 Our last event before our monthly programs begin is our annual plant sale. More information is in the article below.
Save the dates for our 2014-2015 programs Mark your calendars for all our programs from September through April (except for December).
Our meetings are held the last Sunday of each month at 2:00 pm at Liverpool Public Library. And they're all free and open to the public, so bring a friend or two!
Our first program is Sept. 28 "Make sure your landscape is well-grounded" by Janet Allen
You've probably heard about the usual "layers" in the landscape: the tall canopy trees, the shorter understory trees, the shrubs, and the herbaceous plants. But the most important layer is the ground layer: the soil itself and everything in and on it. Learn how we can be good stewards of this important part of our landscape and the Earth itself.
Janet Allen, President, HGCNY
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Our native plant sale Sept. 13
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 | Flowering raspberry
(Rubus odoratus) |
The annual HGCNY plant sale will be held on Sat., Sept. 13 from 9:30 am to noon. Plants not sold on Saturday will be available on Sun., Sept. 14 from 1 pm to 3 pm. Location: At the Allens ( directions). We will have an assortment of plants from The Plantsmen, Amanda's Garden, and Maple Hill Landscaping in addition to plants donated by HGCNYers. Plant requests
Thank you for your plant requests.
We cannot accept any more requests for herbaceous plants, but you can still order shrub and tree seedlings from White Oak Nursery.
Special note on shrub and tree seedlings Tree and shrub seedlings will also be available ONLY by ordering in advance only until Sept. 3. These pre-orders will be available at the sale on Saturday. To see what shrubs and trees are available go to www.whiteoaknursery.biz and click on "Potted Seedlings". To cover the additional costs of the container and delivery and as a small contribution toward the cost of our monthly programs, our price will be $5 more than the price listed on the White Oak Nursery website. To order the seedlings, email John listing the name of the tree or shrub, the number you want, and the price, i.e. the White Oak Nursery price + $5. (And if you have White Oak Nursery pots from last year, bring them along and Jim will credit us for them!) If you're not able to pick them up during the plant sale on Sept. 13 or 14, indicate that you need to arrange another time/date. Plant donations
If you have plants to donate, you can bring them between 8 am and 9 am the day of the sale . Please label the plants with the name of the plant. (The scientific name would be useful, but it's not required.)
People who bring plants between 8 am and 9 am on the day of the sale will have the opportunity to buy plants prior to the 9:30 am starting time. Contact John if you want to bring plants before Sept. 13. Thank you for participating in our plant sale! It not only gets native plants planted in CNY to benefit both people and wildlife, but also funds this newsletter, our programs, and other projects!
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| Sara Stein: Helping or hindering our garden? |
But I realize now that to help one's garden overmuch is to hinder it.
I must have been living in another world when I wrote, only a few years ago and with considerable satisfaction, of the view from my window of our gardens "bare to their bones, neat and clean, nicely edged, weed-free."
Now I see that there is teeming life down there that, neatly and cleanly, I was starving. Why was I not replacing in their beds the limp bodies of weeds I had uprooted? What was I doing cutting flowers to the ground, raking them away, bagging grass clippings, blowing autumn leaves from underneath the hedge?
I was robbing the life savings from my garden beds, exposing them to the elements to leach their lifeblood away. logistically coordinated.
~ Sara Stein, Noah's Garden: Restoring the Ecology of Our Own Back Yards, 1993, pp. 134-135
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Top berry shrubs for birds
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 | | Silky dogwood berries, beautiful shade of blue and quite prolific |
Cornell's YardMap has created lists of the "Top Five Great Berries for Great Birds" for each region.
The great berries for the Northeast
Common Elderberry (Sambucus nigra ssp. canadensis)
Fruits are favored by many birds, such as the cedar waxwing, and are rich in carbohydrates and protein, which is important for migrating songbirds.
Common Serviceberry (Amelanchier arborea)
Produces berries early in the growing season when fruit is scarce. Berries are high in carbohydrates and protein. Fruits are usually eaten as soon as they ripen by dozens of bird species, such as catbirds and robins.
Silky Dogwood (Cornus amomum)
High-fat berries are an important food source for migratory and wintering birds. (The photo above is a current photo; berries are ripening now.) It's also a host plant for spring azure and summer azure butterflies.
Southern Arrowwood (Viburnum dentatum)
Fruits have a high fat, carbohydrate, and protein content, making them very valuable to migratory songbirds that need sustenance to complete their long journey, as well to birds overwintering in areas where insects are not available. (Note: Unfortunately, this species of viburnum is highly susceptible to the viburnum leaf beetle, which can kill the plant. Read more about the viburnum leaf beetle...)
Spicebush (Lindera benzoin)
Berries are packed with protein and fat. These nutritious fruits are consumed by many birds, such as the mockingbird and robin, and are especially important for migratory birds. It is also, of course, a host plant for the spicebush swallowtail butterfly.
Read more about these plants at YardMap at
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2014 Native Plant Shopping Guide
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 Our 2014 Guide has the same general format as our previous Guides with a few new codes:
- F indicates Pesticide-Free plants - BB indicate plants especially good for bumble bees. Both qualities are important. Click on the photo above or HERE to download the entire Guide as one .pdf file. OR you can download any or all of the parts separately for printing. Here are the THREE PARTS of this guide: If your computer downloads the files, but you don't know where they are, look in your browser settings to find your Downloads folder. Still having trouble? Contact us and we'll email the .pdf file to you directly. The Introduction section Whether or not you print it out, please read the Introduction for Shopping Tips, contact information for the vendors and other helpful information. We recommend that you CALL AHEAD before you set out on your shopping trip! Confirm the hours the nurseries are open and confirm that your selected plants are currently in stock. What is available in May, for example, may not be available in July. Call ahead to avoid disappointments and wasted gas! Thank you for patronizing our local native plant nurseries. Supporting these nurseries is an important way to grow the native plant movement. |
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NEW! A Little Naturalist Backpack Program at Baltimore Woods
Preschoolers and their families can explore Baltimore Woods through activity-based backpacks available for sign out at the Interpretive Center.
Preschoolers will receive a prize after completing all five backpack activities to become a Little Naturalist!
Free to the public.
Call the Woods at
(315) 673-1350 for details.
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Green Lakes St. Park
Sun., Sept 14
2:00 pm - 4:00 pm
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Black cherry berries
(Prunus serotina)
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A tree identification program led by Biologist Mike Fishman.
Meet at the Community Center.
Free with park admission. |
Beaver Lake Nature Center Sat., Sept 13
The NY Flora Association is sponsoring a Bark ID Workshop with the author of BARK, Michael Wojtech (see knowyourtrees.com)
To register go to:
Hurry! Space is limited! |
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FREE Tree Planting & Care Seminars
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Fri. Sept. 12
9:30 - 11:30 am
At Catholic Charities
1654 W. Onondaga St
or
Sat. Sept. 13
10:00 - 12:00 noon
Southwest Community Center
401 South St.
You will learn:
* proper planting techniques
* how to protect saplings
* how to care for and prune plants
* the important role of urban trees and forests
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 Baltimore Woods
Wed. Sept. 24 and
Sat. Sept. 27
10:30 - 11:30 am
Humans have used "sit spots" for centuries to uncover nature's secrets and find inspiration for daily life.
This program will teach you how to find your own sit spot, and help you learn to be still and observe the unfolding secrets of nature.
Call (315) 673-1350 to register. $5 members
$8 non-members
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The Honorable Harvest: Indigenous Knowledge and Conservation
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 | | Robin Kimmerer |
Wed., Sept. 24, 7:30 pm at the Gateway Center
(Directions)
Admission to the lecture and reception if FREE and open to the public.
Parking will be available on campus.
In 2014, we commemorate the 100th anniversary of the extinction of the passenger pigeon as Professor Kimmerer shares insights from indigenous environmental ethics on species conservation. Dr. Kimmerer, author of Braiding Sweetgrass and Gathering Moss, will sign copies of her books after the talk. Her books will be sold from 6:00 to 7:15 pm at the ESF Bookstore in the Gateway Center prior to her talk, and for an hour after her talk.
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Since HGCNY is a chapter of the national organization Wild Ones, when you become a member of Wild Ones, you're automatically a member of HGCNY, too. And since Wild Ones is an official not-for-profit, your membership is tax-deductible.
It's easy to become a member, receive the bimonthly Wild Ones Journal, and support our mission.
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As more of us participate on our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/hgcny, this will become a useful resource for asking (and answering!) local HGCNYers' questions about habitat gardening.
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 Visit Our Habitat Garden website for information on providing habitat, earth-friendly gardening practices, plants, and various creatures here in Central New York. |
Visit Our Edible Garden website to see an example of a local vegetable and fruit garden. An edible garden is a perfect complement to your habitat garden.
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