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In My Backyard
How to practice responsible Land Management no matter the characteristics of your property.
By Nick Machinski
Part 7: My Goals
I’m back on track this month and as I promised a few months ago, here are my goals for my yard.  I’ll give a short explanation for each to disclose my reasoning behind each.

1. Plant a Garden
  • Given my post last month, this should be no surprise.  I’ve already got some seeds coming up in my pots (cold hardy of course) as well as some seeds I started in my house.  I already have plans for expanding the amount of area for additional plantings for either the fall or next year.
2. Inventory of plants and animals.
  • My neighbors behind me have a few bird feeders and I’m jealous about the number of birds they’ve been able to attract.  And my other neighbors have an oriole feeder which as seen some activity of late.  I can’t complain too much though, as I get to observe a wide variety of birds and I get to hear some lovely sounds.  However, I think adding some feeders or water to my yard will attract some over to my yard for a better view.  Plus, it is important to compliment the actions of others and to expand on an environment already conducive to attracting such wildlife.
3. Attract more birds
  • I love to learn.  I’ll read a book on just about anything.  And I would love to know what some of the plants are in my yard, as well as some of the birds I’m seeing.  I know a fair amount about the plants as well as most of the animals, but not quite all.  This will help me make better decisions about future projects I may install in my yard. 
4. Install a Rain Barrel
  • I love to learn.  I’ll read a book on just about anything.  And I would love to know what some of the plants are in my yard, as well as some of the birds I’m seeing.  I know a fair amount about the plants as well as most of the animals, but not quite all.  This will help me make better decisions about future projects I may install in my yard. 

There are other long-term goals that I have, which really depend on how long we stay in our current location:

  1. Thinning some of the trees that are planted too close together
  2. Installing a pollinator habitat
  3. Create a rain garden
  4. Install some edible landscaping

​Those long-term goals will also require some more research to find out if they are right for my yard (and to see if my Homeowner’s Association will allow some projects).  And honestly, some of the webinars I’ve been watching might be giving ideas I won’t be able to follow through on, but that is alright.   I’m going to start small though and see how far I get this year.  It’s likely I won’t get as far as I’d like, but that is just the way things are for now.  Goals are meant to be flexible anyways.


Washtenaw County Conservation District
(734) 302-8715
info@washtenawcd.org

​ 705 N. Zeeb Rd. Ann Arbor, MI 48103
Copyright 2020
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