Part 4: Conservation
Help our Environment.
During Unite for Earth Day 2022 for Conservation we held our annual clean-up at the Orono Nature Center. Various activities were designated with areas in need of clean-up. One popular activity of pulling Buckthorn was back as an option using the Wood Weed Wrenches.
Boy Scouts are able to use the time spent for Conservation or Service hours needed for advancement and badges.
Girl Scouts are able to use the time spent for badge requirements when appropriate.
Cadette/Senior/Ambassador Girl Scouts may use the hours toward Service to Community Bars.
Everyone gets to feel the satisfaction of doing good and making a difference.
If you were unable to gather at the Orono Nature Center with us, that doesn't mean you cannot help our Environment and Invest in Our Planet. Get out and do some conservation in and outside of your house.
Take a walk through your yard and see what you can do. Instead of pulling Buckthorn, trimming trees, picking up trash, and collecting brush with fellow scouts at the Nature Center, have fun with your family and beautify your yard.
Check your birdhouses, bird feeders, and bird baths to prepare them for the return of your feathered friends - once it is recommended to put them back out.
NOTE: Due to the Bird Flu (Avian Influenza) outbreak, it was recommended at the time of Unite for Earth Day 2022 not to encourage birds to gather where they could pass on the virus. But, that recommendation change just after Earth Day 2022.
Conservation work has a place in your backyard
Article by By Michelle Banks and Ciji Taylor.
Whether you live in the country, on an average-sized suburban yard, or on a tiny plot in the city you can help protect the environment and add beauty and interest to your surroundings with backyard conservation.
USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service works with farmers and ranchers to make conservation improvements to their land, resulting in cleaner water and air, healthier soil and better habitat for wildlife.
“Conservation work is not just for farmers or ranchers. Anyone can help protect natural resources, whether your place is measured in acres, feet or flower pots,” said Kathy Pendergrass, NRCS plant materials specialist in Oregon.
In celebration of USDA’s conservation month, NRCS experts are sharing tips on how to create a conservation haven in your own backyard.
Planting trees provides homes for wildlife, lower heating and cooling costs, clean air, adds beauty and color, provides shelter from the wind and the sun and improves property values.
Welcome birds, butterflies, beneficial insects, bats and other wildlife to your yard by selecting the right plants. Certain trees, shrubs and flowers – especially those that are native to the area – can give wildlife the perfect food and sanctuary.
“Many people don’t realize how a single bush in their backyard can provide the necessary shelter and food for birds to survive through the winter,” said Jason Keenan, an NRCS wildlife biologist in Mississippi. “Even something as simple as a bird bath and bird feeder can open the opportunities up for our children to view and enjoy wildlife that are not normally seen in our growing urban environment.”
Another good way to invite wildlife to your yard is by creating a small backyard pond. Water provides habitat for birds, butterflies, frogs and fish. Plus, it’s a scenic addition to the yard.
Many yards can support a backyard wetland that benefits you and your community. Letting runoff from your roof, parking area and yard slowly filter through a mini-wetland helps prevent pollution of neighboring creeks and may help prevent flooding.
Wetlands also help recharge underground aquifers and, like the right plants or a pond, provide good homes for wildlife.
“Wetlands are the most efficient multifunctional environmental asset this country has,” said Cindy Neal, NRCS easements and Wetlands Reserve Program and coordinator in Arkansas.
Since all organic matter eventually decomposes, why not spare trash bags and town’s landfill by composting yard and food scraps? Composting, even with a simple compost pile, speeds the process by providing an ideal environment for bacteria and other decomposing micro-organisms.
“The final product, humus or compost, looks and feels like fertile garden soil and is perfect for your garden,” Pendergrass said.
Read the article at https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/national/home/?cid=STELPRDB1186046.
Learn about the Invasive Species Buckthorn
"Common, or European, buckthorn, and glossy buckthorn are the two non-native, invasive buckthorn species found in Minnesota. These buckthorn species were first brought here from Europe as a popular hedging material. They became a nuisance plant, forming dense thickets in forests, yards, parks and roadsides. They crowd out native plants and displace the native shrubs and small trees in the mid-layer of the forest where many species of birds nest. Glossy buckthorn has been sold by the nursery trade in three different forms, so its appearance can vary. The cultivar Frangula alnus 'Columnaris' is narrow and tall; the cultivars Frangula alnus 'Asplenifolia' and 'Ron Williams' have narrow leaves that give them a fern-like texture." - MN Department of Natural Resources
Click to download an informative document from MN DNR entitled
52 Ways to Invest in Our Planet
For us, every day is Earth Day.
If you feel the same, here are 52 actions and tips to make a difference, every day of the year.
Check out this article from the Earth Day Network at
50 Ways to Conserve Natural Resources at Home
Celebrated every year on July 28th, World Nature Conservation Day is a reminder that a healthy environment can only be maintained if we learn to use our natural resources sustainably. By consuming less and conserving more, we can leave behind a healthy planet for future generations.
Check out this article posted on Budget Dumpster by Sara Cifani at
https://www.budgetdumpster.com/blog/world-nature-conservation-day/.