Conservation News: Money available to turn yards over to pollinators

Have you heard the buzz? The Carlton Soil and Water Conservation District has been busy helping community members plant pollinator habitat in their backyards.

Carlton SWCD recently held its first-ever Native Plant Kit sale, breaking the record of any sale of its kind. Local community members purchased 194 native plant kits geared to several different purposes including attracting monarch butterflies, pine mulch, rain gardens and, the most popular, pollinator kits. Residents came from as far away as Two Harbors and Pine City to do their part in planting native grasses, flowers and sedges. Due to high demand, Carlton SWCD will be holding another native plant sale in the coming months, so stay tuned.

If you're thinking to yourself that you'd like to do a pollinator planting but do not have the technical expertise or the funds to do it, look no further. The Carlton SWCD, partnering with The Xerces Society and the Oldenburg Arts and Cultural Community has funds from Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources' Lawns to Legumes program to help 30 residents of Carlton County and the Fond du Lac Reservation pay up to 100 percent of their project costs. Habitat options include "pollinator pocket" plantings, rain gardens, shoreline plantings and native flowering shrubs. Carlton SWCD staff will assist you through every step of the way - from selecting a project and preparing your site, planning and purchasing plants, and planting.

SWCD will also provide pesticide-free maintenance advice for your habitat, and invasive species identification and control strategies for your property to ensure your native planting project is successful. Participants will be asked to sign the Xerces Society Pollinator Protection Pledge, by which they commit to the following four simple steps: grow pollinator-friendly flowers, provide nest sites, avoid pesticides and spread the word.

Native grasses and wildflowers provide critical habitat for bees, butterflies, songbirds and many other types of wildlife that use the vegetation for shelter and food. Low-cost, low-maintenance native plantings do not require fertilizing or regular mowing or irrigation, and have a very positive effect on the soil. In fact, their extensive fibrous root systems, which can grow 15 feet deep, reduce erosion, restore soil health, and filter runoff before it enters our streams and lakes.

These plantings will contribute to the northeast Minnesota Bee Friendly Corridor, which connects our region's beekeepers, naturalists, gardeners, farmers and food producers, as well as local artists who highlight the importance of pollinators in our lives. Community organizations such as Cloquet Memorial Hospital and Inter-Faith Care Center in Carlton have joined in and planted their own pollinator habitat for patients and residents to enjoy.

Do your part and take advantage of the first of its kind pollinator program. To schedule a remote site visit or ask a question, please call me at 218-384-3891 or email [email protected].

Writer Alyssa Alness is a conservation technician at Carlton SWCD. Contact her at 218-384-3891 or [email protected].