Cincinnati Nature Center Blog
Blog Entries - tag: 'Landscaping'
It Starts with a Seed
Posted on: April 14, 2021
By Jeff Sperry, Director of Development and Marketing
I guess I was about 11 years old when I asked my parents if I could have a garden in our backyard. Inspired by my grandparents’ enormous vegetable garden on their dairy farm in Chautauqua County,
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Meet Olivia & Danie
Posted on: March 31, 2021
Olivia Espinoza: Natural Areas Manager & Burn Boss
It’s not often that you get to set something on fire to help it grow. But that’s just what Olivia Espinoza does as our Natural Area Manager when it comes to taking care of our fields and
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A Sunny Garden Flower Gone Awry
Posted on: February 24, 2021
by Danie Frevola, Conservation Apprentice
Yellow iris (Iris pseudacorus) is a stunning wetland plant with tall and showy yellow flowers (Fig 1.). While it is an attractive landscaping plant, it also peaks gardener’s interest because it can grow in a
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Shaun’s Yard
Posted on: May 7, 2020
A Practical Application of National Wildlife Federation’s Habitat Checklist
by Jason Neumann, Public Programs Manager
Suburban Blue Ash, early April. I had pulled out my lawnmower for the first grass cutting of 2020. Dressed to work in my old
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Turn Your Property into Better Habitat
Posted on: May 5, 2020
By Jeff Sperry, Director of Development and Marketing
I hate mowing the lawn. It’s noisy, messy, and smelly. Lawnmower motors are very loud; grass clippings get all over the place; and the fumes from the motor are noxious. My goal has been to
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Want Biodiversity? Feed the Soil
Posted on: April 27, 2020
by Jason Neumann, Public Programs Manager
It’s time to vent. After nearly 25 years on staff at Cincinnati Nature Center, there are a couple of things I want to clear up. For the record, I’m fully on board with the Nature Center’s
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The Myth of Groundcover
Posted on: April 16, 2020
by Jason Neumann
I didn’t plant it, but there it is at the bottom of my wood privacy fence: wintercreeper (Euonymus fortunei). As a naturalist, I know that this unwanted botanical surprise is courtesy of neighborhood birds that relieved themselves
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What’s (Probably) Growing in Your Yard: Our Bioblitz Round-Up
Posted on: April 15, 2020
By Connie O’Connor and Jason Neumann
We had a great time with our first-ever bioblitz—our Lawn Plant Identification Challenge! We totaled 349 observations of 175 different species in and around lawns in our region!
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Rethinking Your Lawn: A Guide to Living with Imperfection
Posted on: April 13, 2020
By Jeff Sperry, Director of Development and Marketing
There’s a reason the lawn treatment companies put little signs up saying “Stay Off the Grass for 24 Hours” when they finish a treatment. The chemicals they just sprayed all over
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The Story of My Land—Keeping a Phenology Journal
Posted on: April 9, 2020
By Connie O’Connor
“Every place, like every person, is elevated by the love and respect shown toward it, and by the way its bounty is received.” -- Richard Nelson
I bought my first home, hidden away on 3.6 acres of woodland,
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Brush Pile? It’s Habitat, Not Waste!
Posted on: April 8, 2020
By Jason Neumann, Public Programs Manager
My mother is fond of saying “you could sell a dirty oil rag.” Turning garbage into something of value has always been one of my favorite things to do. I’ve been pondering this as I pick up all the
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