This year we’re starting a “plant of the year” feature where we select one special Maine native plant to highlight for our season. We’re pleased to introduce Maine Audubon’s debut �Bringing Nature Home� Plant of the Year, Rudbeckia Laciniata. Also known as Cutleaf Coneflower, it is a stunning wildflower that is native to Maine. It […]
Maine Native Plants
Spring Garden Thoughts and an Announcement!
Springtime, officially beginning on the vernal equinox, has arrived. Our days are now officially longer than nights, and the birds of Maine are letting us know with their songs. As the temperatures rise and the soils warm, germination and growth of our native plants begins.� Historically, with abundant precipitation in the months from April to […]
Bringing Nature Home News: 100 Resilient Yards Project
Maine Audubon’s Bringing Nature Home is pleased to announce an exciting partnership with the City of South Portland on a new initiative, 100 Resilient Yards. Focused on revitalizing South Portland, one yard or home at a time, the program will provide technical expertise and resources to residents and/or businesses in order to promote the transformation […]
Use these tools to make a master plan for your landscape
It�s February in Maine, and there�s nothing like a good snowfall to remind us of our connection to nature. Whether you�re ready for spring or pining for more snow, all gardeners can relate to the warmth that comes from dreaming of the coming growing season. While we�re still a few months away from the action, […]
Native Plants for Winter Finches
By planting or encouraging native woody plants in your yard, you can attract these winter visitors.� The arrival of �winter finches� is one of the most anticipated events in winter birding. Several species, including Evening Grosbeaks, Pine Siskins, and Common Redpolls, move southward in winter in search of food. These movements are known as �irruptions�, […]
Raising Awareness About Neonics In Maine
Maine Audubon is working with experts and activists to find avenues to pesticide policy reform. Neonicotinoids, or neonics for short, are some of the most widely used and promoted pesticides on the planet. They kill insects, all of them, and are sprayed from planes, coated on seeds, and otherwise broadcast throughout virtually every cultivated (i.e., […]
December is the perfect time for growing Maine native plants from seed
�Though I do not believe that a plant will spring up where no seed has been, I have great faith in a seed. Convince me that you have a seed there, and I am prepared to expect wonders.�� �Henry David Thoreau� Does it seem a little cold and early for sowing seeds? While that may […]
Spread the Love of Native Plants
As we report and gear up for late fall and early winter, we often remind folks that fall is the best time to start your own native plants from seed (read about the importance of fall and winter seed dormancy and dispersal here). Maine native plants are beneficial and beautiful, and growing your own from […]
Native plant update: it’s time for dormancy and seed dispersal
September 1: Welcome to fall! October 1: Welcome to fall! November 1:Welcome to fall!�� November 14 . . . 15 . . . Ok, now. It finally feels like fall in Maine! As the climate changes, our growing season changes with it. Historically, gardeners would bid goodnight to their plants by early October. More recently, […]