KENT, Conn.—Marvelwood School has successfully created a Certified Wildlife Habitat through its Garden for Wildlife movement, according to a National Wildlife Federation (NWF) press release.
Kym Zwick, Marvelwood’s garden manager, was inspired by the school’s long history of wildlife preservation and research. Redesigning the garden to make it more inviting to wildlife gives students and faculty an additional opportunity to support the school’s efforts in preservation, and to share the beauty of the natural landscape with those passing by.
With the addition of new native perennials such as yarrow, milkweed, coreopsis, echinacea, phlox, and rudbeckia, the garden is alive with wildlife not seen before. The garden is pesticide-free and Zwick uses only natural fertilizers.
Every Certified Wildlife Habitat garden provides natural sources of food, water, cover, and places to raise young and is maintained in a sustainable way that incorporates native plants, conserves water and doesn’t rely on pesticides.
Started in 1973, the Garden for Wildlife movement is the nation’s oldest and largest native plant/habitat program, recognizing more than 300,000 Certified Wildlife Habitat gardens across North America and at 39 embassies worldwide, encompassing an estimated 4 million acres that support local wildlife.
Backyards, urban gardens, school grounds, businesses, places of worship, campuses, parks, farms, zoos, and community landscapes can all be recognized as wildlife habitats through the program.
“Marvelwood School has a long history of wildlife preservation and research,” said garden manager Kym Zwick. “Redesigning our garden to make it more inviting to wildlife not only gives our students and faculty an additional opportunity to support our efforts in preservation but also provides the beauty of the natural landscape for those passing by. With the addition of new native perennials, such as yarrow, milkweed, coreopsis, echinacea, phlox, and rudbeckia, our garden has come alive with wildlife we hadn’t seen before.”
The garden uses no pesticides and only natural fertilizers and mulch from local farms, which also reduces water usage and soil erosion.
Participants who have their wildlife habitat garden certified receive a personalized certificate with a unique habitat number, a one-year membership to NWF with a subscription to National Wildlife magazine, a subscription to the Garden for Wildlife e-newsletter, the exclusive right to post a Certified Wildlife Habitat yard sign and $5 off native plants at www.gardenforwildlife.com.
For more information on NWF’s Garden for Wildlife movement and how to qualify to have a garden space recognized as a Certified Wildlife Habitat, visit www.nwf.org/garden.
Native plant collections for areas defined by zip codes can be ordered at www.gardenforwildlfe.com.