansas, environmental-action committee includes discussion of stormwater problems, certifying the city as urban wildlife habitat and promoting locally produced food

Carlos Velazquez describes plight of Inuit people in the Arctic Circle at Fayetteville Public Library on November 3, 2011, thanks to OMNI Climate Change Task Force and OHG of the Arkansas Sierra Club

You too can select native plants that will be blooming in October and November some years

WPWP facebook page

Flower flies perform much like bees and many species look much like bees

Brief video recorded October 10 & 13, 2011, to run October 17-21 on public-access television in Fayetteville AR

Verbesina virginica still providing nectar for pollinators on October 14, 2011, in places where plant is protected from premature destruction

Fayetteville Environmental Action Committee meeting at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, October 13, 2011, agenda provided by John Coleman

Doe deer get a bit excitable when food is scarce during a drought, the fawns are about grown, but the old buck is back on the ranch, scraping trees and jousting with the yearling bucks

Fayetteville City Council approves OMNI Center donation of Hank Kaminsky sculpture to WPWP on September 6, 2011

Video clips of monarch butterflies before release and other wild things and people in Fayetteville AR

If butterflies could vote (and other beneficial insects and all wildlife) Fayetteville's sales-tax renewal would pass ON CONDITION that park mowing would be reduced while most park and other city services would be increased

Tiny insects on small or tiny flowers make great photo subjects and keep pollinating flowes while finding sustenance

Biden's aristosa with interesting insect at Pinnacle wet prairie west side of World Peace Wetland Prairie

Burrowing crayfish common at World Peace Wetland Prairie, Pinnacle Prairie and in many older subdivisions where the soil hasn't been removed and red-dirted in Northwest Arkansas as well as fields and pastures

Wood nymphs elusive grassland-dependent butterfly. They live all summer and their caterpillars hibernate through winter

Fayetteville City Council approves OMNI Center donation of Hank Kaminsky sculpture to WPWP

Pretty pollinators abound as summer drifts toward fall

Short video clips recorded September 8, 2011, by Fayetteville AR Public-Access Television featuring photos mostly from WPWP

September 9, 2011, at World Peace Wetland Prairie

Amber Tripodi, doing research for her doctoral dissertation, talks about American bumble bee and carpenter bee at WPWP on September 7, 2011

Tetraopes tertropthalmus, the red milkweed beetle, has unique way of avoiding the poisonous effect of milkweed plants

Public-television short videos for September 5-9, 2011: All residents of Fayetteville, Arkansas, can record a short take each Monday 5-6 p.m. or Thursday 11 a.m. to noon

Today at World Peace Wetland Prairie entry area gardens

Sunday morning August 21, 2011, at World Peace Wetland Prairie

Traditional landscapes suck Energy, Water and Money, says Neil Diboll at The Native Plants in the Landscape Conference

« Welcome to The Native Plants in the Landscape Conference

The Future of Gardening by Neil Diboll

University of Vermont ExtensionDepartment of Plant and Soil Science

Swallowtails galore because of the variety of trees on and around World Peace Wetland Prairie

Did you do a short take for Fayetteville Public Access Channel this week? Mine is linked below and it will run on CAT 218 from August 22 through August 26, 2011. Free air time for all!

A few Insects on WPWP on August 16, 2011

Some creatures that need a continuous wildlife corridor through Northwest Arkansas: To learn more, please attend program at Fayetteville Public Library starting at 6 p.m. today; it is free to everyone

Next week's shortakes on public-access television previewed on You Tube: See link below

Pinnacle Foods Inc. recognized by Mayor Lioneld Jordan for its contributions to Fayetteville's economy and its effort to protect Fayetteville's water quality and urban wildlife habitat by reducing mowing of its prairie adjacent to World Peace Wetland Prairie

Swallowtails and birds appreciate native thistle on World Peace Wetland Prairie on August 7, 2011

Offering fruit to Polyphemus moth futile. Their caterpillars store up the food and the moth lives only a short time with the goal of mating and laying eggs on a suitable host tree

Fayetteville's City Council approves, after park board and art council approve Kaminsky sculpture for World Peace Wetland Prairie, and Fayetteville Art Council agrees to send plan to City Council, which later approved it on September 6, 2011

The Current magazine runs full page on World Peace Wetland Prairie in August 2011 edition

Watering at night keeps a few things blooming at World Peace Wetland Prairie

Cicadas sing, damselfly listens on July 31, 2011, at World Peace Wetland Prairie: Handheld video

Two five-minute nature videos recorded on 28 July 2011 to be run on Fayetteville Public Television from Monday, August 1, 2011, through Friday, August 5, 2011

Spicebush swallowtails appreciate basketflowers in bloom on July 21, 2011, at WPWP, where sassafras is the host plant in the absence of a big population of spice bushes: Save the sassafras but sacrifice a root now and then to grind into gumbo file!

New National Wildlife Federation habitat-certification sign added to World Peace Wetland Prairie by Fayetteville City Park crew

Tallest basketflower opens fully overnight, others progress

American basketflower in bloom on World Peace Wetland Prairie as well as many other places in Northwest Arkansas

Cecropia moth's caterpillar may be the most beautiful caterpillar in the Ozarks. Today, I got lucky!

Butterflies struggle in wind while competing for best nectaring spots on butterfly milkweed

Environmental Action Committee presents Amber Tripodi presenting on native bees and the decline of bees in Arkansas at 6 p.m. Monday at the Fayetteville Public Library

Amber Tripodi

ADDRESS:

EDUCATION:

RESEARCH PROJECT:

REFEREED PUBLICATIONS

PRESENTATIONS:

AWARDS AND HONORS:

PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS

Researcher studies Arkansas bumble bee population

Dogbane more plentiful than milkweed in Northwest Arkansas, so why keep it in your garden? Maybe in order to see some of the world's most beautiful beetles

Video of slide show to run June 27-July 1, 2011, on Fayetteville Public Television

Painted lady butterfly enjoys purple coneflower in Elleya Richardson Memorial Butterfly Garden on June 19, 2011, at World Peace Wetland Prairie

Shortakes recorded Monday, June 13, 2011, to run June 20-24, 2011, on Public Access Television at 218 on Cox Cable and U-verse 99 on AT&T as well as simulcast on the Your Media Web site

Diversity of insects using peace-circle garden of World Peace Wetland Prairie a privilege to witness on Jun 16, 2011

Asclepias hirtella in bloom at World Peace Wetland Prairie at 8:38 p.m. June 16, 2011

University of Vermont Extension
Department of Plant and Soil Science

6^th Annual Peace-Garden Tour 2011