Turn Your Yard Into a Wildlife Habitat

Anyone can turn their yard into a wildlife habitat. There are a few 'musts' when turning your yard into a habitat for nature's creatures. This article will list all those things needed to provide a great place for wild life in your yard! Turning your yard into a habitat is beneficial for you and your family, as well as all the wildlife in your area. With all the building going on these days, animals are having to find places to go, and those places are getting less and less.

To be able to call your yard a wildlife habitat, it must contain the following things: food sources, (such as native plants to your area), water, shelter, and also good gardening practice...such as mulching, using rain barrels, and using native plants.

If you already have, or are planning on providing all those things needed for a habitat, you can even certify your habitat. You can go to the National Wildlife Federations website, http://www.nwf.com, put wildlife habitat in the search bar when you get to the website, and register your habitat. There is a fifteen dollar fee, which also pays for a year membership to NWF. They will send you an 'official' kit as well.

My wildlife habitat consists of many things that both attract wildlife and also add beauty to my yard. I have a small pond in my yard that I built myself. Over the summer I had frog eggs laid in my pond on three separate occasions! (see photo) It was a wonderful experience to watch the eggs turn into tadpoles, and the tadpoles to frogs! I was able to share this experience with my son as well, which I felt was a wonderful learning experience for him.

I also have bird feeders, and houses, located in different areas of my yard. This attracts many different and beautiful birds. I have seen two different types of woodpeckers, pileted, ans red chested, (in fact they live in the dead pine tree in my yard) *see photo*, blue jays, cardinals, mocking birds, and doves, on a regular basis. Of course where there is birdseed, there are squirrels! I also provide corn for the squirrels, and special peanuts once in awhile.

My yard is also full of native, and other plants. I have a lot of butterfly plants, and have quite a few butterfly visitors as well. The plants not only provide food for some of the wildlife in my area, but also shelter.

Shelter is important. My yard actually has two huge oak trees that the birds love, as well as a few dead pine trees that the woodpeckers call home! I have also provided bird houses as well.

I mentioned bird baths which provide water for the birds and squirrels, and even the butterfly's if you have a very shallow bird bath. Of course the birds also love to bath in them as well!

Creating a wildlife habitat has many benefits. It's fun, it provides 'curb appeal', it's eco-friendly, ans it's a great way to ';give back' what commercial development had taken away from nature's creatures.

The National Wildlife Federation has a great program for anyone interested in turning their yard into a wildlife habitat. On top of the tips I have shared with you in this article, their website has a lot of great information as well, and you can 'officially' certify your yard on their site as well.

Take some time to enjoy your yard, and let nature's creature's enjoy it as well. It's a very rewarding experience!