backyard

Workshop: Gardening is for the Birds

Submitted by Jessie_NC on Mon, 04/02/2012 - 10:32am

Location

Spadina Road Library
10 Spadina Road
Toronto, ON M5R 2S7
See map: Google Maps
Date: 
Thursday, April 12, 2012 - 7:00pm

Create well designed gardens with year-round beauty and songbird appeal! Strategically choose and arrange plants, feeders, nesting boxes, and water sources to provide the essential elements of life for songbirds in your garden.

Presented by Toronto and Region Conservation: www.trcastewardshipevents.ca/

To register, contact Cynthia Brown at cbrown@trca.on.ca

12 Ways to Make Your Backyard Bird-Friendly

Submitted by Kat_NC on Fri, 08/12/2011 - 11:43am

Birds link us to the natural world every day of the year -- even in the most urban settings. Birds do so much for us. They keep our ecosystems running smoothly by controlling rodents and insect pests, scavenging wastes and pollinating plants. And there’s much to be learned by getting out the binoculars and watching common birds.

As our best-known group of living things, birds are easy to identify and count. The results, over time, show us where our environment is not what it used to be, and when the decline (or improvement) started happening.

Category: 
Backyard Adventures

WormWatch

Submitted by Kat_NC on Fri, 08/12/2011 - 9:53am

You can watch an earthworm but it can’t watch you. That’s because it doesn’t have eyes. It doesn’t have ears to hear you, or a nose to smell you or hands to hold you. But you have all of those and that means you can be a WormWatcher.

Earthworms are nature’s great recyclers. They munch on debris, leave behind wonderful nutrients and make sure that the water reaches the roots of plants.

Category: 
NatureWatch

Connect with Nature: Get Out and Garden

Submitted by Kat_NC on Thu, 05/19/2011 - 6:00am

What will you be doing this weekend? Opening up the cottage? Visiting a national park? How about staying closer to home and getting out into the garden?

The May long weekend traditionally marks the start of gardening season in most parts of Canada. The danger of frost has passed and the soil has had a chance to dry out from the winter melt and spring rain. Where to start with 3 days of gardening bliss ahead?

Tags: 
backyard
gardens
nature
spring
yard

Connect with Nature: Prepare Your Yard for Winter Birds

Submitted by Kat_NC on Thu, 12/02/2010 - 6:00am

Birdwatching is a wonderful way to connect with nature, and winter offers us many opportunities to watch our feathered friends. Get your yard or balcony ready for birds this winter, and enjoy the show!

Provide cover. Birds need shelter from harsh weather conditions, and vegetation in your yard will help to furnish it. Don’t prune back dead vegetation like vines and stalks – these provide both valuable winter cover and nesting material for birds in the spring.

Tags: 
backyard
birds
winter
yard