Nurture Native Nature

Creating Healthy Local Ecosystems

Welcome to Nurture Native Nature, a blog about my ongoing journey creating a wildlife sanctuary in my own small piece of our precious earth. Hopefully I can help

make it easier for you to do the same.

oakleaf hydrangea, chipola river ticksee

Why You Need to Remove Invasive Plants from Your Yard

I like to boast that there are no weeds in my rewilded yard – meaning there are no plants I don’t want growing in it. Some of my favorite...

ljmarkson

Jul 16, 20234 min read

Fire the Pest Control Company and Hire Nature

We once bought into the idea that we needed a pest control service to spray the perimeter of our home so palmetto bugs (a nice Southern...

ljmarkson

Jul 9, 20233 min read

Container Gardening for Biodiversity and Habitat

Using native plants in container gardens is a low maintenance and sustainable way to add biodiversity and create habitat in small spaces...

ljmarkson

Jul 2, 20234 min read

18 Edible Herb Flowers to Grow for People and Pollinators

I help take care of the two herb beds at my community garden with a goal make it more sustainable. When I took this on a couple years ago...

ljmarkson

Jun 30, 20237 min read

Native Pasture Thistle Drama

Last fall a thoughtful friend who somehow remembered my ongoing plant wish list brought me a native pasture/field thistle (Cirsium...

ljmarkson

Jun 18, 20234 min read

25 Dry Shade Tolerant Native Plants for a Southern Habitat Yard

Back in February I wrote about how having a section of sewer pipe replaced offered me an opportunity to replant a section of my rewilded...

ljmarkson

Jun 8, 20238 min read

Connecting Grey Treefrogs and Pokeweed to Sustainable Landscaping

A new game I like to play is drilling down on how even the smallest observation in my rewilded yard can connect back to the importance of...

ljmarkson

May 18, 20233 min read

Native Plants as Edging Plants

In the spring I’m often outside adding, moving, editing, and potting up plants until it’s so dark outside that I can’t see my hands. I’m...

ljmarkson

Apr 28, 20233 min read

Local Earth Day Activism Needs to be Every Day

The magical Earth Day event at Zonolite Park organized by hosts Steph Johnson and Josh Wayne raised awareness about protecting the...

ljmarkson

Apr 25, 20233 min read

Spring 2023 - Atlanta Native Plant Nurseries & Plant Sales

It’s the time of year for native plant fans to visit local native plant nurseries, pop-up seasonal sales, and plant swaps. I’ve written...

ljmarkson

Apr 4, 20235 min read

Organizations are Not People - A Cautionary Tale

I’m sharing the following lengthy and raw personal journey post in the context of helping others who want to help repair our natural...

ljmarkson

Mar 23, 202310 min read

The Value of Edible Native Plants in Public Spaces

The woodland restoration efforts at Zonolite Park can be summed up in four words - remove invasives, plant natives. Many native edibles...

ljmarkson

Mar 20, 20235 min read

Our Actions Have Amplified Cowbird's Impact

At the end of February, the when the red-winged blackbirds migrate North, their raucous noise is replaced by the gurgling murmur of a...

ljmarkson

Mar 18, 20232 min read

The Native Carolina Cherry Laurel Controversy

I recently watched a small flock of hungry cedar waxwings eat what berries (drupes) previous birds missed on my now blooming Carolina...

ljmarkson

Mar 14, 20234 min read

Children Care Deeply About Protecting Nature - Let's Nurture This

We pulled into our driveway from an outing and there was a mother with her 7-or 8-year-old daughter at our front door. The little girl...

ljmarkson

Mar 5, 20233 min read

Yard Restoration and the Battle to Remove Invasive and Non-native Plants

I often go outside to work in my yard with a plan of action yet end up doing something completely different. Recently, my idea was to...

ljmarkson

Feb 18, 20233 min read

S**t Happens - and Opens up Possibilities!

One of the main lessons in my daily guided meditation is how our suffering comes from not being able to align our inner expectations with...

ljmarkson

Feb 5, 20236 min read

Native Crossvine is a Habitat Plant

I thought crossvine (Bignonia capreolata) was indestructible. It climbs by tendrils then attaches to trees with even more with roots to...

ljmarkson

Feb 2, 20232 min read

Influencers Focus on the Positive to Help Protect Nature

January is a great month for reflection and learning. This past weekend I pushed my attention span a bit and spent a looong but...

ljmarkson

Jan 30, 20232 min read

Winter Sowing Native Plants

One of my ongoing goals as both a board member and programming and education co-chair of the Intown Atlanta GNPS is to help make adding...

ljmarkson

Jan 20, 20231 min read