J
🧵 continuing
Dappled light on a branch of a Dogwood tree in the understory at Wing Haven, a historical garden refuge for birds, created by Elizabeth Clarkson. (see 
️ for more)
The berries can be seen. They are eaten by robins, thrashers, dark-eyed juncos, bluebirds, the tufted titmouse, and more.
#PhotoMonday #PhotoMontag #WingHaven #Autumn #HabitatGardening #Gardening #BiodiversityGardening #Nature
We have been seeing bad news about the decline of insect populations. But building back some of that insect habitat is not difficult. And scientists say it's necessary!
If you have a garden, check out this simple organizer which will help you support any local butterfly population. I used an example from my garden.
It's in my new blog, Habitat Gardening
https://write.as/habitat-gardening/how-you-can-build-back-butterfly-habitat
Bonus seasonal tips and recommended resource.
Let's bring out more butterflies!
#HabitatGardening #BiodiversityGardening #Gardening #NativePlants #Nature #Environment
#WomensHistoryMonth
Two Elizabeths 🧵 3/3
Elizabeth Lawrence and Elizabeth Clarkson were contemporaries. They both lived in Charlotte when they made their biggest impact.
Perhaps the biggest surprise, though, is that they lived on the same street, not far from each other!
Both the properties have been joined now as the Wing Haven Garden & Bird Sanctuary.
Very soon, I will be visiting there and will post about that visit here as a continuation of this thread.
#WomensHistoryMonth
Two Elizabeths 🧵 2/3
Elizabeth Clarkson (1904-1988) helped found the Mecklenburg (County around Charlotte, NC) Audubon Society.
She kept a daily journal listing every species of bird she saw in her garden for years. In 1944, this information was compiled in "Birds of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County, North Carolina".
️ In 1948, Clarkson documents the effects of DDT on birds and succeeds in having the spray halted in Charlotte. The city eventually resumes spraying, but agrees to avoid her street. (It wasn't until 1962 that Rachel Carson wrote Silent Spring about the effects of DDT.)
In 1971, Clarkson forms the Wing Haven Foundation, Inc. to protect her garden and the birds that reside and visit there. A year later, the EPA bans DDT.
#WomensHistoryMonth
Two Elizabeths 🧵 1/3
Elizabeth Lawrence (1904-1985) was the first female graduate of the very first Landscape Architecture program ever taught in the South. She moved to Charlotte, NC already an award-winning author and practicing landscape architect, and started on her "living laboratory" to determine what grew well in the South. That research fed her writings for 35 years.
Among her numerous writings are over 700 columns for the Charlotte Observer. Five of her books remain in print. She received many awards.
The garden still exists. The layout and most of the plant material remains original to her.
In 2005, the Elizabeth Lawrence House & Garden is entered into the Archives of American Gardens with the Smithsonian Institute.
In 2006, the Elizabeth Lawrence House & Garden is entered in the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places.
She is regarded as one of three preeminent figures in the horticultural history of the Southeast, sharing this short list with Thomas Jefferson and J.C. Raulston. She is also listed among the top twenty-five gardeners of all time.