‘Bee Basics An Introduction to Our Native Bees
By Beatriz Moisset, Ph.D. and Stephen Buchmann, Ph.D. A USDA Forest Service and Pollinator Partnership Publication.
Readable, beautifully illustrated, and full of information!
A COMPLETE GUIDE TO BUILDING AND MAINTAINING A RAIN GARDEN 08/14/2018 - Toronto & Region Conservation Authority
Article created from the TRCA Healthy Yards fact sheet and guide.
Planting Native Shade Trees
June 15, 2020 • Julia Frederick • Ecological Landscape Alliance
Shade trees are more important than ever as we face rapid development and suburban sprawl, deforestation and desertification. These gentle giants help combat rising temperatures, habitat loss and declining air and water quality.
Greed Does Not Have to Define Our Relationship to Land
June 4, 2020 • Robin Wall Kimmerer • Literary Hub
On choosing to become native — belong — to a place. “Land is not capital to which we have property rights; rather it is the place for which we have moral responsibility in reciprocity for its gift of life.”
Meet the Ecologist Who Wants to Unleash the Wild on Your Backyard
April 2020 • Jerry Adler • Smithsonian Magazine
Fed up with invasive species and sterile landscapes, Douglas Tallamy urges Americans to go native and go natural.
How Native Tribes Are Taking the Lead on Planning for Climate Change
February 11, 2020 • Nicola Jones • Yale Environment 360
With their deep ties to the land and reliance on fishing, hunting, and gathering, indigenous tribes are especially vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Now, native communities across North America are stepping up to adopt climate action plans to protect their way of life.
Lawn-Mowing Reduction Can Help Wildlife, Says Study
December 19, 2019 • Patrick Barkham • The Guardian
As we head into the new year, see where you can make a difference to wildlife by shrinking or eliminating your lawn.
‘Mother Nature Recovers Amazingly Fast’: Reviving Ukraine’s Rich Wetlands
December 27, 2019 • Vincent Mundy • The Guardian
Look how our European friends are leading the way with restoring nature.
Seeing the Potential of Wood-Inhabiting Fungi in the Managed Landscape
January 15, 2019 • Tara Mitchell • Ecological Landscape Alliance
Wood-inhabiting fungi are at the core of forests’ ability to regenerate and provide habitat for wildlife. Yet, in the realm of the managed landscape, we focus solely on the destructive aspects of decomposers. We have been conditioned to believe that the traditional aesthetic and all the inputs to support it are necessary. But if we take the time to look at natural systems, evidence to the contrary is all around us. If we simply take a walk in the forest, the function and value of wood-inhabiting fungi and the dead and decaying wood they leave behind is readily visible.
How a Rooftop Meadow of Bees and Butterflies Shows N.Y.C.’s Future
October 26, 2019 • Anne Barnard • The New York Times
A Greenpoint building is part of a push to combat climate change and make the city more welcoming to wildlife.
habitat.
Three Billion Canaries in the Coal Mine
September 29, 2019 • Margaret Renkl • The New York Times
What does it mean for us that birds are dying? And what can we do about it?
Urban Landscape Inspirations from Native Plant Communities
August 16, 2019 • Ethan Dropkin • Ecological Landscape Alliance
While some of us have the benefit of working in engineered soils and ideal garden conditions, many designers and horticulturists have the unique and challenging task of greening our cities where growing conditions can be less favorable. Among many other benefits, planting in cities helps improve air quality, combats urban heat island effect, and creates habitat corridors for wildlife.
More Edible and Landscape-Worthy Native Plants of New England
June 15, 2019 • Georgia Hann and Russ Cohen • Ecological Landscape Alliance
There are many reasons to plant native plants in our landscapes, including to increase support for pollinators and beneficial insects, to boost resources for birds and other wildlife, and to stabilize habitats despite environmental and climatic changes. When the native plant species a landowner chooses to add to the landscape also feature human edibility, an additional layer of excitement and engagement is sparked. Not only do these indigenous gems offer the sensory indulgence of new flavors and textures to enjoy and discover, but they also offer a deeper level of food security.
Why Green Pledges Will Not Create the Natural Forests We Need
April 16, 2019 • Fred Pearce • Yale Environment 360
Nations around the globe have pledged to increase their forest cover by planting millions of trees. But new research shows much of this growth would be in monoculture plantations that would be quickly cut down and do little to tackle climate change or preserve biodiversity.
The Real Aliens in Our Backyard
March 11, 2019 • Margaret Renkl • The New York Times
The future of this country’s wild spaces may depend on changing the way suburban Americans think about plants.
The Insect Apocalypse Is Here
November 27, 2018 • Brooke Jarvis • The New York Times Magazine
What does it mean for the rest of life on Earth?
U.S. Cities Losing 36 Million Trees a Year, Researchers Find
May 10, 2018 • Naomi Larsson • The Guardian
Scientists warn of environmental threats rising from trend that is ‘likely to continue unless policies are altered’
Eden Lost
February 6, 2018 • Arthur Melville Pearson • Center for Humans & Nature
The pond I built in my backyard enjoyed a good run. Fifteen years. But in the end, the raccoons won. The pond is no more. So it is with nature in the big city. The grief is almost gone. But it lingers. Let me explain.
Habitat on the Edges: Making Room for Wildlife in an Urbanized World
January 3, 2018 • Richard Conniff • Yale Environment 360
Efforts to protect biodiversity are now focusing less on preserving pristine areas and more on finding room for wildlife on the margins of human development. As urban areas keep expanding, it is increasingly the only way to allow species to survive.
Urban Refuge: How Cities Can Help Rebuild Declining Bee Populations
November 9, 2017 • Janet Marinelli • Yale Environment 360
With bees threatened by habitat loss, pesticides, and climate change, researchers are finding that planting flower patches in urban gardens and green spaces can help restore these essential pollinators
Warning of ‘Ecological Armageddon’ After Dramatic Plunge in Insect Numbers
October 18, 2017 • Damian Carrington • The Guardian
Insects are an integral part of life on Earth as both pollinators and prey for other wildlife and it was known that some species such as butterflies were declining. But the newly revealed scale of the losses to all insects has prompted warnings that the world is “on course for ecological Armageddon”, with profound impacts.
To Help Birds This Winter, Go Easy on Fall Yard Work
October 6, 2017 • Andy McGlashen • Audubon
A manicured lawn might look nice, but messy is better for birds and bugs.
Funding Trees for Health
September 25, 2017 • The Nature Conservancy
Imagine if there were one simple action that city leaders could take to reduce obesity and depression, improve productivity, boost educational outcomes and reduce incidence of asthma and heart disease among their residents. Urban trees offer all these benefits and more.
The Quest to Restore American Elms: Nearing the Finish Line
August 9, 2017 • Suki Casanave • Cool Green Science published by The Nature Conservancy
The quest to restore the American elm has been underway for more than half a century. Today, with help from The Nature Conservancy’s Christian Marks, success is closer than ever—which is good news for our floodplain forests, as well as our urban communities.
Accounting for Individual Animals in the Anthropocene
August 9, 2017 • Brandon Keim • Anthropocene Magazine, published by Future Earth
Development’s consequences are not limited to impacts on the environment and biodiversity. The concept of harm should include harm caused to the welfare of individual wild animals.
Can the Monarch Highway Help Save a Butterfly Under Siege?
July 11, 2017 • Janet Marinelli • Yale Environment 360
The population of North American monarch butterflies has plummeted from 1 billion to 33 million in just two decades. Now, a project is underway to revive the monarch by making an interstate highway the backbone of efforts to restore its dwindling habitat.
The Residential Macrosystem: Managed Collectively, Backyards Could Become More Biodiverse Landscapes
June 21, 2017 • Courtney Humphries • Anthropocene, published by Future Earth
Although we tend to dismiss urban and suburban nature as a diminished version of the real thing, research shows that these areas are more biologically active than assumed. Cities can have greater biodiversity than surrounding natural areas, Groffman says, because people tend to keep native vegetation while introducing other species.
Beyond Blades of Grass
June 16, 2017 • Paul Bogard • The New York Times
Why do we consider a neatly trimmed lawn the pinnacle of what the ground should be?
A ‘Shrinking City’ May Mean Growing Habitat for Bumblebees
May 23, 2017 • Sarah DeWeerdt • Anthropocene
To really understand the effects of cities on wild species, it isn’t enough to simply calculate the proportion of pavement—you have to consider an area’s human and socioeconomic history, too.
Understanding What Makes Plants Happy
April 30, 2017 • Margaret Roach • The New York Times
Thomas Rainer’s work is a revelation: It turns out that plants are social, and have a body language that explains what they need.
Among Their Many Impacts, Roads are Driving Rapid Evolutionary Adaptation in Adjacent Populations
March 15, 2017 • Mike Gaworecki • Mongabay
According to the authors of a paper published last month in the journal Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, even as evolutionary studies have come to the fore in many fields of conservation, “road ecology” is rarely examined from an evolutionary perspective — yet “neglecting evolutionary change in response to habitat modification prevents critical insights.”
How to Fight Plants with Plants
March 2, 2017 • By Nancy Lawson • The Humane Gardener
What’s to love about native plants that spread like crazy? Everything! Enlist these hardy troopers to help reclaim habitat from invasive species.
‘Forest Cities’: The Radical Plan to Save China from Air Pollution
February 17, 2017 • Tom Phillips • The Guardian
Stefano Boeri, the architect famous for his plant-covered skyscrapers, has designs to create entire new green settlements in a nation plagued by dirty air
Seeds: Little Time Capsules That Could Secure Our Future
January 13, 2017 • Robbie Blackhall-Miles • The Guardian
Saving seeds of plant species, both rare and common, is one of our most important backup plans for the planet, argues Robbie Blackhall-Miles.
Seaside Goldenrod, a Late Bloomer
November 23, 2016 • Dave Taft • The New York Times
Where conditions are right, masses of the plant’s yellow flowers can be found well into late November.
Can Wild Seeds Save Us from Food Apocalypse?
October 17, 2016 • Eloise Gibson • BBC
Around the world, botanists are battling to find rare wild seed strains before they die out – helping ensure food supplies that can survive the perils of climate change.
Make Your Yard (or School Grounds or Office Building) a Wildlife Haven
October 13, 2016 • Lisa Feldkamp • The Nature Conservancy
Turning your yard – or other small outdoor space – into a wildlife haven is easier than you think. Get started with Habitat Network, an online community of citizen scientists working together to build habitat to support wildlife.
Help Fuel the Monarch Migration With These 6 Prairie Plants
August 29, 2016 • Benjamin Vogt • Houzz
Come late August, the new generation of monarch butterflies in southern Canada and New England is starting to gather for migration south to central Mexico, which lasts into mid-October for the southern U.S. Along the way, the monarchs will make countless pit stops to recharge on a tiring journey.
Caterpillars, Food Webs and Doug Tallamy
July 23, 2016 • Sarah O’Malley • The World Around Us
Ecosystems are like salad bars, you fill your plate with lots of leafy greens and then sprinkle lesser amounts of more concentrated food items on top (nuts, olives, bacon bits). Ecosystems have a similar food or trophic structure, at the bottom are the primary producers, the plants and other photosynthetic organisms, as you move up at each level there are fewer and fewer non plant individuals ( herbivores, omnivores and carnivores).
Vanishing Act: Why Insects Are Declining and Why It Matters
July 6, 2016 • Christian Schwägerl • Yale Environment 360
Insect populations are declining dramatically in many parts of the world, recent studies show. Researchers say various factors, from monoculture farming to habitat loss, are to blame for the plight of insects, which are essential to agriculture and ecosystems.
Karner Blues Make a Comeback
June 27, 2016 • Meghan McCarthy McPhaul • Northern Woodlands
The Karner blue, New Hampshire’s state butterfly, is a wisp of a thing, a tiny fluttering of silvery-blue wings. Unless you happen to be wandering through a pine barren or black-oak savannah, however, you’re unlikely to spot one. Even then, it would be a challenge, as the butterflies have been listed as federally endangered since 1992.
The First Hints of the Anthropocene Appeared Far Earlier Than You Think
June 21, 2016 • Sarah DeWeerdt • Conservation Magazine
A massive cross-disciplinary analysis suggests that altering the planet is something very close to fundamental to the human condition.
Innovations in Urban Forestry
Summer 2016 • Ian Leahy • American Forests
The idea of actively managing trees in cities and towns goes back to some of the world’s oldest civilizations; ancient Egyptians, Greeks, Persians, Chinese, Japanese and Romans all invested in green spaces within the expanses of their bustling cities. They created groves around their places of worship and planted trees around buildings, each in their own way recognizing the inherent value of engaging with nature, not just on great excursions but on a daily basis.
Studying the Tiger Swallowtail, a Familiar Sight Flitting in the City
June 10, 2016 • Dave Taft • The New York Times
These butterflies are not shy, and with a little practice, observers can learn the basics of how they communicate.
How Rising CO2 Levels May Contribute to Die-Off of Bees
May 10, 2016 • Lisa Palmer • Yale Environment 360
As they investigate the factors behind the decline of bee populations, scientists are now eyeing a new culprit — soaring levels of carbon dioxide, which alter plant physiology and significantly reduce protein in important sources of pollen.
How to Make Your Yard Bird-Friendly
April 8, 2016 • Audubon
Grow a beautiful garden that provides a safe haven for birds in the face of climate change.
The Global Solution to Extinction
March 12, 2016 • Edward O. Wilson • The New York Times
It is not too late to halt the alarming loss of species and biodiversity threatening the planet.
Madrid Is Covering Itself In Plants To Help Fight Rising Temperatures
Feb. 3, 2016 • Adele Peters • Fast Company
Vacant lots, city squares, a former highway, and even regular city streets are going to be filled up with trees and plants—everywhere you look.
A Fragrant Shrub That Smells Like Winter
Dec. 11, 2015 • Dave Taft • The New York Times
The northern bayberry, a large shrub growing in coastal woodlands from Nova Scotia to North Carolina, has a peppery scent that must be experienced up close.
Humanity’s Coming Of Age On Planet Earth
Dec. 8, 2015 • Adam Frank • NPR.org
Some of the five mass extinctions Earth experienced in the past were driven by climate changes. Future Earth will be just fine. It’s us humans we need to worry about, says astrophysicist Adam Frank.
Tallest American Chestnut Tree Found In Maine
Dec. 3, 2015 • Susan Sharon • MPBN News
A century ago American chestnut trees dominated the eastern woodlands from Georgia to Maine. Growing straight and tall they were prized for timber.
Rethinking Extinction: Toward a Less Gloomy Environmentalism
November 2015 • James K. Boyce • Harper’s Magazine
A little more than a hundred years ago, a bird named Martha, the last surviving passenger pigeon, died in the Cincinnati Zoo. Her death was remarkable in the annals of extinction not only because we know its precise date — September 1, 1914 — but also because only decades earlier the passenger pigeon had been the most abundant bird on earth.
The (Pretty Much Totally) Complete Health Case for Urban Nature
October 20, 2015 • Eric Jaffe • City Lab
An annotated, chart-filled look at the scientific evidence.
Poison Ivy in Autumn in New York
Oct. 2, 2015 • Dave Taft • The New York Times
If there is ever a time to admire poison ivy, it is in the fall, when the plant turns brilliant shades of red, orange and yellow.
Weed Whackers: Monsanto, Glyphosate, and the War on Invasive Species
September 2015 • Andrew Cockburn • Harper’s Magazine
On a Friday evening in January, a thousand people at the annual California Native Plant Society conference in San Jose settled down to a banquet and a keynote speech delivered by an environmental historian named Jared Farmer.
Threat to Tiny Golden-Cheeked Warbler Is Disputed in Texas
July 31, 2015 • David Montgomery • The New York Times
A showdown over a songbird’s status is part of a continuing national dialogue about the Endangered Species Act.
Brooklyn Bridge Park Opening New Vistas
July 26, 2015 • Lisa W. Foderaro • The New York Times
Two new sections of the park are set to open in August, one a floral meadow on Pier 6, the other a reminder of the area’s industrial past.
Climate Change Causing Bumblebee Habitat Loss, Say Scientists
July 9, 2015 • Adam Vaughan • The Guardian
Scientists shocked at bees’ failure to relocate north to cooler areas as southern climes in Europe and North America become too hot for the species to survive.
More Trees on Your Street Means Fewer Health Problems, Says Study
July 2015 • Monica Tan • The Guardian
Having on average 10 more trees in a city block improved how someone rated their health by a level comparable to an increase in annual income of $10,000.
In These Urban Forest Neighborhoods, The Houses Are Disguised As Trees
June 30, 2015 • Adele Peters • Co.Exist
If one Dutch architect gets his way, we might soon be living in car-free urban forests where the buildings look like trees. “Imagine living with nothing but green around you,” says architect Raimond de Hullu. “Imagine growing flowers or tomatoes on your façade.”
Woods Whys: Acorns and Weather
Summer 2015 • Michael Snyder • Northern Woodlands
Last fall when acorns were falling out of the oak trees by the thousands, a neighbor said we could expect a hard winter. Presumably the deer needed lots of acorns.
From the White House to Minnesota Gardens, an Effort to Make More Room for Pollinators
May 29, 2015 • Catherine Winter • PRI’s The World
Honey bees and other pollinators are in big trouble. President Barack Obama wants to help save them with a new protected bee habitat corridor along I-35 spanning the US from Laredo, Texas to Duluth Minnesota. Catherine Winter, who lives in Duluth and keeps bees herself, tracked down some other bee enthusiasts to talk about the president’s plan and their own efforts to protect the pollinators that help feed us all.
Oslo builds world’s first bumblebee highway
May 22, 2015 • The Local
The Norwegian Capital Has Inaugurated the World’s First ‘Bumble Bee Highway’, a Corridor Through the City Pollen Stations Every 250 Meters.
Seoul’s Skygarden: the High Line of South Korea?
May 15, 2015 • Francesca Perry • The Guardian
Taking a look at plans for an elevated park in the South Korean capital, the issue of heritage preservation in Calcutta and the death-defying leaps of urban explorers on the rooftops of Paris.
‘The Triumph of Seeds,’ by Thor Hanson
April 17, 2015 • Mark Kurlansky • The New York Times
“Oh, no!” I thought as I gazed at Thor Hanson’s book with pictures of seeds all lined up on the jacket in boring, well-spaced symmetry. If “The Triumph of Seeds” had really been about how the little acorn makes the mighty oak, I might have screamed. But the genius of Hanson’s fascinating, inspiring and entertaining book stems from the fact that it is not about how all kinds of things grow from seeds; it is about the seeds themselves.
New England’s Plants Face Significant Threat, Report Says
March 26, 2015 • David Abel • The Boston Globe
Nearly a quarter of all native plant species in New England are now either extinct, rare, or in a state of decline, while about a third of all the region’s plants are from elsewhere and an increasing number are considered invasive, according to a landmark report released Thursday by Native Plant Trust.
Why a Milder Winter Might Delay Spring Leaf-Out
Spring 2015 • PopClock
When most of us think about spring phenology, our image is of warm spring days, encouraging leaves to expand and flowers to open. What might be surprising to learn is how important winter (and even autumn) temperatures are to the timing of these springtime events.
The Etymology of Parking
2015 • Michele Richmond • arnoldia
I’ve always wondered why we use the word parking to describe a place to leave a car. For me the word evokes images of my neighborhood park, playgrounds, or New York’s Central Park: lush green spaces, not places easily reconciled with a patch of asphalt.
How to Mend the Conservation Guide
October 31, 2014 • Emma Marris and Greg Aplet •The New York Times
A SCHISM has recently divided those who love nature.“New conservationists” have been shaking up the field, proposing new approaches that break old taboos — moving species to new ranges in advance of climate change, intervening in designated wilderness areas, using nonnative species as functional stand-ins for those that have become extinct, and embracing novel ecosystems that spring up in humanized landscapes.
If You Plant Different Trees in the Forest, Is It Still the Same Forest?
October 19, 2014 • Bill Lascher • The Guardian
As the Nature Conservancy works to help Minnesota’s North Woods adapt to climate change, other environmentalists worry “assisted migration” may end up changing the forest’s very nature.
Do Urban Green Corridors “Work”?
October 5, 2014 • The Nature of Cities
It depends on what we want them to do. What ecological and/or social functions can we realistically expect green corridors to perform in cities? What attributes define them, from a design and performance perspective?
Bombs for Butterflies
July 23, 2014 • Jason Bittel •On Earth
If the key to saving monarchs is growing more milkweed, why aren’t we walking around with pockets full of seed?I’m here to tell you about a weapon that could change the world. It’s small, inexpensive, and easy to conceal. Discharging it in public wouldn’t harm any living creature; it wouldn’t even land you in jail. What it would do, believe it or not, is save millions of lives.
How Citizen Scientists Are Using The Web to Track the Natural World
June 23, 2014 • Yale Environment 360
By making the recording and sharing of environmental data easier than ever, web-based technology has fostered the rapid growth of so-called citizen scientists — volunteers who collaborate with scientists to collect and interpret data.
Global Change Is Now — Ecology Can Help
May 6, 2014 • Liza Lester • Ecological Society of America
Our planet is already changing. Current climate trends are bringing great disruption to ecosystems and the many species that share this planet—including people, because this is our environment, our home, our life support system. The economic costs of wildfire, drought, storms, fishery losses to ocean acidity, and the inundation of our coastal cities by sea level rise are clear.
Urban Nature: How to Foster Biodiversity in World’s Cities
January 6, 2014 • Richard Conniff • Yale Environment 360
As the world becomes more urbanized, researchers and city managers from Baltimore to Britain are recognizing the importance of providing urban habitat that can support biodiversity. It just may be the start of an urban wildlife movement.
Bee Boulevard: An Urban Corridor Becomes a Haven for Native Pollinators
September 19, 2012 • Claire Thompson • Grist
Sarah Bergmann does not see herself as a political artist. Promoting social causes, raising awareness — that stuff doesn’t appeal to her. But she likes asking questions. Doing so, she says, “allows me to learn about the world and respond to it, and do something physical based on what I learn.”
Revealed: How Seed Market is Controlled by Monsanto, Syngenta, Bayer, Dow & DuPont
October 7, 2010 • Tom Levitt •Ecologist
How just five biotech giants have increased their control of the global seed market, promoting monoculture farming and making it harder for farmers to find alternative sources of seeds.