Our feeder fell victim to harsh winter winds.

This is so embarrassing.

I’ve been working at the largest wildlife conservation organization in the United States for over nine years. My husband, Tom, is just weeks away from completing a program in landscape design.  And yet, our backyard garden is a complete disaster. A busy summer caused us to leave the yard untended and a harsh winter just added insult to injury (the shattered bird feeder, for example).

Believe me, it wasn’t always this bad.  In fact, soon after we moved into our townhouse in 2003, our garden became a source of pride and joy.  We had hired green landscaper, John Magee, to plan and install a wildlife-friendly garden filled with native plants.  We even reused the gravel left by the previous owners to create a path through the backyard.  Those were happier times.

But, I haven’t given up hope.  Inspired by National Wildlife Federation’s Garden for Wildlife Month, we’re committed to whipping our garden into shape!

Plants were allowed to grow wildly throughout the backyard.

Plus, there’s an extra incentive. During the month of May, NWF will plant a tree for each person who turns their yard or garden space into a haven for birds, butterflies and other local wildlife and then certifies it as a Certified Wildlife Habitat® site. All you need to do is provide the little critters with food, water, cover and places to raise their young.  We can do that!

So, please join us on our journey to breathe new life into our sad, little backyard.  Any suggestions or words of encouragement are certainly welcome. Wish us luck!

Next time: Find out if our trip to the nursery in search of native plants was successful.


Certify Your Garden as a Wildlife Habitat

Learn more about attracting wildlife to your garden and how you can turn it into a National Wildlife Federation Certified Wildlife Habitat® site >>