This week I share two wonderful June-blooming wildflowers that support pollinators in my own back yard: Foxglove beardtongue (Penstemon digitalis) and Hairy beardtongue (Penstemon hirsutus). Both species are quite adaptable and make great additions to rain gardens and hummingbird and...
Happy Pollinator Week 2023! This week I discuss this wonderful annual celebration of pollinator health and outline the Pollinator Partnership's 7 Things You Can Do for Pollinators. If you're local, come check out the awesome native plants we have at...
This week I'm pleased to share a lovely nature photography exhibit at the Crosslands Life Plan Community in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania. Residents' nature photographs have been skillfully matched with inspirational quotes and poetry to help people find the "Peace Within."...
This week I share some lovely native spring wildflowers from the Les Cheneaux Islands Region of Michigan's Upper Peninsula. I learned so much attending the 2023 Aldo Leopold Festival this year. Special thanks to the ecologists from Little Traverse Conservancy...
This week I share another favorite spring woodland wildflower, wild geranium (Geranium maculatum). This species provides important early season pollinator support and looks beautiful planted with other shade-loving plants. Its tolerance to a range of light and soil conditions makes...
This week I share a lovely little native woodland wildflower, foamflower (Tiarella cordifolia). This perennial forb makes a nice groundcover and does well interplanted with other shade-loving plants. Its early spring blooms provide important early season pollinator support for bees,...
Turtle time is officially here, and our native turtles as well as all of our herpetofauna (reptiles and amphibians) could use your help with road crossings and navigating other obstacles. Chippewa Nature Center Interpretive Naturalist, Lindsey Harrell, explains when to...
Happy Amphibian Week 2023! This week I discuss all the great resources available on the homepage of this worldwide celebration of amphibians and how you can learn about the amphibian species of the Midwest Region and Michigan. I encourage you...
This week I feature Carolyn Foley, an enthusiastic researcher with Purdue University and Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant. She explains what microplastics are, where they come from, what we currently understand about their ecological and toxicological impacts in aquatic habitats, and what...
