From The Xerces Society There are 4,000 species of native bees in North America. Together they form the most important group of pollinators. Like all wildlife they are affected by changes in our landscapes, especially the loss of nesting sites. Bees make nests in which they create and provision brood cells…
By Betty Struckhoff Sarah Stein’s wonderful book, Noah’s Garden, is a must-read for anyone interested in native landscaping. One of her suggestions for suburban yards is to create hedgerows of native plants near the back property lines. Once neighbors pick up the idea, a connected series of these yards can…
Greg Hass has about 4,000,000 trees to sell. Greg, of course, is the Supervisor of the George O. White State Forest Nursery near Licking, Missouri. He is presently trying to retire. The difficulty is finding someone who can replace him. Interested in the job? You would only have to know…
How many birds can you name (common names are fine)? 20? 50? 100? All 350 described in the Birds of Missouri? What about butterflies? There are 324 species of butterflies in Butterflies and Moths of Missouri, but of course that only scratches the surface of butterfly species and only names…
From: http://www.xerces.org/native-bees/ Bumblebees are the only bees native to the US that are truly social. They live in colonies, share the work, and have multiple, overlapping generations throughout the spring, summer, and fall. However, unlike the non-native, European honeybees, the bumble bee colony is seasonal. At the end of the…
By Larry Hummel Build brush piles. Before we had this property I had no idea how many critters used brush piles. Birds use them for cover and food and reptiles have the same uses for them. Turkeys nest in them and mammals use them for a variety of purposes. Branches and…
By Susan Orr Until 8 years ago I had never gardened. Today we have over 100 species of native plants, shrubs, and trees in the yard. It has been an exciting adventure and begun for two reasons: first, to attract a greater variety of birds to our yard, second, to…
From Wildflowers in the Home Landscape, University of Missouri Extension Sheet g6660 Woodland wildflowers have these basic needs: light shade, adequate moisture, soil high in organic matter, well-drained soil, and a leaf mulch or other organic mulch that persists throughout the year. Shade – Most woodland wildflowers do not grow…
by Marilyn Chryst, St. Louis Chapter President We again co-sponsored a Landscape Challenge Contest with Grow Native and Shaw Nature Reserve. For our part we publicized, helped judge, and planted the winning yard. We had a booth at St. Louis County Library’s Eco-Festival in April, a celebration of Earth Day.
Welcome to the resurrection of the St Louis Wild Ones Newsletter. The purpose of this publication is to exchange ideas and share experiences among the members. I have volunteered to edit it, but you need to write it. Send your articles and ideas to me through the contact form. Tell…
