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All Blog Posts


Red-Winged Blackbirds are Special
Years ago, when I had a lawn with a sad, lonely bird feeder in the middle of it, I would senselessly chase away flocks of Red-winged...

ljmarkson
Jan 9, 20225 min read


Cedar Waxwings Reveal How Pervasively Disruptively Invasive Nandina and Honeysuckle are to Wildlife
Soon after I started working on a post focused on invasive nandina (Nandina domestica), I went down a rabbit hole and ended up in a...

ljmarkson
Dec 30, 20215 min read


What a Mushroom Eating Squirrel Teaches Us About Nature
After a rainy spell a couple weeks ago, mushrooms appeared in a section of my rewilded yard. About a week later I started noticing...

ljmarkson
Dec 21, 20213 min read


The Future is Dependent on Connecting Children to Nature Every Day
"Today’s children, growing up on lawns and pavements, will not even have nostalgia to guide them, and soon the animals will be not only...

ljmarkson
Dec 17, 20214 min read


Fresh Gift Ideas for the Backyard Nature Lover
If you know someone who buys native plants by the carload, creates a safe backyard habitat space for wildlife, has seeds stratifying in...

ljmarkson
Dec 10, 20215 min read


Holiday Light Pollution Shines Brightly at Botanical Gardens
Sometimes I wish I could take off my awareness glasses and go back to ignorantly enjoying things that harm our ecosystem. For example,...

ljmarkson
Dec 8, 20216 min read


Connecting the Rodenticide and Backyard Ecosystem Dots
My biophobic, eco-clueless neighbor found dead snakes in her driveway and posted in our neighborhood group because she wanted to know if...

ljmarkson
Nov 23, 20215 min read


Update on My Mini Nature Center
I appreciate how social media can connect me to so many like-minded people who are also working to restore nature where they live. It’s...

ljmarkson
Nov 19, 20215 min read


Create Local Change by Building Community Support for Native Plants
The native plant community in Atlanta grew stronger yesterday with the first event of the newly minted Intown Atlanta Chapter of the GNPS...

ljmarkson
Nov 9, 20214 min read


Reclaiming My Leaves and Restoring Nature
My advocacy for nature puts me outside my conflict comfort zone. I find myself consistently protecting my rewilded yard from neighboring...

ljmarkson
Nov 3, 20213 min read


I'm Done Tidying Nature For an Outdated Aesthetic
I’ve recently had a paradigm shift about spending so much energy making my rewilded yard more approachable, neater, or more traditionally...

ljmarkson
Oct 17, 20215 min read


Native Climbing Boneset is Loved By Pollinators!
My #3 September native plant pick is a rambling perennial vine I've only noticed growing at a nearby nature park in my intown Atlanta...

ljmarkson
Sep 8, 20212 min read


A Successful Pollinator Garden is Messy
OR Did You Really Plant That Pollinator Garden for Pollinators? Starting in early spring a 5 year old pollinator garden at the entrance...

ljmarkson
Aug 25, 20214 min read


Help Our Insects By Participating in the Great Georgia Pollinator Census 2021!
I want to encourage everyone to set aside 15 minutes this Friday, August 20 or Saturday, August 21 to participate in the Great Georgia...

ljmarkson
Aug 17, 20213 min read


Robber Flies are Ferocious Insect Hunters!
Yesterday, when a robber fly landed on my backdoor window I felt like it wanted to say hi and have its picture taken because it...

ljmarkson
Jul 31, 20212 min read


My Moth Week Miracle
There seems to be a special place in all secular and religious belief systems for the idea that things happen for a reason. A few days...

ljmarkson
Jul 26, 20213 min read


Have You Seen a Non-Native Invasive Sculptured Resin Bee In Your Yard?
A couple weeks ago I was excited to see a giant bee I had never seen before pollinating my clustered mountain mint (pycnanthemum...

ljmarkson
Jul 18, 20213 min read


Be Greedy About Supporting Wildlife in Your Yard!
OR How to optimize the habitat value of your yard. In his book Nature’s Best Hope Doug Tallamy explains how “greedy” he is when it...

ljmarkson
Jun 20, 20214 min read


Coexisting With Snakes In Your Atlanta Yard
Despite making my yard welcoming for wildlife, I still can't control what happens outside the safety of my sanctuary. The long list of...

ljmarkson
Jun 11, 20216 min read


Why I'm a Fan of Common Native Plants
The traditional gardening world often fetishizes exotic and rare plants. The latest trends trickle down to homeowners. Big box and...

ljmarkson
May 9, 20213 min read
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