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'Tend to Your Wild'
Resources

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​
'Tend to Your Wild'
is designed to call attention to the basic and critical
importance of pollinators while fundamentally
changing the way we think about our gardens.


​​
Below are downloadable PDFs 
​

 Compiled from others, added to and observed by
Tend to Your Wild content @ 2017 all rights reserved merry cox


1-so_what_is_habitat.docx
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So what is habitat?

A beneficial habitat has everything a living thing needs to grow and thrive: water, food, shelter, air and a place to reproduce and raise young, places that provide protection from predators. (Just like we need.)



How much do we depend on biodiversity?
A well functioning habitat provides for us:
​• Healthy food
• Medicines come from our surroundings.
  (ethnobotany)
• Regulates our atmosphere
• Cleans our water, our air
• Brings joy and tranquility into our
  landscapes
• Controls pests
• Regulates fire
• Invites in pollinators.
• Helps us avoid pesticides, herbicides. • Lowers our    water usage
• Exudes stillness
 Can you name more?????
• ___________________________
• ___________________________
• ___________________________
• ___________________________
Why not have a sustainable future?
 


2- Bioregion.docx
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Home Base Bioregion
 
quick fill mad lib
Your bioregion is a geographical place that is defined by natural boundaries such as mountains, rivers, coasts, forests, deserts and it has a unique combination of geology, water, flora, fauna, climate that when taken wholly, distinguishes it from other regions.
To describe your place, start with watershed. Your watershed is the land area near you that drains water into a specific river or lake, gulf, bay etc.
 
I live in the___________________________________________  
                      watershed
 
that drains into__________________________________________
                            river, lake, gulf, sea



surrounded by __________________________________________
                           prairie, mtns, coast, wetlands, desert, forests, landforms


formed by______________________________________________        
                       glacial, uplifting, erosion, volcano
 
topped with____________________________________________     
                        soil type
 
influenced by___________________________________________
 
                      weather, climate, altitude
 
and populated by________________________________________.
                        flora and fauna

Survey the distinguishing flora, fauna, geology and climate of your area; living things in your watershed form a closely interconnected web of relationships. By becoming intimate with these species, the climate and the conditions of your landscape, you will be able to make beneficial habitat decisions.
 
 
A few fun things to investigate:
•Trace the water you drink from precipitation to tap and from tap to ultimate disposal.
•Name five trees in your area. Which of them are native?

•Name five resident and five migratory birds in your area.

•What spring wildflower is consistently among the first to bloom where you live?
•What fall wildflower is consistently among the last to bloom?
 
Let’s start where you are, but where you are?

How well do you know your ‘Bioregion’?
You are located in a geographical area described in terms of its unique combination of flora, fauna, geology, climate and water, an area defined by natural boundaries and distinct living communities. Wholly taken together, these distinguish your bioregion from others.
The central message is to attend to where you live by focusing on the wisdom your place. The local mix of plants, animals and watersheds, landscapes define the character and eventually the success of habitat adventure.
           
Describe the distinctive characteristics of your region
Watersheds
Geography: Natural boundaries
Fauna
Flora
Migration
Seasonal changes: sun, birds, bugs, animals, winds, precipitation
 
 
Make a commitment to seek out the other inhabitants of your bioregion.
 
Within a bioregion lies a patchwork of land or aquatic uses.
Each patch provides habitat in which different species survive and flourish.                             



3_let’s_investigate_your_yard.docx
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Let’s investigate your yard.
 
We all should know that diversity makes for a rich tapestry, and we must understand that all the threads of the tapestry are equal in value no matter what their color.
Maya Angelou
​

The local mix of plants, animals and watersheds, landscapes define the character and eventually the success of your habitat adventure. 
Always have an eye for finding your place within the limits of your bioregion. 
 
Micro-climate places:
• Cooler, hotter, wetter, windier, more snow accumulation 
• Location and impact of structures: house, garage, fences, walls etc 

Climate in your yard
• Wind direction, intensity and the changes it makes over the year,
   barriers and lees
• Temperatures, highs, lows, first, last and sporadic frosts
• Precipitation amounts, when and where 

Sunshine and Shade 
• Where is solar south?                                                                                                                     • Points of sunrise, sunset,
• Areas of sun shade throughout the day 

Water:
• Creeks, gullies, water movement during storms, flood zones, well,
  city water, irrigation, catchment potential.
• Where does it come from?
   Network of springs, creeks, rivers flowing together. 

Flora:
• Relationships and connectedness: What is growing next to what.                            
• Is it native or planted gone wild?                                                                              
• What vegetation is near water sources, downspouts, leaks, seeps?                  
• Existing vegetation: species and what they indicate                                                
• Is the north-side of a structure harboring different vegetation than the south
 
Fauna:
• Native, introduced, pests, paths and corridors they use 

Soil: Sand Clay Loam Silt 
• Drainage, texture. depleted, rich, organic materials, depth, PH,
  Rock out-croppings

Migration, Seasons:
• What passes through and when                                                                              
• Trace the sun's seasonal route

Things to investigate 
•What is the land use history by humans in your region during
    the past century?
•Were the stars out last night?
•What feeds on the plants you see?
•What bugs do you see and where?
•What nests where?
•What gathers organic matter?
•What gathers water?
•What is opportunistic in the shade?
•Plant combos
•What grows in open areas?
•What grows in windy areas?
•What grows on the north-sides of things?
•What grows on the south-sides of things?
•What is thicket forming?
•What grows near ditches?
•What grows on fence lines?


Using one thing you discovered about your yard, fill in the blanks.
Once upon a time there was ____________________________________________ 
Every day ____________________________________________________________
One Day _____________________________________________________________ 
Because of that  _______________________________________________________ 
Because of that  _______________________________________________________ 
Until finally ___________________________________________________________ 



4-Mapping our Place.doc
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Mapping your place

Make a basic, but large SITE PLAN of  your site
 
    Sketch the following EXISTING elements on your map:
         Buildings & Infrastructure
                  House
                  Garage
                  Fences & Walls
                  Utilities – phone, sewer, septic/leach-field, gas, water, power
         Access & Circulation
                  Paths
                  Driveways
                  Parking
                  Material Delivery
         Vegetation (and species if known)
                  Trees
                  Shrubs
                  Garden Beds
         Water
                  Creeks
                  Gullies
                  Water movement during storms
                  Flood zones
                  Well
                  Irrigation
                  Rain Catchment potentials
         Views
                  Microclimates – Cooler, hotter, windier, wetter, more snow   
                   accumulation
         Traffic and access roads
 
 
             
    Add EXISTING Conditions/Natural Elements from your observations:
              Sun: Solar South, Points of sunrise, sunset; winter and summer solar zenith
              Shade: throughout days, seasons
              Wind: direction, intensity, changes it makes over the year
              Animals: paths and corridors,
              Neighbors: noise, pats, traffic, pollution, etc.


5_desired_elements.doc
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Desired Elements
 
Things you’d like to have.
Envision your site in 5-10 years

 
Birds, Bees, Butterflies, Micro•herds to maintain your soil.   
 
Infrastructure: patios, decks, greenhouse, walkways, play areas, clothesline, annual beds, etc
 
Sun: use to heat, water heating
 
Shade: want more or less or strategically placed
 
Nutrients: compost pile, mulch piles, manures
 
Water: catchment, irrigation
 
Habitat: wildlife areas to bring in or keep away
 
Food: For you and your new habitats. What do you like to eat? Flowers, herbs, fruit, nuts.
 
For your wildlife preserve: Water, shelter, nesting sites for critters, bugs, bees, butterflies, birds, micro- 
    organism (to take care of your soil).
 
 
Some ideas to think about:
• Places to let the grass grow (places for the minis)
• Places to not deadhead your flower (seeds for birds)
• Grow flowers (nectar, pollen, shelter)
• Plant a tree or shrub  (flowers, berries, rose-hips, seeds, cover, nesting)
• Grow climbers on a fence or wall (food, shelter insects, nesting)
• Solitary bee hotels
• Small ponds
• Bat box
• Bug hotels (small piles of debris, pine cones, sticks twigs, bricks, rocks)
• Dead wood piles (shelter, nesting ground for good bugs.
   If you have a only a deck, do your bit by filling a well-
   drained bucket with soil and wood chips to attract bugs.
• Feeding stations
• Watering troughs
• Dust bath sites

 

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