Ecology

Ever since Audrey and I started learning about birds and plants in order to develop our yard to attract more birds I have become increasingly interested in ecology, “the branch of biology that deals with the relations of organisms to one another and to their physical surroundings,” and in stewarding and developing the land we own.

The caretakers at Rock Creek Fellowship, the Tuckers, have been gardening for (evidently) a long time and have made the focus of their gardening and landscaping the planting and developing of native plant and tree species. Usually when I thought of native plants and trees I thought of unorganized, ugly, haphazard disorder. I suppose that’s what “wild” means 🙂 . Anyway, the Tuckers have been lending books to Audrey and me that make the idea of landscaping with “natives” very exciting (especially since they don’t take as much work to keep alive because they live in the area anyway 🙂 ). It’s essentially understanding the “habitat” around you and stewarding it to be more fruitful and beautiful – creating order out of the disorder 🙂

I think I have a much better understanding now of why you love to garden and landscape, Poppop! I’m thinking that “ecology” will become an official hobby for me (at the very least, and if it’s not contrary to the nature of a “hobby” to be “official”).

Another reason that I’ve become interested in ecology is realizing (through some of the Tuckers’ books and the ever-current discussion of global warming and the environment) how, as a general habit, humanity has not taken very good care of the earth we’ve been entrusted with. I want to be a good steward of the land it is in my power to steward.

If you’re interested, here are some of the very interesting books that the Tuckers have lent us (and through which I am SLOWLY reading):

• A Sand County Almanac, by Aldo Leopold
  (This was a very interesting read and what initially piqued my interest in ecology. I think it’s well worth the read)
• Noah’s Garden: Restoring the Ecology of our Own Back Yards, by Sara Stein
  (What I’m currently reading – very interesting. This was highly recommended to me by the Tuckers)
• Planting Noah’s Garden: Further Adventures in Backyard Ecology, by Sara Stein
  (contains some how-to stuff, but I haven’t ready it yet)
• Grow the Best Strawberries, by Louise Riotte
  (a little booklette)
• Gardening with Native Plants of the South, by Sally Wasowski
  (an exceedingly useful and informative book on native plants in our area. Audrey and I are using this book a lot in making a master landscaping plan)
• Stokes Nature Guides: A Guide to Bird Behavior, Volume I, by Donal Stokes
  (I’m looking forward to reading this one)