The Master Gardener’s Bookshelf
The Humane Gardener: Nurturing a Backyard Habitat for Wildlife by Nancy Lawson
Review by Susan Wilhelm, Extension Master Gardener
In The Humane Gardener: Nurturing a Backyard Habitat for Wildlife, author Nancy Lawson encourages gardeners to adopt animal friendly planting and maintenance practices, creating gardens that welcome both wildlife and human beings. She says, “[a] humane garden feeds animals of all kinds but can also be a feast for human eyes.”
The Humane Gardener lays out six general strategies for welcoming insects, birds and other wildlife into a garden. These include using native plants (which Lawson calls the foundation of a humane garden), providing food and nesting sites for baby animals, and removing hidden hazards in a yard that can harm wildlife, for example, taking down volley ball nets at night to prevent deer or birds from becoming entangled. Another strategy is providing habitat by tactics such as leaving hollow flower stems, decaying trees (snags) or leaves and debris where insects, mammals, birds, and other creatures can hide, feed, or nest, rather than tidying everything up.
Each chapter explains the strategy, its importance, and multiple approaches for carrying it out. For example, planting a succession of native plants with flowers, fruits, and seed heads provides food sources for wildlife throughout the seasons. Adding native trees and shrubs, such as Ilex opaca (American Holly) and vines such as Lonicera sempervirens (Trumpet or Coral Honeysuckle) to a hedge, supplies food and cover for birds and privacy for people. Mowing the lawn from the inside out gives small animals a chance to get out of a mower’s way. Additionally, multi-page descriptions provide real-life examples of humane gardens in different growing conditions. These include a one-acre wetland in Florida, an herb, flower, and vegetable farm in Colorado, and an urban woodland and pollinator garden in Portland, Oregon.
Photo © Henry Staples and Claudia Gerwin
Lawson says that all animals contribute to creating healthy ecosystems in our gardens. She calls out the landscaping, pesticide, and animal control industries for inciting unnecessary fear among homeowners regarding wildlife. Instead, she focuses on the benefits that come from gardening in harmony with nature. For example, native plant berries such as Ilex verticillata (Winterberry) provide food for birds, especially migratory birds, and possums eat “many insects including Lyme-carrying ticks.” Further, Lawson asks gardeners to reconsider the role of plants such as Phytolacca americana (Common Pokeweed) which many consider an invasive weed. She says Common Pokeweed is “a host plant for the giant leopard moth, and also feeds small pollinators like syrphid flies and migrating birds, who rely on its berries to fuel their long autumn journeys.” Moreover, it is a favored food of bluebirds.
Even if you are not ready to embrace wildlife to the degree that Lawson does, The Humane Gardener has many useful tips and advice for avoiding potential problems. An extensive list of additional resources at the end enables readers to learn more.
The Humane Gardener: Nurturing a Backyard Habitat for Wildlife (Princeton Architectural Press, 2017) is available from the Alexandria Library, the Arlington Public Library, the Fairfax County Public Library, and national booksellers.
Check out these resources to learn more about wildlife friendly gardening.
- The Hospitable Gardener: Welcoming Fireflies and Other Creatures to Your Yard, Alyssa Ford Morel, Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia, August 2023.
- The Humane Gardener: Cultivating Compassion for All Creatures Great and Small, Nancy Lawson
- Keep That Dead Wood Around! Snags, Dead Branches, and Stumps Add Habitat and Natural Beauty, Leslie Cameron, Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia, April 2024.
- Native Herbaceous Plants Provide Shelter and Nesting Sites for Wildlife, Elaine Mills, Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia, March 2023.