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Over the weekend, I was explaining to a new acquaintance the work that Journeywork does. When I said that we help people replace their lawns with native plants, she added jokingly, "and save the world." And I laughed and said, "Yes, one plant at a time." On the one hand, our mission sounds tiny, even cosmetic. On the other hand, increasing biodiversity is one integral piece of building climate resilience--saving the world, as it were. An overwhelming task that Journeywork aims to make manageable. And fun!
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In April's newsletter I urged you to start somewhere and referenced my own yard with a bed full of hostas. After I dug out the hostas, which only ever offered a light lunch for our herd of deer, I replaced them with 24 plants that have been blooming for the last two months, providing late season food for pollinators. You can see some of the plants to the right: blue mistflower, white wood asters, zigzag goldenrod, and beautyberry. My yard is not the world, but it is a good chunk of the world to a native bee or a caterpillar, and our world needs so many more of them.
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Since April, Journeywork has planted 1,129
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native plants. The 44 households and congregations who registered for Pollinator Palooza will add 1,456 more next spring! The smiles and piles in the photos below represent joyful steps toward building healthy habitat. Once you start converting a bit of your lawn, it gets easier to keep going.
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Continue reading for local gardening updates, book recommendations, and a couple other gift ideas.
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Grateful to be on this journey with you,
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From our readers
Karen, one of our readers and a Pollinator Palooza registrant, sent us a photo of her sheet mulching progress. Way to go, Karen!
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Now is a terrific time to sheet mulch for spring planting. If you would like to practice before trying it out in your own yard, we have a great volunteer opportunity to remove some invasive species and sheet mulch on Sunday, November 19 from 1:30-3:30 in Lower Gwynedd.
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Thanks to Ed, another reader, who alerted us to this opportunity. Just in time for winter dreaming and planning, Morris Arboretum is offering a Less Lawn Lecture Series for five weeks starting November 7. Check it out!
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One Journeywork yard from July 1 to October 9
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This yard was featured in our July newsletter when it switched from vinca, liriope, and spiraea to native ironweed, coreopsis, butterfly milkweed, penstemon, liatris, Cherokee sedge, wild petunias, and amsonia. The photo at the top of this newsletter is a close-up of the Cherokee sedge and ironweed. The homeowners are enjoying their new fall colors and all the pollinator activity they have been seeing.
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Springfield Township Native Plant Garden Tour
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Rain did not keep people away from the native plant garden tour in Springfield Township on Saturday, October 14. This informative and bloom-filled event was organized by Non-Toxic Springfield, the Springfield EAC, and Springfield Bird Town. I really enjoyed chatting with Martin, Leah, Jared, and Cynthia in their yards and Zeta at the beautiful garden in Mermaid Park. Afterwards, attendees could purchase native plants at Calluna Plants and Gifts in Oreland. Thanks to Calluna for inviting me to talk with folks about native plants!
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Starting to think about gifts?
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Besides offering all kinds of beautiful gifts for plant-loving people, Calluna can provide the plants for Pollinator Palooza registrants who elected to get the free planting guide and source their own plants. Stop in for holiday shopping and come back in the spring for pollinator plants!
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If you are looking for some captivating winter reading--or some great gifts--here are two picks for kids and a variety of offerings for adults. She Held Her Breath in Wonder is a picture book about Maria Sibylla Merian, the seventeenth century painter and naturalist who first documented metamorphosis. It is beautifully illustrated by Samantha Holden and proceeds from its sale benefit Journeywork. The edition pictured above of Nature's Best Hope, Doug Tallamy's best-selling call to action for restoring our yards, empowers young readers to start planting. Camille Dungy's Soil is a moving and poetic multi-layered memoir of Dungy's efforts to add native plants to her Fort Collins yard before and during the pandemic. Lives of Weeds tells the stories of eight plants we consider weeds and what humans have done to make them even stronger. Native Shrubs for Northeast Landscapes is one of a trio of extremely useful guides published by the Wild Seed Project for shrubs, groundcovers, and trees. Leaning Toward Light collects a season's worth of poems about tending the earth and even includes some of the poets' favorite recipes for the food they grow.
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If Journeywork inspires you to sheet mulch, start seeds, or plant some native plants in your yard, please send us a picture! Let's celebrate and support each other!
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Our wish list
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Rubbermaid bins with lids for storing gloves and tools
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clean, gently used 5-gallon buckets
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