Attracting Wildlife

2020 Gwynne Conservation Area Farm Science Review Presentations

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Hello Wild Side Readers!

Next week is Farm Science Review (FSR), one of the largest farm shows in the country, hosted by the Ohio State University and the College of Food, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. Monday through Thursday usually finds me at the show on the Gwynne Conservation Area, which is down the road from the Molly Caren Agricultural Center, the site of FSR.

Among many activities, the Gwynne typically hosts a series of professionals talks geared towards farmers, woodland owners, and other landowners about conservation and natural resources management. This year, FSR is virtual, and so all 45 talks planned for 2020 at the Gwynne are now moving to an online platform!

Check out the full schedule of talks here.

I’ve also added a short tutorial below on how to watch the talks from your computer or other device, starting Sept. 22, 2020. Please reach out to me in the comments below if you have any questions. I hope you enjoy the show!

How to access Gwynne Conservation Area talks during 2020 FSR:

  1.  Go to fsr.osu.edu and click on ‘Conservation’
  2.  Create a ‘My Show Planner’ Account (don’t skip this step!)
  3.  Click on ‘Home’ and search for keyword ‘Gwynne’
  4.  A list of the Gwynne subject matter areas should appear (i.e. ‘Gwynne Forages and Grazing Education‘, ‘Gwynne Woodland Educations’, etc.). Click on each subject matter to get to the list of scheduled talks.
    • You can add the scheduled talks to your ‘My Show Planner’ in order to easily find the talks you want to watch the next time that you sign in. Talks can be added to your ‘My Show Planner‘ now!
  5.  Under each scheduled talk, there will be a link. Click on the link to watch a video of the talk. For the ‘live sessions’ the link will take you to a zoom meeting room.

For more information on FSR 2020 and how to navigate the vitual show site, visit the links below:

Farm Science Review 2020 – Free and Online

Full Schedule of ALL the talks going on during FSR 2020

Navigating the FSR virtual show site

 

Marne Titchenell

Wildlife Program Specialist

Butterflies, Hummingbirds, and More: If You Build It, They Will Come

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Hello Wild Side Readers!

Summer is here and if you are anything like me, you are enjoying the birds and butterflies visiting your backyards and landscape. If backyard landscaping for hummingbirds and butterflies is on your to-do list this year, the below resources are for you! I’ve posted several plant lists for hummingbirds and butterflies, as well as additional fact sheets and online resources.

What to Plant for Hummingbirds:

Many of the above plants will also be visited by butterflies. Remember to aim for continuous blooms throughout the growing season. Here is a suggested (but by no mean all inclusive) list of plants by their bloom times.

And finally, here is a double-duty list of trees and shrubs for both birds and butterflies:

Additional Resources:

Ways to get involved:

If you want more information on landscaping with native plants for birds other than hummingbirds, check out this article.

Enjoy those flutters and fliers!

Marne Titchenell

Wildlife Program Specialist

Landscaping for Birds Resources

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Hello Everyone,

Recently, I gave a webinar for Ohio Master Gardener Volunteers (MGVs) on Landscaping for Birds. The webinar can be viewed here if you are interested. (We did have a few technical difficulties in the beginning of the webinar, apologies, so feel free to skip to the 4 mins and 15 second mark to avoid it.) I promised to post the plant lists I had in the presentation, so here they are!

Landscaping for Birds – MGV Webinar – April 2020 – plant list slides

Also, here are links to the other resources I referenced in my presentation:

OSU Fact Sheet: Native Landscape for Wildlife

OSU Fact Sheet: Backyard Enhancement for Wildlife

Penn State’s Landscaping for Wildlife: Trees, Shrubs, and Vines

Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center (info on native plants and wildlife uses)

The Ohio Woodland Stewards Program

eBird Animated Abundance Maps

ebird Explore Data (this is where you can see where birds are during the year)

ODNR, Division of Wildlife Publications (Click on ‘Living with Wildlife’)

Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s All About Birds (for great info on NA birds including songs and calls)

Project Feeder Watch (info on feeding birds)

Audubon Guide to NA Birds

Information on Managing House Sparrows in Nest Boxes

Management Guides to Manage Birds in Small and Large Forest Patches

I hope you all enjoyed the webinar. Thank you so much for attending!

Marne Titchenell

OSU Extension, Wildlife Program Specialist

Gray Catbird