Birds, Bugs and Wildflowers:organic Integrated Pest

Management for the home gardener

by Richard Gardnerand Heather Cuthbert

rtgardner3@yahoo.comhttp://www.slideshare.net/rtgardner3

https://independent.academia.edu/RichardTGardner

A photographic essay on a novel way of increasing garden productivity, controlling pests, creating pollinator habitat and enhancing native

bird populations.

Abstract: This past year we transformed our yard into a place for birds, pollinators and an organic garden. The purpose of this transformation was twofold:

1.) to provide pollinator and bird habitat

2.) to increase the yield in our garden by attracting pollinators to the vegetables and native predators of herbivorous insects to the garden.

To do this we planted several wildflower beds, placed birdhouses throughout our yard, our woodlot and the pasture next to it and avoided non-organic pesticides, fertilizers and other garden chemicals.

This presentation is a photo essay of the past year.

The biggest problems this year were a late cool summer and ground hogs. An estimated 15 ground hogs were in our yard at one time or another throughout the growing season. About 1/3 of our productivity was lost to these animals including young bean, pea, lettuce, broccoli, kale, brussel sprouts, beet, cabbage and collards plants.

The biggest surprise was that groundhogs (Marmota monax) devastated young common milkweed (Asclepius syriaca), butterfly weed (Asclepius tuberosa) and other native wildflower plants. Only when the groundhogs were dealt with did the wildflower bed, like the vegetable garden, begin to flourish.

We are hoping that Sir Isaac Newton, our American Dingo, will help us this year with the

groundhogs.

The weather is an issue which we can do nothing about.

Overall, the productivity of the garden was high given the circumstances. There were very few problems with insects and disease. The diversity of birds was exciting. This year we will be more proactive about ground hog control* and do more to enhance the number of native wildflowers in our yard. At the same time we hope to give tours and otherwise engage other people in the processes, we are developing.

* Coyote urine, fox urine and hot pepper dust were not effective in preventing groundhog damage this past year.

Our yard and the pasture next to it in 2014 had:

22 song bird houses,

10 bat houses,

4 song bird nesting platforms in woodlot,

14 song bird nesting platforms under deck,

4 kestrel/screech owl houses,

2 barn owl houses

1 hawk nesting platform

(and counting).

• 12 of the nesting platforms under deck were 8” long x 4” deep – none had nests.

• 2 nesting platforms under deck were 8” long x 6” deep – one had a nest made of moss.

• None of the 4 nesting platforms in the woodlot had nests.

• 22 nesting boxes along pasture, around yard, along the edge of a swamp and in the woodlot –14 had nests of twigs, 2 had nests of moss and 1 had a moss nest over a twig nest for a total of 17 occupied song bird houses, 77%.

• Both barn owl boxes had common grackle nests.

• 3 kestrel boxes were in the pasture and 1 in the swamp at the bottom of our woodlot but were unchecked for occupants.

• Hawk nesting platform in woodlot across the street did not have a nest. It probably needs to go up much higher than 12’. It will be left alone unless one of us learns to tree climb.

• None of the 10 bat houses were occupied possibly due to less than optimal locations in and along the woodlot and/or white nose disease.

This year

Birds and bats

• The four small nesting platforms in woodlot were given a roof this winter and a fifth one installed.

• The twelve 8”x4” nesting platforms under deck were replaced by nine 8”x7” and four 10”x11-1/4” nesting platforms which filled all the possible locations under the deck.

• Bat houses will be left alone until better locations can be determined.

Groundhogs

• We now have Sir Isaac Newton, an American Dingo, to help with groundhog control. We installed an invisible fence around the perimeter of our yard to keep him within our 1-1/2 acres.

• Groundhogs in our yard, woodlot and pasture next to us will be aggressively dealt with by smoke bombing and filling in their holes and filling in with dog waste. This will hopefully control a problem before it devastates our gardens again. We found that several holes were occupied by successive groundhogs.

Garden

• Continue to use bamboo poles tied with twine for trellising as it is free and a good use for a non-native invasive plant.

• Fewer plants spaced further apart.

• Use ½” x 4’ rebar to support peppers.

• Fewer onions

• Slightly shrink the wildflower section of the garden to provide more space for vegetables.

• Added 2 cubic yards of mushroom soil and a year’s composted kitchen waste. This will be tilled into the soil before planting vegetables.

Flower beds• Removed a pine tree from the front of the house

to give more light and encourage mint/bee balm bed to expand.

• Continue to encourage the growth and diversity of native flowers while discouraging non-native plants.

• Seeded the driest flower bed between our garage and house with Big Blue Stem grass, Andropogon gerardi, (locally acquired and ordered seed).

• Heavily seeded edges of yard and flower beds with locally acquired Common Milkweed, Asclepias syriaca and locally acquired Solidago sp.

• Better groundhog control.

Invasive plants

Continued invasive non-native plant removal. To this point Oriental Bittersweet (Celastrus orbiculatis), honeysuckles (Lonicera maacki, L. morrowii and L. japonica), multiflora rose (Rosa multiflora), garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata), Japanese stilt grass (Microstegium vimineum), mile-a-minute (Persicaria perfoliata) and Tree-of-heaven (Ailanthus altissima) are being removed as much as possible.

Birds

American robin Turdus migratorius

Baltimore oriole Icterus galbula

Blue jay Cyanocitta cristata

Carolina wren Thryothorus ludovicianus

Cat bird Dumetella carolinensis

Common grackle Quiscalus quiscula

Eastern phoebe Sayornis phoebe

Gold finch Spinus tristis

House finch Haemorhous mexicanus

Indigo bunting Passerina cyanea

Mocking bird Mimus polyglottos

Mourning dove Zenaida macroura

Northern cardinal Cardinalis cardinalis

Ruby throated hummingbird Archilochus colubris

Scarlet tanager Piranga olivacea

Warbling vireo Vireo gilvus

Pollinators

Bumble bee Bombus ternarius

Painted lady butterfly Vanessa cardui

Eastern tiger swallowtail butterfly Papilio glaucus

misc. Apocrita species

misc. Lepidoptera species

Flowers

Bee balm Monarda fistulosaBee balm Monarda didymaBlack-eyed Susan Rudbeckia hirtaBoneset Eupatorium perfoliatumButterfly weed Asclepius tuberosaCanada goldenrod Solidago canadensisCommon milkweed Asclepius syriacaCutleaf coneflower Rudbeckia laciniataJoe Pye weed Eutrochium maculatumLance-leaf coreopsis Coreopsis lanceolataMarigolds Tagetes patulaMountain mint Pycnanthemum sp.New England aster Symphyotrichum novae-angliaeShasta daisy Leucanthemum × superbumThread-leaf coreopsis Coreopsis verticillataWing stem verbesina Verbesina alternifoliamisc. goldenrods Solidago sp.misc. Asteraceae Asteraceae sp.

Vegetables

Asparagus beans PeasBeets Peppers – hot and sweet

Broccoli Pole beansBrussel sprouts Scarlet Runner beans

Bush beans SpinachCabbage Snow peasCollard greens Swiss chardCucumbers – bush and vining TomatilloKale Tomatoes – eating, cherries and paste

Lettuces Yellow squash

Onions Zucchini

Herbs

Basil

Borage

Cilantro

Dill

Garlic

Lemon grass

Oregano

Parsley

Sage

Thyme

Google Earth Feb. 15, 2015

road

pasture

woodlot

red = wildflower bedslight blue = housewhite = sun deck with

nesting platforms under itdark blue = garagebrown = vegetable gardensyellow = mint and shrub bedsblack = driveways

swamps = songbird housesb = barn owl boxesk = kestrel/screech

owl boxes

k

s

s/b

lawn

electric fence w/ wood posts

north

100’ downhill

slope

Nesting platform with a roof added earlier this year.

Next year:

The American Chestnut is coming back without our help.

presentation posted at:

http://www.slideshare.net/rtgardner3

https://independent.academia.edu/RichardTGardner

Contact information:

Richard Gardner

rtgardner3@yahoo.com

410.726.3045

We live in northern Berks County, PA.

Anyone who wants to visit us is welcome to.