MARK, CATHY, RAY, and KATE in FAIRFIELD, OHIO USDA ZONE 5 (-20F, -29C), AHS HEAT ZONE 6, on 1/3 acre NWF Backyard Wildlife Habitat #25845

In 1995 we decided to get rid of a large part of the back lawn and plant what would soon become our very own forest. We started with wildflowers, but soon graduated to prairie grasses and then to trees and shrubs. As our knowledge of native plants increased, so did the number of plants in our forest. At first we purchased plants, but concerned with preserving the local ecology, we soon began to grow plants from local seed. Please take a look around and see how we are doing. Most of the work has been in the backyard, but we are having fun with the frontyard too. You can look at the plants page for a description of what's growing, or the picturebook of photos taken around the yard. We have also collected some useful links to other interesting and educational sites. d:-) ** Please note that we no longer live in this house and I'm no longer updating these pages. Well except I did update the link to the Restoration & Reclamation Review at the University of Minnesota because you should visit it. :) -Mark **

click on an image to see a larger size

Screech owl in scarlet oak	Buckeye

Backyard | Frontyard | Plants | Picturebook | Links About | Site Index

Other local pages of interest: Birding in Cincinnati home of the Cincinnati Bird Club.

I am interested in Ecological and Habitat Restoration. Here are some related links: The Tallgrass Prairie in Illinois is a good place to learn about the prairie. Natural landscaping ideas from the Wild Ones Handbook. Grand Prairie Friends, good links to native plant info and book reviews. Restoration & Reclamation Review at the University of Minnesota. Learn about restoration projects at Chicago Wilderness . Ecological research at the Macphail Woods Ecological Forestry Project. Conservation Stewardship and Ecological Restoration at The Nature Conservancy. and some favorites: Content is king at Tom Clothier's Garden Walk and Talk.

Mark Stephens markstep22-byf at yahoo dot com Updated: Thursday, 17-Apr-2008 19:52:26 Eastern Daylight Time URL = http://backyardforest.org/index.html (Box)