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

Flowering Spurge is an Overlooked Native Plant

I just realized the summer is disappearing and I haven’t shared much about the native plants growing in my little wildlife sanctuary...

ljmarkson

Sep 3, 20212 min read

A Successful Pollinator Garden is Messy

OR Did You Really Plant That Pollinator Garden for Pollinators? Starting in early spring a 5 year old pollinator garden at the entrance...

ljmarkson

Aug 25, 20214 min read

Hummingbirds and Windows

Drama unfolded in my small semi-urban rewilded yard recently when two ruby-throated hummingbirds, probably engrossed in a territorial...

ljmarkson

Aug 16, 20212 min read

Robber Flies are Ferocious Insect Hunters!

Yesterday, when a robber fly landed on my backdoor window I felt like it wanted to say hi and have its picture taken because it...

ljmarkson

Jul 31, 20212 min read

My Moth Week Miracle

There seems to be a special place in all secular and religious belief systems for the idea that things happen for a reason. A few days...

ljmarkson

Jul 26, 20213 min read

Have You Seen a Non-Native Adventive Sculptured Resin Bee In Your Yard?

A couple weeks ago I was excited to see a giant bee I had never seen before pollinating my clustered mountain mint (pycnanthemum...

ljmarkson

Jul 18, 20213 min read

Pollinators Can't Resist Native Mountain Mint Flowers!

Clustered or short-toothed mountain mint (pycnanthemum muticum) is by far the most popular plant in my yard right now. All day long it is...

ljmarkson

Jun 29, 20214 min read

Be Greedy About Supporting Wildlife in Your Yard!

OR How to optimize the habitat value of your yard. In his book Nature’s Best Hope Doug Tallamy explains how “greedy” he is when it...

ljmarkson

Jun 20, 20213 min read

Coexisting With Snakes In Your Atlanta Yard

Despite making my yard welcoming for wildlife, I still can't control what happens outside the safety of my sanctuary. The long list of...

ljmarkson

Jun 11, 20216 min read

Why I'm a Fan of Common Native Plants

The traditional gardening world often fetishizes exotic and rare plants. The latest trends trickle down to homeowners. Big box and...

ljmarkson

May 9, 20213 min read

Add a Mini Nature Center to Your Wildlife Habitat Yard

OR How I created the Homestead Nature Center with a little help from my family As restorative as my naturescaped yard is for the...

ljmarkson

Apr 26, 20213 min read

Atlanta Area Spring 2021 Native Plant Sales and Nurseries

Last spring most of the spring native plant sales vanished because of the pandemic. This spring a little normalcy has returned, but...

ljmarkson

Apr 5, 20215 min read

Dear Neighbor: Your Mosquito Control is Environmentally Hostile

Spring in Atlanta means the return of the war on insects. If I combined everyone in my area into one person, this is the snarky letter...

ljmarkson

Mar 26, 20214 min read

You Can Only Have a Native Violet Bouquet if You Grow It

Non-native roses are widely admired. Native violet’s value is underestimated. But if you grow violets in your yard. Nature will be...

ljmarkson

Mar 22, 20212 min read

We Can Teach Our Children How to Interact with Nature One Squirrel, Earthworm and Ladybug at a Time

OR Teaching Our Children How to Appreciate Nature Using the Peter Parker Principle. I was in earshot of hearing a neighbor’s young child...

ljmarkson

Mar 16, 20213 min read

Squirrels: Ambassadors for Coexisting with Nature in Our Yards

Our house is our human nest but once we step outside, we share space with wildlife. Just because we’ve destroyed habitats to build our...

ljmarkson

Mar 11, 20213 min read

The Daffodil Dilemma in My Wildlife Sanctuary

In early spring my yard becomes a carpet of naturalized daffodils thanks to the hundreds of bulbs I strategically planted years ago. So...

ljmarkson

Mar 7, 20213 min read

Clean Bird Feeders = Healthy Birds

I don’t want to be the reason a bird gets sick or even dies so I’m diligent about keeping my bird feeders clean. A dirty feeder can host...

ljmarkson

Mar 1, 20214 min read

There's a Certification For Every Kind of Eco-Friendly Yard!

Whether you consider your yard a pollinator habitat, native plant habitat, wildlife sanctuary, wildlife habitat, green landscape, native...

ljmarkson

Feb 23, 20215 min read

Reasons to Certify Your Naturalized Yard

In the summer when everything is at their peak countless people walking by smile and warmly thank me for my magical and exuberant yard...

ljmarkson

Feb 17, 20213 min read