ENVIRONMENTAL AWARENESS
Environment-friendly ways to decorate for the Xmas holiday season
How many holiday decorations end up in overloaded landfills? Too many to imagine. For all you do-it-yourselfers, click here to learn how to make beautiful holiday decorations that, come the new year, wind up in your backyard compost bins, and not in our landfills.
The Best Way To Handle Fall Leaves
Wondering how to handle all of those colorful Autumn leaves beginning to cover your lawns? Click here to access this wonderful and informative article, written by Leslie Horn Peterson (with additional reporting by Olivia Gieger).
Monarch Butterflies and Milkweed
Did you know that Monarch butterflies only feed off milkweed leaves? Click here to learn the what, why and how of this amazing and important partnership.
Bird Migration Tracker
Heading into our New England fall foliage season, have you ever looked upwards and noticed flocks of birds soaring as one. Have you ever wondered where they were all heading. Click on the Essex County Massachusetts BirdCast Migration Dashboard to identify the bird species that head south during each of our autumn months, as well as their final destination.
Beech Leaf Disease
Beech leaf disease (BLD) is a newly described disease that causes damage to a tree’s leaves, leading to reduced vigor, and can eventually lead to tree mortality. BLD has been found in Massachusetts. Click on the links below for more detailed information regarding this environmental issue.
Beech Leaf Disease in Massachusetts
How Maine is currently treating their Beech Trees that are infected with BLD
Uh Oh … Spotted Lantern Flies Are Back
Click here to learn more about this serious issue in Massachusetts.
Alert: Box Tree Moth
June, 2024 : A Box Tree Moth Quarantine has been issued in Massachusetts. Click here to access important information regarding this serious environmental issue.
Composting Made Easy
Every gardener has heard about composting, but does everyone know what role it plays in a well-managed ecosystem? Turning so called “greens” and “browns” from the yard and house into “black gold” for the garden is a time-honored method of adding humus and essential microorganisms to the soil and improving the soil’s fertility, water-storing capacity and drought-tolerance.
Interested in learning more about composting? Click: Composting: Complete Guides for Success
Eco-Friendly Holiday Ideas
Organic Lawn Care
Are you using harmful chemicals on your lawn? A healthy lawn is a lawn that is free of pesticides, herbicides, insecticides and fungicides. It’s time to transition your lawn off of all harmful synthetic chemicals.
Click: Transitioning to Organic Lawn Care to learn how to turn your lawn into a lawn that is healthy for children, pets, and the entire ecosystem.
Jumping Worms
Jumping worms seems to have been invading New England. Click here to view a YouTube video about the Spread, Impact and Control of Jumping Worms. Please spread the word! We need everyone working to eliminate these beasts.
Neonics Are Hurting Bees and Other Living Things
By now, we have all heard about the dire die-off hitting many species of bees. Although some of this problem can be traced to mites, virus and fungal diseases and the loss of foraging habitat, much focus has been on NEONICOTINOIDs (“neonics”). These chemical pesticides began to be used in the 1990s on agricultural crops and on nursery plant materials (shrubs, trees, flowers, etc.). Since 1999, they have become the most used pesticides in the world.
Previous research suspecting toxicity has been confirmed: neonics pose both acute and chronic risk to aquatic life and birds and are highly toxic to bees. Because they are water-soluble, they can move through the environment to nearby plants and water bodies if applied as a drench, and they can drift to surrounding areas if sprayed. They can also persist for months and even years and can accumulate from one season to the next. Their action is systemic, so they reach into all parts of the plants including the pollen and nectar of flowering plants.
For the past few years, much attention has been focused on this issue in the US. A study in 2014 showed that 51% of pollinator (flowering) plants sold at Home Depot, Lowe’s and Walmart contained problematic levels of neonics. So, instead of helping the bees, butterflies and humming birds by bringing home pollinator/nectar plants, gardeners were unknowingly serving up toxic chemicals! The EU released a comprehensive assessment in March 2018 and is suspending the use of most of these neonics on agricultural and organic food crops. Canada has already instituted bans. Our EPA is dragging its feet: a January 2017 review with primary input from the chemical industry concluded neonics pose “no significant risk” and the EPA seems ready to reregister their use for another 15 years.
Due to pressure from Xerces, Friends of the Earth, other organizations and consumers, some progress is being made: Home Depot will phase out plants containing neonics this year, Lowe’s will phase them out by Spring 2019, and BJs did so in 2014. Maryland and Connecticut have banned retail sales of these pesticides, as has Dover, NH, Ogunquit, Maine and many other cities.
Backyard gardeners can help in several ways:
Avoid use of all pesticides around your home. Instead, seek out non-chemical alternatives
Ask your nursery if potted plants—especially species that support pollinators—have been treated with neonicotinoids. Do not buy. When possible, purchase organic plants.
Ask your local nursery to stop selling neonicotinoid products. Avoid products that include: imidacloprid (i.e. Merit), clothianidin, thiamethoxan, and acetamiprid.
Request that landscape and gardening companies not use pesticides on your property and ask them to plant organic plants.
Increase the pollinator habitat in your yard, including plants, water, and nesting areas.
If purchasing seeds for planting, make sure the seeds have not been coated with neonics.
Read up on the topic and actively advocate for regulations to limit/prohibit the use of these chemicals. Support research on organic alternatives.
Resources for more information:
Pollinator Plants for the Northeast—with pictures and growing information.
Attracting Native Pollinators---a wonderful resource book.
http://xerces.org/announcing-the-publication-of-attracting-native-pollinators/
How can neonics kill bees? Report.
http://xerces.org/neonicotinoids-and-bees/#
Beyond Pesticides Best newsletter for current regulatory information and action.
Pollinator plants.
http://www.xerces.org/bringbackthepollinators/
By: Maria Bartlett
Environmental Awareness Committee
Andover Garden CLub
Why Care About the Bee Crisis and How You Can Help
You may have noticed that there has been an increase in talk about bees in recent years. Statements are being made about how there is a very real and credible threat to their existence, with scientists, conservators, and agriculture experts in agreement. Multiple species are experiencing record decreases in population throughout the world, and the situation is bad enough that the European Union formally issued a ban on the usage of insecticides harmful to bees in 2013. Colony collapse disorder, which is a phenomenon that is basically wiping out entire hives with no clear cause, has slowed down since it began ten years ago but the rates are still alarmingly high.
As horrible as the situation is, many people do not understand why this is an issue that humans should care about. A significant portion of the environment and everything in it is tied to bees, and that includes people. Bees are pollinators who play a crucial role in agriculture and food production; fruits and vegetables, as well as honey and wax products, are major parts of our way of life. Around one-third of our food supply is dependent on pollinators like bees. So, if it’s on your plate and it came from a plant, you likely have bees to thank for it. Animals also get much of their food from plants that are pollinated by bees, so bees are indirectly responsible for your non-vegetable meals as well.
It’s not just food sources that depend on bees either. Plants that are not consumed also need pollination for things like reproduction and genetic diversity, which helps them exist. They also help create the beautiful landscapes that are found throughout nature. Do you like greenery and flowers? Ever enjoy the sight of a rose, lily, or a peony in full bloom? Bees, yet again. There is just so much that would not exist the way it does without their involvement and that is why it is so important to care that they are in grave danger.
So what can YOU do to try to help bees in their time of need? Quite a bit actually, and right from the comfort of your home, too! As of late, the easiest thing that anyone can do is plant bee-friendly plants in their yards and gardens. These often include flowers and herbs that are native to your area, which are going to be more comfortable and tolerant of the climate—and therefore will be noticeably durable compared to non-native species. The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation has lists of plants that are pollinator-friendly by state or region. You can also talk to experts at your local plant nurseries for advice and tips.
If you don’t have a green thumb or the space to host plants, you can still help out. You can put “bee baths,” little plates or shallow dishes of water, outside for bees to get a drink and cool down. You can volunteer with or donate to conservancy groups like The Honeybee Conservancy, the Pollinator Partnership, the Xerces Society (mentioned above), or a local group in your area. Habitats like bee blocks or hotels, which you can purchase or build yourself, can be put out for bees to move in and set up a colony. Just make sure that you give them enough real estate around the habitat so they’re not bothered. You can also support your local beekeepers by buying locally grown produce and honey when you go grocery shopping—check your local farmers’ market for a variety of fresh options.
We may see them as pests at times, but in reality, bees are key to human survival. The time is now for us to show them our appreciation by helping them thrive again!
By: Clara Beaufort
Gardenergigs.com
clara@gardenergigs.com
SLOW MOW SUMMER
Are you interested in learning about ways to mow your lawn in the summer that is both helpful to pollinators and will improve your lawn’s resilience? The Sierra Club suggests following the Slow Mow Summer technique. Click here to read all about it.