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Lepidoptera Host Records Accurately Predict Tree Use by Foraging Birds

Are declines in insects and insectivorous birds related?

Few keystone plant genera support the majority of Lepidoptera species

Do non-native plants contribute to insect declines?

Effects of parental diapause status and release time on field reproductive biology of the introduced egg parasitoid, Oobius agrili (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae) in the Mid-Atlantic:

We very pleased to bring you a special episode of Let’s Argue About Plants today, featuring an interview with Douglas Tallamy, PhD. Several months ago, Christine Alexander, digital content manager for FineGardening.com, sat down with the famed professor of entomology and wildlife ecology at the University of Delaware to discuss how plants can save our planet. Tallamy has spent his life’s work researching the impact of nonnative plant species on the environment with his fieldwork playing a critical role in solving the mystery of the plummeting insect and bird populations seen over the past 50 years. Despite the seemingly larger-than-life problems we face, Tallamy insists there are ways average gardeners can help save our ecosystems. Within the interview we get answers to the questions gardeners want to know like, “Should we be planting only native plants?” And “What are keystone species and why should I be filling my landscape with them?” Tallamy’s message is sometimes misconstrued, especially when it comes to a gardener’s role in the climate crisis. We hope this interview sheds some light and hope on actions steps we can all take to help nature. As Tallamy says, “we’re its last hope.” This interview was edited for length and clarity. For further reading, check out Douglas Tallamy’s most recent books, The Nature of Oaks (2021) and Nature’s Best Hope (2020). Keystone Plants:  Goldenrod (Solidago spp., Zones 3–9) Aster (Aster spp., Eurybia spp., Symphyotrichum spp., Zones 4–9) Sunflower (Helianthus spp., Zones 3–9) Oak (Quercus spp., Zones 2–9) Cherry (Prunus spp., Zones 3–8) Birch (Betula spp., Zones 3–9) Cottonwood (Populus spp., Zones 2–9) Elm (Ulmus americana, Zones 3 to 9) Willow (Salix spp., Zones 4-10)

Episode 120: An Interview with Doug Tallamy

The Nature of Oaks: The Rich Ecology of Our Most Essential Native Trees

Bringing Nature Home: How You Can Sustain Wildlife with Native Plants, Updated and Expanded

Nature's Best Hope: A New Approach to Conservation That Starts in Your Yard

The Living Landscape: Designing for Beauty and Biodiversity in the Home Garden

Doug Tallamy is the T. A. Baker Professor of Agriculture in the Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware, where he has authored 111 research publications and has taught insect-related courses for 42 years. Chief among his research goals is to better understand the many ways insects interact with plants and how such interactions determine the diversity of animal communities. His book Bringing Nature Home was published by Timber Press in 2007, The Living Landscape, co-authored with Rick Darke, was published in 2014; Nature's Best Hope, a New York Times bestseller, was released in February 2020, and his latest book, The Nature of Oaks, was released in March 2021. In 2021 he cofounded Homegrown National Park with Michelle Alfandari (HomegrownNationalPark.org). His awards include recognition from The Garden Writer’s Association, Audubon, The National Wildlife Federation, Western Carolina University, The Garden Club of America, and The American Horticultural Association. Doug lives with his wife, Cindy, on their restored property in Oxford, PA.

Native Plants

Insect Conservation

Ecological Landscaping

Ecosystem Function

University of Delaware Expert Profile

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Homegrown National Park Website

Timber Press Author Profile

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Creating biodiversity one landscape at a time | Gardener State

Gardens blooming with endangered plants could prove a boon to conservation

To mow or not to mow? Why there's a culture war happening on your lawn

Mid-Ohio Valley Climate Corner: Addressing climate change in your own backyard

Taking Back The Future, One Yard At A Time

Plant a garden that helps the planet by devouring carbon

Meet the Ecologist Who Wants You to Unleash the Wild on Your Backyard

The podcast for people who love plants—but not always the same ones.

Brought to you by the editors of Fine Gardening, this fun, informative podcast tackles all things topical in gardening. You’ll listen to the insights (and arguments) of Editor-in-Chief Steve Aitken and Senior Editor Danielle Sherry as they discuss various horticultural subjects on a deeper level. You will also hear from today’s leading horticultural minds who will offer their wisdom and opinions about what you might want to grow in your garden. We guarantee you’ll be entertained and feel like a better gardener.

Let's Argue About Plants

in-new-book-entomologist-shows-homeowners-how-to-make-changes-in-their-yards

Professor, Agriculture and Natural Resources

 They asked, he answered. In his new book, "How Can I Help?: Saving Nature with Your Yard," nationally known University of Delaware entomologist Doug Tallamy addresses the most common questions he receives from homeowners looking to do their part to impact the food web, boost biodiversity and replace invasive plants with native ones.

“Change is afoot!” Tallamy writes in the book, which was released today, April 8. “The cultural change from an adversarial relationship with nature to a collaborative one is starting to happen, and it gives me hope about the future of diversity and thus our own future.” 

Tallamy, TA Baker Professor of Agriculture and Natural Resources, wrote “How Can I Help” to tackle questions he’s received over email and during talks he has given around the U.S.

“I get the same questions over and over again,” Tallamy said. “They fall into easily arranged categories: Questions about oaks, questions about ecology, questions about invasive plants. The book almost wrote itself in that sense.” 

Some of those common questions include: • Why should I care about the food web? 
• How should I choose the right native plants for my property? 
• What is the greatest threat to oaks? 
• How do we prioritize which invasive species to get rid of? 
• Are bug zappers hurting insect populations? 
• Is it better to have fewer plants of lots of species or more plants of fewer species?
• Is it good to feed the birds? 

Tallamy is available for interviews to discuss "How Can I Help" or other relevant topics. To reach him directly, visit his profile and click on the "connect" button.


In new book, entomologist 
shows homeowners how to make changes in their yards

saving-the-world-one-yard-at-a-time

 University of Delaware professor Doug Tallamy has a simple mission:  Encourage people to rid their property of invasive plants and replace them with native ones. One of the ways he's tackling it is through a concept called “Homegrown National Park,” a grassroots initiative he co-founded to offer a simple solution for the biodiversity crisis — the decline of a variety of animals, plants and numerous species.

Tallamy, the TA Baker Professor of Agriculture and Natural Resources at the University of Delaware, is trying to encourage everyone to do their part to protect the planet.

If invasive plants (which don’t belong in an area and can ultimately harm the ecosystem by taking away essential resources from other plants) grow out of control, then an area loses its biodiversity, the ability for multiple plant and animal species to function at once and create a rich ecosystem. 

Invasive species are prolific. For example, many invasive plants produce berries, which some birds eat. The birds then spread those seeds around. So, once invasive plants are in an area, they’re hard to get rid of. The idea is to replace them with native plants, which have historically belonged to a region and provide critical habitat for insects, birds and other creatures.

It's an uphill climb, but Tallamy persists and is trying to save the world, one yard at a time.

“Everybody has a responsibility of doing things that sustain their little piece of the earth, and there are a whole bunch of things one individual can do to help in that regard,” Tallamy said.

 What’s not so simple, however, is getting the Earth’s 8 billion people (or, at least, anyone with property) to do this. 

“We are trying to change the culture so that [replacing invasive plants with native ones] becomes the norm, not the exception,” Tallamy said. “We’re not getting rid of lawns. But we don’t need 44 million acres of them. There are now so many people on the planet that natural systems are not functioning the way they need to sustain us.”   

A snowball effect Much of our current plant culture revolves around colorful, aesthetically pleasing ornamental plants that don’t support the local food web. When they grow out of control, a local yard or larger region loses out on biodiversity.

The natural world is all connected. For example, Tallamy said, if we lose pollinators like our native bees that transport pollen between plants, then we also lose most of our plants that produce flowers and fruits. It’s a snowball effect.

 “If that happens, the energy flow through our terrestrial ecosystems is almost totally disrupted, which means the food webs that support our vertebrate animals, our amphibians, our reptiles, our birds and our mammals would collapse and all those animals would disappear,” Tallamy said.

 “Without insect decomposers, the creatures that break down dead material, mostly plants, would rot and only bacteria and fungi would endure.”

“Homegrown National Park” has generated a lot of buzz for Tallamy, who received recognition for it in October by the Massachusetts Horticultural Society. The MHS awarded Tallamy with its highest honor, the George Robert White Medal of Honor, for eminent service in the field of horticulture. 

Conservation in action Tallamy’s quest to “change the culture” on planting can be witnessed in the fall at UD. 

On a warm October afternoon, he and a group of students from the Introduction to Insect and Wildlife Field Studies (ENWC 165) course trudged out to UD Wetlands to curtail some pesky invasive plants native to Asia.

 Equipped with clippers, loppers and handsaws, they walked behind Worrilow Hall, part of the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources’ 350-acre campus, which includes the UD Wetlands, an area that was formerly a dairy cow pasture but transformed into wetlands in 2008 because pollution from the farm was reaching the local watershed.

The wetlands were created because wetlands, by design, absorb nitrogen from runoff before it goes into waterways. They then release it as a gas into the atmosphere.

But the UD Wetlands repeatedly deal with pesky invasive plants such as Porcelain-berry and Chinese elm. Over the years, UD students have stymied the species from overtaking the area. 

“See this? This is a good guy,” said Tallamy to the students as he held up a fallen branch. “You just want to get the Porcelain-berry off of it. They’ll grow back very well. But we want to nip [the Porcelain-berry] in the bud.”

Taylor Kelly, a senior wildlife ecology and conservation major who took part in the invasive species removal, said Tallamy has helped her better understand the interconnectedness of various ecosystems.

“Native plants provide so much value to our local pollinators, which add value to our local birds because they feed on pollinators, seeds, fruit and trees,” Kelly said.

When native plants are in their natural environment, she added, it is a beautiful thing to see. 

Gardening with intention Tallamy, who began his teaching career at the University of Delaware in 1982, has published numerous research papers about entomology and written three books about native plants, insects and ecosystems, with a fourth book soon to come out.

Lately, much of his career has revolved around public outreach. He often lectures across the country about native plants and their ecosystem value and is regularly quoted in outlets like The New York Times, The Washington Post and Natural History Magazine. 

“Dr. Tallamy is a rare scientist that is able to explain his work to everyone,” said Jake Bowman, UD professor of wildlife ecology and chair of the Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology. “His passion for the importance of native plants has driven a major shift in thinking.”

 Years ago, when Tallamy first set out to spread his messages about native plants, he anticipated a lot of pushback from horticulture enthusiasts who he thought might be resentful about being told how to choose their plants. 

Instead, Tallamy found that many actually embraced his ideas, including Delaware’s own Master Gardeners, a group of about 300 volunteer educators trained by UD Cooperative Extension. Among his supporters are Delaware Master Gardeners Karen Kollias, Brent Marsh and Judy Pfister, who each praised Tallamy for the impact he has had on how they garden.  

Kollias now “gardens with intention”— not for herself or her neighbors, but for the environment. 

“I was a gardener before,” she said. “Now I consider myself an ecological gardener.” 

After Marsh received a copy of Tallamy’s 2007 book, Bringing Nature Home, which talks about the link between native plants and native wildlife, Marsh became a Master Gardener and began planting native species in his Georgetown lawn.  

Today, native plants such as woodland sunflowers and oak trees adorn Marsh’s yard, and he is grateful for the value of native plants that he learned through Tallamy’s book.

“Someday, maybe 20 years from now when I’m 100 years old, somebody's going to buy my house and they’re going to say, ‘Who planted all these oak trees?!’” Marsh chuckled. “Doug Tallamy changed my life.”

As Tallamy has sought to simplify scientific knowledge with the general public, Pfister has utilized Tallamy’s approach to do the same.

“He has a way of just making the whole thing a big circle, tying the need for a plant back to the need for a bird back to the need for a tree,” she said.

Tallamy, who has been delighted by the fervor ignited by his native plants teachings, said the future of the Earth and its diverse ecosystems will in large part depend on how people treat their yards. 

“In the past, we asked our landscapes to do one thing, and that was, be pretty,” Tallamy said. “Now we have to ask them to do two things: be pretty and ecologically functional. That's the horticultural challenge of today.” 

But it’s one Tallamy believes can be achieved. 

Sometimes, he wishes he could speak to his 10-year-old self and tell the young boy to dig another pond for the toads to colonize. Restore. Conserve. Focus on keeping nature’s ecosystems intact, he would say. 

“We have to do both,” Tallamy said. “Yes, we have to conserve what’s out there, but we have to get in the mindset that we can really put a lot of it back.”

Tallamy and Homegrown National Park co-founder Michelle Alfandari have created a database for people to type in their zip code and discover which native plants are best for their area. 

Saving the world, one yard at a time

renowned-native-plant-expert-receives-yet-another-honor-for-his-work

 After years of writing several bestselling books and making countless media appearances, University of Delaware professor Doug Tallamy has become one of the most well-known advocates for filling yards with native plants. The Massachusetts Horticultural Society (MHS) will honor Tallamy's tireless work at its 121st Honorary Medals Dinner on Oct. 30. 

Tallamy, a professor in UD's Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology, will receive the George Robert White Medal of Honor, MHS’ highest honor, “for eminent service in the field of horticulture," and will also deliver the keynote speech.

His New York Times bestselling books include “Nature's Best Hope: A New Approach to Conservation That Starts in Your Yard," "The Nature of Oaks: The Rich Ecology of Our Most Essential Native Trees” and "Bringing Nature Home: How You Can Sustain Wildlife with Native Plants."

One of Tallamy's crowning achievements was co-founding Homegrown National Park, an initiative to encourage people to plant native plants and remove invasive ones where they live.

Tallamy's research demonstrates how native plants help to preserve the food web by serving as a prime food source for plant-eating insects, which serve as the foundation of the food web. He calls for replacing invasive plants with native plants, and says the loss of natural habitats with diverse native plant populations is harming wildlife, specifically songbird populations.

Reporters can connect directly with Tallamy by visiting his profile and clicking on the "contact" button.
 


Renowned native plant expert receives yet another honor for his work

Douglas Tallamy discusses simple steps that each of us can—and must—take to reverse declining biodiversity and why we must change our adversarial relationship with nature to a collaborative one, drawing concepts from his book "Nature's Best Hope: A New Approach to Conservation that Starts in Your Yard".

Recent headlines about global insect declines and three billion fewer birds in North America are a bleak reality check about how ineffective our current landscape designs have been at sustaining the plants and animals that sustain us.  Such losses are not an option if we wish to continue our current standard of living on Planet Earth. The good news is that none of this is inevitable, and by acting now, you can help preserve our precious wildlife—and the planet—for future generations.

Doug Tallamy is the T.A. Baker Professor of Agriculture in the Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware, where he has authored 106 research publications and has taught insect related courses for 41 years. Chief among his research goals is to better understand the many ways insects interact with plants and how such interactions determine the diversity of animal communities. His books include "Bringing Nature Home", published by Timber Press in 2007; "The Living Landscape", co-authored with Rick Darke and published in 2014; "Nature's Best Hope", a New York Times Best Seller, released in February 2020, and his latest book "The Nature of Oaks" was released by Timber press in March 2021.  In 2021 he co-founded Homegrown National Park with Michelle Alfandari. His awards include recognition from The Garden Writer’s Association, Audubon, The National Wildlife Federation, The Garden Club of America and The American Horticultural Association.

For more information on Homegrown National Park, please visit https://homegrownnationalpark.org/.

Check out "Nature's Best Hope" here: https://goo.gle/3Du1bjL.

Moderated by Erin Beller.

Douglas Tallamy | Nature's Best Hope | Talks at Google

"Nature's Best Hope" with Doug Tallamy talk discussing the importance of native plants for birds, insects, and biodiversity.  

Presented by Gallatin Valley Earth Day in partnership with the Sacajawea Audubon Society and the MT Native Plant Society - Valley of the Flowers at the Emerson Center for the Arts & Culture in Bozeman, MT.

“We are at a critical point of losing so many species from local ecosystems that their ability to produce the oxygen, clean water, flood control, pollination, pest control, carbon storage, etc, that is, the ecosystem services that sustain us, will become seriously compromised.” - Doug Tallamy 

Mr. Tallamy brings a new approach to conservation that starts in our own yards. By landscaping with native plant communities that sustain food webs and biodiversity, we can enhance local ecosystems rather than degrade them. If we do this in half of the area in America we now have in mowed lawns, we can create a new “Homegrown National Park”—a 20 million acre network of viable habitats that will provide vital corridors connecting the few natural areas that remain. This approach to conservation empowers each of us to play a significant role in the future of the natural world. 

Doug is a professor in the Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware, where he has authored 106 research articles and publications and has taught insect related courses for 41 years. His latest books are the New York Times bestseller Nature's Best Hope: A New Approach to Conservation that Starts in Your Yard and The Nature of Oaks: The Rich Ecology of Our Most Essential Native Tree. His book Bringing Nature Home: How Native Plants Sustain Wildlife in Our Gardens (2007) was awarded the 2008 silver medal by the Garden Writers’ Association. Tallamy was awarded the Garden Club of America Margaret Douglas Medal for Conservation and the Tom Dodd Jr. Award of Excellence in 2013.

Dr  Douglas Tallamy   Nature's Best Hope 1 6 2023 (High Resolution video)

A bit of the backstory to set the stage: On March 4th, 2023 Dr. Douglas Tallamy will be the guest speaker for the Gardening For Life Celebration, in Columbus, NC. This event will also feature educational exhibits by community organizations, Tallamy book sales and signings, native plant sales and free giveaways of pollinator seeds and 500 White Oak saplings. Due to tremendous community support and interest all seats have been reserved at our venue (Polk County High School - 750 seat capacity). In response, we will be live streaming Doug's presentation via this channel. The more people who are a part of this celebration and conversation the greater the impact will be!  This will be a public live streamed event. We invite you to share the link with your friends, family and community.

Date: March 4th, 2023
Time: Live stream will begin at 1:45 p.m EST. Doug's talk is scheduled to begin at 2:00p.m.
Presentation: Nature's Best Hope: A New Approach to Conservation that Starts in Your Yard
Event Website: https://www.gardeningforlifeproject.org/gfl-celebration

Douglas Tallamy advocates for changes individuals can make in their own yards and in their communities to protect and preserve native species and thus, our planet. During his presentation Doug will share simple steps that each of us can, and must, take to reverse declining biodiversity. Too, he'll make a compelling case for transforming our adversarial relationship with nature into a collaborative one.

Truly, we are Nature's Best Hope! Recent headlines about global insect declines and three billion fewer birds in North America are a bleak reality check about how ineffective our current landscape designs have been at sustaining the plants and animals that sustain us.  Such losses are not an option if we wish to continue our current standard of living on Planet Earth. The good news is that none of this is inevitable, and by acting now, you can help preserve our precious wildlife—and the planet—for future generations.

Douglas Tallamy is an entomologist, ecologist and conservationist. 
He is a professor in the Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware and has written and co-authored several critically acclaimed books, as well as many research papers. His books include "Bringing Nature Home", published by Timber Press in 2007; "The Living Landscape", co-authored with Rick Darke and published in 2014; "Nature's Best Hope", a New York Times Best Seller, released in February 2020, and his latest book "The Nature of Oaks" was released by Timber press in March 2021. His awards include recognition from The Garden Writer’s Association, Audubon, The National Wildlife Federation, Western Carolina University, The Garden Club of America, and The American Horticultural Association. Doug lives with his wife, Cindy, on their restored property in Oxford, PA

In 2021 he co-founded Homegrown National Park with Michelle Alfandari.
For more information on Homegrown National Park, please visit https://homegrownnationalpark.org/.

Community Partners Include:
Conserving Carolina: https://conservingcarolina.org/
Congregational Church (UCC) of Tryon, NC - https://ucctryon.org/
The Lanier Library: https://thelanierlibrary.org/
and more ...

Doug Tallamy Presentation - Gardening For Life Celebration

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