New video from my YouTube page, showing some of the visitors to the Pasture Thistle (Cirsium discolor) in my yard. There are native thistles, and non-native thistles. This thistle is native to my region and provides a lot of value to wildlife.
The Xerces Society has a great guide about thistles on their website.
I recently came across an awesome show on PBS called “Untamed.” It’s an excellent educational program about issues related to nature and wildlife.
From the few episodes I’ve watched so far, I think they do a really good job of communicating about each topic in an understandable and relatable way. I’d highly recommend watching at least an episode.
The full list of episodes can be found on the PBS website. Or, there’s a playlist of some of the episodes on YouTube.
An episode in their third season that I’d recommend is “Conservation and Public Policy.” Or, there’s an episode in season two titled, “Creating Backyard Habitats for Wildlife.“
The need for conservation is an evergreen issue; the work is never over. Nature can’t speak for itself in our public policy forums, it’s up to us to speak and act on behalf of our natural world, to protect and conserve it. It’s in our own interest and the interest of every future generation to keep our natural world intact, which includes confronting climate change in a responsible way, so that future generations won’t bear the terrible cost of our inaction.
Okay, on a less serious note, here’s a turtle 🙂
New video of some of the damselflies that visit my yard and garden. They are always welcome guests. I love their adorable huge googly eyes.
All the footage and pictures were taken in my own yard. Another example of the biodiversity our yards can have (should have) if we just manage them differently. Feel free to share the video with anyone you think may enjoy it!
Time for a top ten list! How has it taken me this long to do a listicle?
As the title indicates, this list will be reasons why you shouldn’t be too eager to cut down your old plant stems and seedheads from spent flowers.
Let’s get counting!
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I think it’s an interesting question to ask ourselves, who the future belongs to. Does it belong to us, those currently alive on this planet? Or does it belong to the people who will actually be living in that future, who may not be alive yet? Shouldn’t we be stewards of the resources we have now, so that future generations still have them?
If something isn’t sustainable, renewable, or recyclable, is it stealing from the future?
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Earth Day. One day a year set aside specifically to celebrate the planet we live on and encourage us all to be better stewards of it.
A good place to get some perspective on our planet is from outer space. Let’s all put on our imagination caps and pretend for a moment that we’re astronauts. From outer space, we can see the entirety of the world. The blue ball that holds all of humanity. Everyone who has ever lived, lived on that planet. Our friends, family, and future generations. Sharing the planet with the rest of nature.
Read More »Let’s do the timelapse again!
Bunch of timelapse video clips from my garden. Timelapse can be a fun way to get an idea of how many pollinators are visiting flowers.
Welcome back to Big Little Ideas, and welcome to Insect Park.
(cue the Jurassic Park theme song)
Read More »This is a video I recently finished that I’ve been working on for a little while, and I’m going to talk about the work that went into it. If you haven’t yet, please take a brief part of your day to watch it. It’s only about eight minutes. If you enjoy it, please consider sharing with friends. Also, the bigger the screen you can watch it on the better.
Okay, now the boring part for anyone who’s interested. I’ll try not to be too long-winded 🙂
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Big. Little. Ideas.
Big as in large. Little as in small. Ideas as in those things inside your brain.Read More »
Conservation. To conserve something.
One planet that we all share. Whether you believe that human life evolved on Earth or that the Earth was given to humankind by God as our home, it doesn’t change the fact that we only have one. This is the same planet that our relatives lived on in decades and centuries past, and the same planet that our future descendants will live on.Read More »
My Nature Home 