A Presentation on Biodiversity and "Rewilding" by Murray Fisher
As the owner of a large property and farm, I work hard to maintain its natural beauty - it's always interesting and inspiring to learn how others do the same in their own backyards.
Over the last few years, naturalist Murray Fisher, and his wife Emily, have worked hard to transform 50-percent of their property back to "wild." The initiative is called "rewilding" and it is an effort to give space back to wildlife and to nature in order to heal the ecosystem. Doing this decreases greenhouse gas emissions and increases biodiversity, while maintaining the existing aesthetics and preserving agricultural value of the land. Earlier this week, I joined fellow members of The Bedford Garden Club for a very special lecture and presentation by Murray on what he did at home to "rewild" his yard and garden.
Enjoy these photos.
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- Much of my Bedford, New York farm includes acres of woodlands. I work very hard to maintain them – not just for me, but for all the animals and plants that live there. This is one of several babbling brooks on the property.
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- Every year, I plant hundreds of trees in the woodland to replace the old, damaged or diseased ones that had been removed. Doing this creates a healthy habitat for wildlife and encourages more growth – it’s part of maintaining the “wild.”
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- Murray Fisher is an expert naturalist. He dedicated years to making New York Harbor healthier, more biodiverse, and more abundant. Murray is also passionate about improving biodiversity in our own backyards and gardens and the effort to “rewild” these spaces.
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- First, Murray talks about the American yard, and how developed lawns and spaces have affected biodiversity in our country.
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- Murray says rewilding the American yard helps to combat climate change and bring back biodiversity, which is all the different kinds of life one finds in an area – the wild animals, plants, fungi, and microorganisms like bacteria that make up our natural world.
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- Since Murray and his wife, Emily, transformed their own yard by “rewilding” they have noticed many changes – wildlife has returned, including many species of native birds.
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- At my farm, Cantitoe Corners, I welcome all the wildlife and am so pleased with all the creatures that live and visit. Here is a Cooper’s Hawk sitting on my paddock fencing watching the activity around my farm.
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- Here is a group of wild turkeys crossing one of the carriage roads in the back field.
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- And here is just one of many wild birds that represent the more than 125 species that frequent my feeders every single day.
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- Murray says he discovered more than 1200 species of living animals that share our backyards just here in the Westchester area.
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- There are also coyotes in my woodlands – they thrive in the brush surrounded by forest and nature.
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- Murray also talks about the many native plants that prospered after “rewilding” his yard. (Photo from Murray Fisher)
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- Fortunately, I am able to design many gardens at my farm that include such different, interesting, and native specimens.
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- And smaller beneficial insects, moths, and butterflies thrive in an area that has “returned to the wild.” (Photo from Murray Fisher)
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- Here is a monarch butterfly feeding on flower nectar in one of my gardens.
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- Among the list of efforts one can do to “rewild” a space and increase biodiversity is to do less and allow the landscape to heal naturally.
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- In order to cut down on mowing at my farm, I eradicate a lot of lawn space. In this area, we laid down old burlap, no longer useable for covering the boxwood, on the grass surrounding my azaleas.
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- And then we covered the fabric with organic mulch made right here at my farm.
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- The beautiful trees in my pinetum are also now surrounded with mulch and not grass. The area is filling in so nicely, creating more habitats for visiting animals.
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- Murray offers resources for ideas on “rewilding” a space. “Rewilding” a garden doesn’t mean one has to live amidst a forest, but instead find a compromise for sharing the environment with wildlife.
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- Here I am with Murray and his wife, Emily. Thank you Murray, for sharing your wisdom and thoughts on how we can improve the earth for future generations and save our wildlife.
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