Bugs Butterflies Birds Blooms

Celebrate life on a different plane as you stitch these cheery designs that will bring a smile to your face as you complete them. The smiles will continue as others see your finished projects. Bugs that aren't scary, birds that won't fly south for the winter and blooms that won't wilt or fade.

Learn to identify the butterflies you see, and find out what to plant in your garden so they visit you at home! Butterflies are likely the most popular insects in the entire insect class. With their large, brightly colored wings and beneficial pollinator roles in the ecosystem, it's no wonder they have such a big fan base amongst their human observers. But for anyone who's ever wondered which exact butterfly it is that they're admiring, there's a new resource with all the answers: the Butterflies Backyard Guide. Replete with more than fifty of the most common butterflies in North America, the book is a fully illustrated guide that makes it easy to identify these fragile winged insects. Each butterfly in the book is presented on a two-page spread with images and facts about the butterfly, as well as tips for what gardeners can plant in order to attract that particular butterfly to visit their backyards. Other information provided for each butterfly includes: size, lifespan, habitat, diet, range, predators, and reproduction. Butterflies Backyard Guide is organized by major butterfly type, so readers can easily flip open the guide and zero in on the facts about the specific butterfly they're identifying. Keep this guide close at hand for a quick analysis of the iridescent butterflies you see floating from flower to flower. You'll be pointing out Monarchs, Eastern Tiger Swallowtails, and Common Buckeyes before you know it.

Twirling in the Woods is a joyous celebration of the bond between blooms, birds, bugs - and people. While the traditional haiku has been revered for hundreds of years, these short poems reflect a vibrant, fresh, version of haiku - with a subversive twist - to offer you a new and exciting way of looking at the natural world.In the spirit of haiku, Magda Santos dives into the heart of her own playful relationship with Mother Nature: walking in the woods, visiting with raccoons, blue herons, crows, ladybugs and twining ivy, spending time with dragonflies and butterflies. And she wants to share it with you.With Magda as your guide you'll see things outdoors that you missed before: blooms, birds, and bugs that zing, buzz, rustle, flap, and splash. Twirling in the Woods will delight you with humorous, sassy, surprising, insightful, snappy little poems.So, come Twirling in the Woods with Magda and see what you can see.

A colorful guide covering the basics of replacing a traditional lawn with a wide variety of easy-care, no-mow, drought-tolerant, money-saving options that will appeal to today's busy, eco-conscious homeowner. Americans pour 300 million gallons of gas and 1 billion hours every year into mowing their lawns, not to mention 70 million pounds of pesticides and $40 billion for lawn upkeep. No Wonder the anti-lawn movement is thriving, as today's eco-conscious consumers realize that their traditional lawns are water-hogging, chemical-ridden, maintenance-intensive burdens. Lawn Gone!, from award-winning gardening blogger Pam Penick, is the first basic introduction to low-water, easy-care lawn alternatives for beginning gardeners, written in a friendly style with an approachable package. It covers all the available time-saving options: alternative grasses, ground cover plants, artificial turf, hardscaping, mulch, and more. In addition, it includes step-by-step lawn-removal methods, strategies for dealing with neighbors and homeowner associations, and how to minimize your lawn if you're not ready to go all the way.

Welcoming birds to your yard isn’t about choosing the right feeders and bird food. If you want to attract the widest range of birds to your home, you need to plant a diversity of native plants. Why go green? Native plants live longer; they are drought resistant, take less water and fertilizer, they cost less, are less work and easier to maintain. And a big plus—they are good for the environment. In 2007, Douglas Tallamy published the groundbreaking book, Bringing Nature Home, on going native to protect wildlife. Since then Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, the National Wildlife Federation, and National Audubon have all endorsed and encouraged gardening with native plants. Planting Native to Attract Birds to Your Yard is the first book to cover planting native to specifically attract birds. The book recommends plants for all types of backyards, no matter how large or small—from large plots to container gardens. Sorenson gives state-specific recommendations for 31 Eastern U.S. states for native plants that support birds during the four seasons. The book covers the full gamut of native plants—76 species of trees, shrubs, bushes, vines, grasses, perennials, and annuals—and gives details on why specific plants are bird friendly and how to choose plants that work successfully in attractive home landscapes. Includes 66 bird species, all shown in dramatic color photos. Birders, gardeners, and landscapers—all who love birds and beautiful gardens—will find this book a must.

In this eloquent plea for compassion and respect for all species, journalist and gardener Nancy Lawson describes why and how to welcome wildlife to our backyards. Through engaging anecdotes and inspired advice, profiles of home gardeners throughout the country, and interviews with scientists and horticulturalists, Lawson applies the broader lessons of ecology to our own outdoor spaces. Detailed chapters address planting for wildlife by choosing native species; providing habitats that shelter baby animals, as well as birds, bees, and butterflies; creating safe zones in the garden; cohabiting with creatures often regarded as pests; letting nature be your garden designer; and encouraging natural processes and evolution in the garden. The Humane Gardener fills a unique niche in describing simple principles for both attracting wildlife and peacefully resolving conflicts with all the creatures that share our world.

Standing tall above the tree line, Sequoia stretches his ancient arms and gathers clouds to him. He watches as days, seasons, years pass by. His branches are home to owls and choirs of frogs. Beneath his broad canopy, a world grows. This is his story. Through controlled verse and luscious illustration, Tony Johnston and Wendell Minor do justice to the enormous figure of the sequoia tree. A Neal Porter Book

Want to do your part in helping your local pollinators flourish? Pollinator Friendly Gardening makes it easy. Are you interested in growing a naturally healthy garden? How about making sure your local environment helps bees, butterflies, and birds survive and thrive? If you are a beekeeper, are you looking for the ideal plants to keep your colony happy? Pollinators such as monarch butterflies and bees are under threat, and more and more gardeners want to do all they can to create a hospitable space for them. That's where Pollinator Friendly Gardening comes in. It identifies the most visible and beloved pollinators: bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds, as well as some more unlikely candidates such as ants, wasps, and beetles. It then explains the intriguing synergy between plants and pollinators. This vital information makes it a unique sourcebook to share the ways that anyone can make a yard a more friendly place for pollinators. Plant selection, hardscape choices, habitat building (both natural and manmade), and growing practices that give pollinators their best chance in the garden are all covered in detail. Plant lists organized by category, helpful tips, and expert spotlights make it a fun and easy book to read too.