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Gardening With Nature
City of Kirkland - Natural Yard Care
hab·i·tat/ˈhabiˌtat/Noun:The natural home or environment of an animal, plant, or other organism.A particular type of environment regarded as a home for organisms.
“If you want to live and thrive, let the spider run alive.” ~American Quaker Saying
Understanding Your Garden as Habitat
Scale: The home garden occupies a smaller scale than the surrounding neighborhood.
Soil Life: What goes on beneath the surface of your garden soil is more important than what you are viewing above.
Plant Choices: Choosing plants native to the Puget Sound region helps native fauna identify food, nesting and shelter materials.
Maintenance Practices: Make informed choices. You will use less product, save money and create a healthy habitat.
Scale“On every stem, on every leaf,... and at the root of everything that grew, was a professional specialist in the shape of grub, caterpillar, aphis, or other expert, whose business it was to devour that particular part.” Oliver Wendell Holmes
Impacts of tall trees and buildings in urban environments; SHADE
Urban settings are often space challenged
Integrate your garden into the surrounding landscape; create corridors for
wildlife including pollinators and beneficial insects
Seasonality makes a difference
Soil Life“In a thimble full of soil - about a gram weight - you can expect to find• 100 million to 1 billion bacteria• several yards to several miles of fungi depending on whether you have agricultural or forest soil• several thousand protozoa and up to several hundred thousand in forest soils• from ten to several hundred nematodesThis is all in a thimble full of soil. And this doesn't begin to count the larger mites, spiders and earthworms who together form a complex called the Soil Food Web.”From www.the-compost-gardener.com
"If a healthy soil is full of death, it is also full of life: worms, fungi, microorganisms of all kinds ... Given only the health of the soil, nothing that dies is dead for very long."- Wendell Berry, The Unsettling of America, 1977
Soil is composed of mineral and organic content
along with air, water and microorganisms
Worms Bacteria
Fungi
Arthropods
Building Habitat
• Plants diversity is key –shape and size and species• Don’t be overly tidy • Leave some ground bare for ground nesters• Leave moss intact for bird nests • Provide larval food plants for butterfly caterpillars• Plant dense areas for shelter• Provide snags, wood blocks, rock piles for basking, nesting and
safe sites• Provide a water source – puddles for butterflies, fountains or
baths for birds
Create a Habitat Garden NORTH
trees & shrubs for screening and wildlifeFlowering Tree
patio
veggiegarden
rainbarrels fern garden
PNW native border
herbs
Ground Dwelling
Bees
Native wetland plants
Bat House
Wildflower Garden
Fruit Tree and Mason Bees
Rock Piles
Snag
Wildlife Habitat
What do you suppose?A bee sat on my nose.Then what do you think?He gave me a winkAnd said, "I beg your pardon,I thought you were the garden."~English Rhyme
Garter Snakes eat slugs! Need grassy areas, warm sunning spots
Ladybeetles lay eggs in plant material where aphids are present, pupate on plant leaves
Bumble bees need bare earth
in the garden for
nesting
Wildlife Habitat
Hover Fly; larvae are predators of aphids, adults pollinate
flowers
Bats eat 600 to 1,000 insects per hour, need structures to roost in
Great Blue Herons eat large insects, need large trees for
nesting
Integrated Pest ManagementWhat is IPM?
“IPM is a sustainableapproach to managing pestsby combining biological, cultural, physical andchemical tools in a way that minimizes economic, health and environmental risks. “
National IPM Network
Why IPM?
• Pesticides are designed to kill organisms• Increase in pesticide use -170% between 1964 and
1982.• US crop production - 37% reduction each year by
negative pest effects; a percentage that has stayed stable over the course of agriculture.
• Pesticide use puts non-target organisms at risk –including you, your family and pets
• 5% active Ingredient versus 95% inert ingredients• Inert ingredients are not required to list and might be
“trade secrets” and just as toxic or more so as active ingredient
• Risk to humans = toxicity of the material used and length and intensity of exposure to that material
IPM Resources• Use your resources to learn about pesticides
– Safety Data Sheets – aka Material Safety Data Sheet
– Grow Smart, Grow Safe website– Washington Toxics Coalition– Northwest Center for Alternatives to Pesticides
IPM Steps
• Prevention – create a healthy landscape
• Monitoring and Observation – be a detective and scribe
• Intervention – decide if you need to do something
Prevention• MULCH – prevent weeds, conserve moisture, moderate soil temp• IMPROVE SOIL – test, amend, fertilize, cover crop• RIGHT PLANT, RIGHT PLACE – meet plant’s needs• SANITATION – remove diseased or pest infested plant materials• PROVIDE AIR SPACE - overcrowding can cause disease issues• WATERING – in morning, deeply, slowly and keep foliage dry• ROTATE CROPS – tomato, onion and cabbage family plants• PLANT DIVERSE GARDENS – get help managing pests• FLOATING ROW COVER – use to keep out flying pests• USE REFLECTIVE MULCHES – silver flashing deters flea beetle• SLUG TRAPS – beer or yeast in containers
Monitoring and Observation
• Observe your garden all year long• Learn about your plant’s needs - native habitat - mature size and
shape - soil, sun and water needs• Learn about life cycles of pests
SIMPLE - Stink Bugs – egg to nymphs to adult COMPLETE - Imported Cabbage Worm Butterfly – egg to larvae to pupae to adult
• Pests versus beneficial insects• Keep a notebook
Courtesy University of Missouri Extension
Which One is the Pest?
Ground Beetle Root Weevil
• Assess your tolerance levels for any given issue • Review plant placement guidelines • Assess for a problem plant that needs to be removed• Review your plant care practices • Treat the issue
Intervention
Treatment Options
Cultural – adjust watering, prune for air flow, fertilize, check trunk flare, check soil moisture
Mechanical – hand remove the pest and dispose of, pull the weeds before they go to seed, use preventative measures like slug traps
Biological – beneficial insects or pesticides derived from bacteria, fungi or other biological sourceBtk or Bacillus thuringiensis subspecies kurstaki - controls tent caterpillar
Chemical - use as a last resort and use lowest toxicity products first
Chemical Treatment
• All chemicals have potential toxicity. Use least toxic first.
• Inert ingredients are often not described on the label.
• All are manufactured products.• Use as a last resort.• Read and follow label instructions.• Acquire the Material Safety Data
Sheet which will outline safety information.
Bees and Neonicotinoids
Organic Versus Certified Organic• Organic refers to a
carbon based substance.
• Frequently used on product labels; indicates product is made of organic matter
• Certified Organic is applied to a product that has met a set of standards developed by the USDA in order to be used in organic production.
• Can be identified by USDA or WSDA seal or OMRI logo
Beneficial Insects
Lady Beetle and Larva
Green Lacewing and Larva
Adults and larvae are proficient aphid eaters
Larvae also called Aphid Lions
• Resemble bees• Larvae are the
predators of aphids, mealybugs, and small insects
• Adults are important pollinators
Hover Flies
Soldier Beetles
• Often confused with plant eating insects
• Pollinators as well as predators• Predators as adults on aphids
and soft bodied insects
Parasitoid Wasp
•Parasitize by laying eggs in the host insect. The host is entirely consumed by the developing larvae.
•Caterpillars, moths, leafminers, wood-boring beetle larvae, flies, aphids, gypsy moth, weevils, and spiders.
They Do Not Sting!!!
Butterflies and Moths
Monarch and MilkweedAnise Swallowtail Larvae
Taylor’s Checkerspot
Western Sheepmoth
Native Bees• Bumble Bees – 30 species in western North America• Solitary Bees – mason, leaf cutter, carpenter• Green Bees and Small Bees – ground nesting, semi -social
Yellow Faced Bumble Bee - Bombus vosnesenskii Western Bumble Bee - Bombus occidentalis
Planting Choices• Native plants are pest and disease
resistant and recognized by native fauna
• Group plants together• Three season bloom• Intermix with edibles• Include cover crops
• Three important plant familieso Mint – Lavender, oregano, thyme, rosemary, sageo Daisy – Echinacea, cosmos, zinnia, calendula, marigoldo Carrot – Parsley, cilantro, dill, fennel, lovage
Mint Family – Lamiaceae
Daisy Family – Asteraceae
Carrot Family - Apiaceae
• Many individual plants
• Grasses that like to grow tall
• Good competitors when healthy
• Permeable when healthy
• Hungry!
• Thirsty!
Lawns are…
Basic NeedsOf a Healthy Sustainable Lawn
• Lawns need 6-8 hours of sun – if too shady try alternatives
• Provide adequate water - 1 inch per week to 6 inch depth
• Good drainage matters - aerate and de- thatch and spread compost and reseed regularly to keep them invigorated
• Choose the best site for your lawn!
Lawns in the Wrong Place• Slopes - No more than 12% grade – avoid runoff, hard to mow – use
groundcovers instead• Ponding – Indicates compaction or high water table – assess for and
correct or plant adapted plantings• Under Conifers – Shade, tree roots, needles, ground water – substitute
with shade loving perennials, ferns or groundcovers.• Shady Garden – Lawns need 6 – 8 hours of sun daily Substitute with
shade loving plants and natives.
• Mowing height – 2 inches minimum to outcompete weeds, shade soil, conserve moisture – especially important as we go into winter weather
• Grasscycle – reduces need for fertilization to one application in the fall
• Use natural, organic lawn fertilizer instead of chemical fertilizers
• No Phosphorus is allowed in lawn fertilizers unless your soil test shows P depletion – protects waterways
Growing a Healthy Sustainable Lawn
Improving Soil for Your Lawn• Use compost as a top dressing• Apply in fall (or spring, or both!) • Apply after de-thatching and aerating• Apply lime in the fall if pH is low – check
your soil test
Lawn and Seed Choices for NW Gardens
• Perennial Rye• Perennial Fescue• Kentucky Bluegrass• Eco-Turf• Native Grasses• Steppable Groundcovers• Perennial Clover
Perennial Rye
Perennial FescueSteppables – Creeping Thyme
Eco-TurfWhite Clover
www.kirklandwa.gov/YardSmart
• Focus area = Forbes Creek Watershed• Includes large parts of the North and South
Rose Hill neighborhoods, as well as portions of the Highlands, Totem Lake, Juanita, and Norkirk neighborhoods
• Free technical assistance
• Rebates up $3,500
• Installation of simple and beautiful projects to manage flow of rainwater from your property.
Slow it Down, Soak it Up
– Prevents flooding and erosion
– Naturally filters water
www.kirklandwa.gov/YardSmart
www.kirklandwa.gov/YardSmart
What do you suppose? A bee sat on my nose. Then what do you think? He gave me a wink And said,
"I beg your pardon, I thought you were the garden.”~English Rhyme