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Nature
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After long winter months dormant in their chrysalis cocoons these two beauties, male and female, emerge in our Spinning Room critter box and were set free by our volunteers to begin their journey.
At Bondsville Mill Park kids are outside and surrounded by nature. Children are free to explore, wade in the creek, make noise, jump, play in the dirt, fish. New activities are planned to connect kids to nature. We have scavenger hunts for every season such as Meet Our Trees or a Sounds hunt. In late summer, we actively engage children, and adults, to learn more about Monarch butterflies and invite them to help tag and release Monarchs.
The Mill’s Nature Library was established so questions that kids ask can be answered on the spot. (We hope!) To connect kids with nature, a walk in the woods might follow a story about where animals live. There can be an opportunity for family fun and meaningful experiences in the Mill Park.
Echo Dell Neighborhood Nature Conservancy
Echo Dell Neighborhood Nature Conservancy’s first event of the season featured Beth and the Bondsville Mill’s Homegrown National Park program. Beth highlighted the importance of native plants. Read more to learn how you can get involved
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How YOU can get more involved with Nature ... Homegrown National Park Program
The Homegrown National Park Program is a national grassroots call to action to restore biodiversity and ecosystem function by planting native plants and creating new ecological networks. Their goal is 20 million acres of native plantings in the U.S. This represents approximately ½ of the green lawns of privately-owned properties.
View the Homegrown National Park Program brochure by clicking here or on the file below for more information about the program and some valuable information resources.
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Homegrown National Park Program Resources include:
National Wildlife Federation, Native Plant Finder
http://www.nwf.org/NativePlantFinder
Audubon, Plants for Birds
https://www.audubon.org/plantsforbirds
Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Native Garden Templates
https://www.dcnr.pa.gov/Conservation/WildPlants/LandscapingwithNativePlants/NativeGardenTemplates/Pages/default.aspx
Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center
https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=AMSA
National Wildlife Federation, Native Plant Finder
http://www.nwf.org/NativePlantFinder
Audubon, Plants for Birds
https://www.audubon.org/plantsforbirds
Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Native Garden Templates
https://www.dcnr.pa.gov/Conservation/WildPlants/LandscapingwithNativePlants/NativeGardenTemplates/Pages/default.aspx
Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center
https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=AMSA
“In the past, we have asked one thing of our gardens: that they be pretty. Now they have to support life, sequester carbon, feed pollinators and manage water.”
— DOUG TALLAMY
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Humans have destroyed natural habitat in so many places that local extinction is rampant and global extinction accelerating. This is a growing problem because it is the ecosystems around us that support us. Doug Tallamy is a professor of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware, where he studies the many ways insects interact with plants and how such interactions determine the diversity of animal communities. His new book, Nature's Best Hope, lays out a new approach to conservation that everyone can employ at home in their own yards.
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When it comes to understanding the vital relationships between native plants and the wildlife that depends on them, Doug Tallamy is the acclaimed expert. This episode explores ways to incorporate nature into your landscape and help you understand why that’s so important. |
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