February 21, 2024 Integrating Native Plants into Your Vegetable Garden Here at Natural Shore, we maintain over 500 ecological restoration sites around the metro area, so we often run into people that love natural areas and equally enjoy produce, vegetable, and food type gardens. We sometimes get asked if native plants and vegetable gardens can commingle, and the answer is always a resounding yes! Native… Read More
February 15, 2024 Using Native Plants to Combat Shoreline Erosion In Minnesota, the “Land of 10,000 Lakes” is not just a tagline but a way of life. With approximately 90,000 miles of lakeshores shaping our geography, the delicate balance between land and water creates some of the most important habitat in our state. Preserving the integrity of our vast natural shorelines and reducing erosion is… Read More
August 8, 2023 Pollinator Paradise Thankfully, we are starting to hear the message, more and more, that pollinators play an irreplaceable role in maintaining our environment and sustaining our food supply. Learning how to protect pollinators is paramount. They are the unsung heroes behind countless plants bearing fruit and seeds, ensuring harmony in our delicate ecosystem. Unfortunately, these essential creatures… Read More
July 13, 2023 Jumping Worms: What’s the Big Deal? In Loring Park, 2006, Jumping worms (Amynthas spp.) were first discovered in MN. Since then, they have moved through central and southern Minnesota landscapes at an alarming rate. One reason for this is that jumping worms reach sexual maturity fast, allowing them to reproduce at a much higher rate than other worm species. They also process… Read More
April 26, 2023 Turf Lawn to Prairie: Cost Comparison Each year, an increasing number of people are opting to change their turf lawn to prairie, and for good reason. Consider this: the total area of turf lawn in the US is estimated at 60-65 million acres, more than all the US corn fields combined. In Minnesota, estimates suggest that turf grass covers 15% of… Read More
March 16, 2023 The Top Ten Reasons to Restore Your Lakeshore with Native Plants Minnesota is home to over 10,000 lakes, and each one of them is a treasure worth protecting. A key component to preserving and improving lake quality is understanding how to restore lakeshores with native plants. High-quality shoreline restorations are an economical tool to reduce erosion, create resilient habitats, add natural beauty to the landscape, and… Read More
February 15, 2023 Small Backyard Restoration with Big Results Every ecological restoration project presents its own set of unique goals and challenges. For this west metro landowner, soggy and sick turf grass made up a good portion of their backyard. The main project goal here was to take advantage of excess water drainage from a natural wetland and create an amazing backyard restoration and… Read More
January 27, 2023 New Year, Fresh Grant-Funding, and Ample Opportunities to Restore Natural Habitats! The new year is often a time for new beginnings and making positive changes in our lives. And what better way to do that than by creating a beautiful, thriving native plant habitat in your community? A great way to get started is by looking into the many cost-share programs and grants for habitat restoration,… Read More
December 14, 2022 Discovering Minnesota’s Ecology: Notes From The Field As the winter snows start to fall, our crews have time to reflect on another busy and productive field season. One of the most rewarding aspects of our job is the opportunity to observe Minnesota’s ecology, the plant and animal interactions, within the natural areas that we manage. Each year is incredibly unique due to… Read More
July 30, 2022 Project Highlight: Pioneer Creek Park Native Plant Garden There are thousands of local parks all over Minnesota, many with amenities like ball fields, playgrounds, basketball courts, and horseshoes. Parks are parks, right? Well, not so fast. Pioneer Park in Independence, Minnesota, is unique in that it is home to an outstanding native plant demonstration garden. How did that native plant garden come to… Read More
May 10, 2022 Top 10 Native Plants for Traditional Landscapes So why go native? The answer is pretty simple. While ornamental garden plants may look nice, they are really lacking when it comes to ecological benefits. Minnesota native plants provide traditional landscapes with high quality habitat for pollinators and other wildlife. On top of this, they also look great and are hardy; requiring no fertilizers… Read More
April 11, 2022 Transform Your Wetland with Invasive Cattail Removal! Did you know much of the cattail you see growing around ponds, wetlands, and lakes throughout Minnesota is actually non-native and invasive? In Minnesota, we have both a native broadleaf cattail (Typha latifolia) and an invasive narrowleaf cattail (Typha angustifolia). Unfortunately, these tend to readily hybridize with one another, producing an aggressive hybrid (Typha x… Read More
