GARDENING FOR WILDLIFE!

This is our Ontario garden page. See also our 2024-5 gardening project: Gardening for Cape Breton Wildlife.

Between 2016 and 2019, we have been working hard to upgrade our landscaping to better meet the needs of local wildlife.

In 2016, we planted an apple tree, a spruce tree, a row of eight shrubs across the back of the property, and constructed raised fruit and vegetable gardens.

In 2017, we attended a "Gardening for Wildife" workshop, at Hidden Habitat, planted six shrubs, expanded three gardens, constructed two more, and added several new wildlife shelters and water features to our yard. In late-summer, we applied for "Wildlife Friendly Habitat Certification," through the Canadian Wildlife Federation and Parks Canada. We were delighted to hear that our property met their criteria!

In the fall of 2017, we started converting a third of the hill behind the house into a native perennial/naturalization zone, by digging trenches across the hill and adding native plants to the trenches. We also scattered some old growth pine logs about, to act as insect habitat.

In the fall of 2017, our garden project was featured in Canadian Wildlife Federation's quarterly "Grow Wild" e-newsletter!

In 2018, we added a second bird bath, a second insect hotel, a second bat box, and two more bird nesting boxes to our yard. We also started transitioning grass to wild Creeping Thyme (a bee-favourite) on another third of the hill behind our house, and overseeding the rest of lawn with White Clover (another pollinator-favourite). Also in 2018, we received "Monarch Waystation Certification," through Monarch Watch.

In 2019, we added more perennials, plus an Oriole feeder and two small seed feeders, to the native perennial/naturalization zone, added a garden with native Phlox under our little apple tree, and overseeded the lawn area with more White Clover. The Creeping Thyme on the other section of the hill has been a bit slow to spread, so this year we are growing annual sunflowers in the trenches, in between the patches of thyme.

In 2019, we received "Bee Friendly Garden Certification," through the Pollinator Partnership and "Butterfly Garden Certification," through the North American Butterfly Association.

We also registered our property as a "S.H.A.R.E. landscape," with the Million Pollinator Garden Challenge.

These environmental certifications are important because they provide us with standards, direction and guidance. They also explain why parts of our yard are conventionally tidy, while others are intentionally scruffy, with logs, rock piles, trenches dug into hills, and foot tall grass!

WILDLIFE- AND POLLINATOR-FRIENDLY FEATURES

Several of our gardens include native Ontario plants:

	Our wildlife food sources include: flowering plants (for nectar and pollen);

	berry and fruit producing plants;

	nut and seed producing plants (left on the plant).

At various times throughout the year, we supplement with:

bird seed;

suet;

nectar;

oranges and grape jelly.

We provide water to local wildife via:

two bird baths;

a mud puddling bowl, for butterflies and bees;

a ground-level water bowl, with perching rocks;

a fountain.

There are several sources of natural shelter available in our yard, including:

trees and shrubs;

flower gardens, containers and hanging baskets;

areas with tall wildflowers and host plants for caterpillars;

underground dens.

We provide additional types of shelter, including:

two bat boxes;

three different types of bird nesting boxes;

two insect "hotels

a number of rotting old-growth pine logs, scattered among various gardens;

several toad houses, constructed of partially-buried flower pots;

a "rabbit den" under our shed;

a tiny human-made cave in the naturalization zone;

a bee house.

We do not use chemical insecticides or herbicides, or water our lawn. Our lawn is a diverse mix of drought-resistant rye grasses, fescues, clover and "weed varieties."

Our mulching mower is set on high. We leave grass clippings on the lawn. Our grass trimmer and mower are electric, and we heat and power our house with "green electricity," through Bullfrog Power.

Most of our gardens contain drought-resistant perennials. When we do need to water the flowers, berries or vegetables, we use rain water from these barrels:

We compost our kitchen and yard waste, and use natural soil amendments.

WILDLIFE RESIDENTS AND VISITORS

Wildlife residents and visitors to our yard include:

mammals, such as rabbits, squirrels and chipmunks;

songbirds, hummingbirds and other small bird species;

insects, such as bees, wasps, butterflies, moths, grasshoppers and ants, plus several species of spiders;

amphibians and reptiles, such as toads, frogs and garter snakes.

Monarch Butterflies produced offspring on our Swamp Milkweed plants,
just a few weeks after we planted them!

These native bee species frequent our yard.
(Top left: Eastern Bumblebee; Top right: Long-horned Bee;
Bottom left: Mining Bee; Bottom right: Sweat Bee)

We also see European Honeybees on our flowers.
(we don't know if they are feral, or if they belong to a local beekeeper):

House Wrens nested on our property in 2018 and 2019.

In 2019, a Robin raised a little one on our kayak rack.
(delaying backyard grass-cutting and kayaking by a month!)

One day, we found a little, wayward snapping turtle in our backyard.
We returned him to the wetland down the hill from our house.

Our most exotic visitors, so far, were a pair of Eastern Meadowlarks,
who arrived at our feeders on April 16, 2018.
(We fed them freeze dried mealworms.)

OUR GARDENS

These are images of the hand drawn map I provided to Canadian Wildlife Federation, and a map of our property that I constructed on Cornell University's Ornithology website. The Cornell site used map data to help people analyze their wildife- and pollinator-friendly features and suggest further improvements. (Sadly, Cornell's mapping tool is no longer available, due to funding cuts.)

	These gardens were expanded in 2017: This garden was refreshed with Ontario native plants and flowers from Hidden Habitat, plus a ground-level water bowl. A log pile was added later.
	Spring 2019 update: Most plants in this garden have come back up and some have spread.
	This garden now includes a fountain.

This wildflower garden was new in 2017:

It contains native Ontario perennials and a wildflower seed mix. The garden also features a bee house and a mud puddling bowl for pollinators.

These are our fruit and vegetable gardens:

Half of the frames were in use in 2016. The rest were added in 2017.

	These are two of our older gardens:

	These are the next phases of our garden project. We are eagerly anticipating what they will look like when they mature, and who they will attract! In August 2017, we created a long, narrow garden near the rock, and added a dozen native Ontario plants.
	Spring 2019 update: Three Anise Hyssop perished over their second winter, and have been replaced. The Rattlesnake Master, Bergamot and Stiff Goldenrod have all come back up.
	In September 2017, we created a native perennial/naturalization zone on a third of the hill behind our house and added fifteen plants. We needed to create areas of bare earth for planting perennials, and for ground-dwelling bees, but removing all of the grass from this sand-slope would have created an erosion problem. Our solution (which is somewhat experimental) was to dig horizontal trenches to hold the plants, and pack them with a bit of triple mix to keep sand erosion to a minimum. While digging the trenches, we encountered a large, flat rock. We propped it up with a couple of bricks, to create a cave for small creatures. The other rocks and stones were also excavated while digging the trenches. They will make a nice, little home for insects, as will the rotting old-growth pine logs that I added to the hill. In 2018, we increased the number of plants to 35, and in 2019 to 50. We intend to continue infilling with more plants, over the next two or three years, until we reach about 80 native perennials on that hill. We need to trim the grass once a month or so, throughout the summer, to give the native plants an opportunity to establish themselves. The Black and Decker cordless string trimmer, with 12" mowing deck attachment (pictured), is the perfect tool for this job!
	Spring 2019:

	In 2018, we started expanding a naturally-occurring patch of wild Creeping Thyme (bottom-right, in the photo below) across the section of hill behind one of our wildflower gardens. In late-March, we dug trenches across the hill, enhanced them with triple mix and sand, and added Creeping Thyme seedlings. It is our hope that Creeping Thyme will eventually take over this section of the hill, providing a low-maintenance ground cover that is attractive to bees and other pollinators. We will be using the cordless trimmer to keep grass growth in check during the first couple years of this project.
	Spring 2019 update: The thyme plants we added to the trenches last year survived the winter, and are growing well, but they are not spreading as fast as anticipated. Therefore, this year we decided to try growing annual sunflowers in between the little patches of thyme. New picture to follow. after the sunflower seeds germinate.

	In 2019, we added a garden with native Phlox under the little apple tree we planted in 2016.

Enhancing our landscaping, to better suit the needs of local wildlife, has been a fun and challenging project from which we are also reaping benefits. The new wildflower garden surprised us by producing an amazing array of colourful flowers in its first year. It is great to see more birds and pollinators visiting our yard. Sitting near the fountain with a good book is a relaxing way to spend an afternoon. We are greatly enjoying food from our fruit and vegetable gardens, and our new trees and shrubs will provide both shade and privacy in the years to come.


	*Text, photographs and layout © Margaret A. Black, 2017, 2018, 2019*

Return to home page