Did you know you can get your yard certified by the National Wildlife Federation?

 

More Photos »

Did you know you can get your yard certified by the National Wildlife Federation?

Posted on September 8, 2009
by Linda A.

I recently had my yard certified as a wildlife habitat by the National Wildlife Federation. Help preserve habitat by making your yard into a wildlife habitat.

I have wanted to do this for a long time - make my yard into an official certified wildlife habitat by the National Wildlife Federation. All that is needed is food, water, cover, and places to raise young. I have a large yard in the country so I did not need to do anything extra to meet these criteria. A small yard will do fine as long as it provides the four requirements.
Programs like this are really important in this day and age. It seems like all we humans do is take habitat away with new construction and development - not make habitat. The NWF program encourages people to make their own yards into safe and welcoming habitat for wildlife. Go to their website for more information.
Even if you do not apply for official certification, go ahead and make your yard into a friendly place for nature. Entertain a child there and help them appreciate nature. If you do not have a yard, grow flowers on a porch or balcony. Set up bird feeders.
A tiger swallowtail butterfly enjoys the nectar from a butterfly bush.
These help me see that even my compost pile provides habitat for organisms. What the heck are these things? At first I thought they were mushrooms, but after a closer look, I figured it out. This a clump of about three dozen fox snake eggs. They have already hatched. I am thrilled to know that there are 36 baby snakes somewhere in my yard!

One of the babies!
Here are five monarch butterfly caterpillars happily munching on this milkweed plant. I am collecting milkweed seeds this fall so I can plant many more milkweed plants next spring.
Part of my yard has been replanted into a tall grass prairie natural area. Prairie grasses are beautiful when blooming.
Asters are the last flowers to bloom in my prairie. They are native plants and need no encouragement or special treatment. If you plant native plants they will require less energy and no extra care. They are adapted to the water and temperature constraints of your particular ecosystem.
You can easily attract birds by setting up a bird feeding station. This pair of goldfinches has young nearby. They are constantly chirping and demanding their parents' attention. Birds are very fun to watch.
It's a wildlife habitat and beautiful!

Did you know you can get your yard certified by the National Wildlife Federation? - Go Green - SustainLane