There were many beloved beings I tried unsuccessfully to save this past fraught year, starting with my father, who died in April after doctors wrote him off as an old man and refused to perform the scan that could have prevented a massive, fatal stroke. I also couldn’t save the trees across the street from my neighbor who thinks that tree roots get in the way of his mowing, or the dogwoods and spicebushes from another neighbor who thinks shrubs get in the way of his view of the stream—all lives cut too short.
But together my family, friends, colleagues and I worked hard to protect and promote as many of our fellow Earthlings as we could. We assisted my sister in her brave, successful fight to save her pollinator garden from her turf-obsessed HOA, and we helped get a state law passed so that others won’t have to go through the same arduous experience that she did. My fellow volunteers and I on the Howard County Bee City Native Plant Subcommittee created a Bee City habitat registration program and sign, and we also expanded our residential native garden design templates, completing new designs and plant lists for use in the area’s many cul-de-sacs.
On the scientific front, I collaborated with a chemical ecologist to publish a paper in Ecological Entomology on a little-explored but important behavior of monarch butterflies that I had discovered in my own habitat gardens. Together we launched a national citizen science project, Monarch Rx, so we can learn as much as possible about which species monarchs are visiting to collect toxic compounds from dead plant parts for use in their defense. Our work was also featured in Entomology Today—as exciting to me as the year our garden was featured on the front page of the New York Times Real Estate section, and I only wish my dad had been here to see it.
Because I’ve been working on a second book, I’ve had less time to write in this space and have missed interacting with my friends and fellow advocates here. It was a delight to see some of you at my Humane Gardener events for native plant societies, nature centers, garden symposiums, and wildlife rescue centers.
In lieu of more writing on my website while I finish my manuscript, please enjoy these links to my All Animals magazine columns from the past year, as well as to the podcasts where I made guest appearances. I hope you can use some of the facts and messaging in your own advocacy. Happy New Year!
Dispelling myths about wildlife gardens and native plants
How changing the law of the land benefits animals, the environment and humans
Public agencies increasingly support habitat gardens, but many HOAs still cling to antiquated notions, recycling baseless arguments to justify collecting fines. As my sister, Janet Crouch, battled each outlandish demand, we learned how flimsy the arguments against natural landscaping can be. For others fighting the good fight on behalf of habitat gardens, check out our responses and counterarguments to common myths. READ MORE
Small but mighty
Little mammals play a big role in healthy gardens
Divergence from conventional command-and-control, reactionary forms of gardening is not only compassionate; it’s also smart. Animals who live their lives below the surface are better tillers, seeders, weeders and insect predators than we humans will ever be. The activities of shrews, moles, voles, chipmunks and mice sculpt the land, create habitat for birds and butterflies, and help regenerate whole forests. READ MORE
Deer eat my garden—and it flourishes
Living alongside deer for decades, I’ve learned that gardens can thrive in their presence—to the point where our habitat now hosts uncommon butterflies and bees, drawn to plants the deer leave untouched. My strategies for coexistence with deer are creative applications of principles already known to scientists. READ MORE
The invasion of the chipmunks?
Exploring the temporary rise and fall of wildlife populations
Many factors drive fluctuating wildlife populations. Some are distinctly manmade, as when mosquito spraying in Fargo, North Dakota, killed migrating monarchs in August 2020. But others are part of the natural cycle. Young bears disperse more widely when food is scarce, but that doesn’t mean they’ve multiplied. Rabbits can reproduce more when warm winters encourage lush plants, but they won’t do so indefinitely. READ MORE
The Mike Nowak Show
Humane Gardening with Nancy Lawson
The Joe Gardener Show with Joe Lamp’l
The Humane Gardener: How to Nurture a Backyard Habitat for Wildlife
Monarch Rx: The Prescription for Healthier Butterflies
My sympathy on the loss of your father. He taught you and your sister well. You are my superhero, Nancy! Keep spreading the word.
Thank you so much, Karen! <3 We are hoping to keep my dad's spirit alive in our activism.
Thank you for this moving and fascinating post.
I’m very grateful for your work and voice, and was so inspired by the triumph over your sister’s HOA.
Hi Hil, thank you! <3 Hope to see you some time when we can all get back to normal again.
Sorry for your loss Nancy and thanks for the inspiration to try humane gardening this year. I’m in rural Quebec and this is my first garden. I’m in a distinctly mow and spray area with neat perennial borders cut down at the end of autumn and leaves raked up and put out for the city to remove.
I’ve dug up grass to plant more flowers , left other grass grow, seeded a meadow, added a pond and more native shrubs. I was really nervous about deer and pests but actually I had very little damage and enjoyed so much animal and insect life.
There are many more wildlife friendly gardening resources in my native England so thank you for this resource that fits the North American context!
Hi JP, your place sounds like a real haven already! And your surrounding community sounds a lot like mine. We are somewhat rural, too, at least in the context of the surrounding region, so we did not have the encroachment of lawn & spraying companies or leaf blowers until very recently. Maybe our gardens will help show others they can take a different path. I’ve noticed that England is ahead of us and more amenable to coexisting in many ways!
My grandfather was an entomologist. He was one of the first to use beneficial insects instead of chemicals. I was taught from a young age to notice and respect insects. I believe this is why I look at nature as a whole and care for everything. I don’t ever single anything out as bad or to be removed. I think if we teach children to respect the little things we will teach them to respect all life on this planet.
It must have been so neat to grow up with a grandfather who could teach you about the tiniest creatures. Those early experiences have such a profound effect on our outlooks, and I wish more people could have that exposure in childhood.
Dear Nancy…I am so sorry to hear of your Dad’s passing. I worked with him for many years at USDA, ARS on germplasm releases, stakeholder meetings, etc. He was a joy to work with, always dedicated to his work. I’ve been to lunch with him and Mary a few times since retirement but did not know that he passed away. I am so sad to hear this. Thank you, too, Nancy, for your publications…I enjoy reading and learning.
Valorie, I’m so sorry that you found out through this post. We wanted to invite you to the celebration of life, and I tried to find contact information for you. The people I was in touch with at USDA didn’t have it, and now I realize that I was probably spelling your first name wrong. I remember meeting you at a master gardener conference, and my mom also enjoyed going to lunch with you. Just recently, a few weeks ago, I was trying to organize my mom’s rolodex and passwords and found your contact info. It was there all along, but in the process of helping my mom move, we lost the thread on so many things during that time. Anyway, I will see if I can email you some info — USDA did a nice writeup and we put together an obituary.
My condolences with regards to your father.
Best of luck with your new book–I look forward to reading it!
Thank you so much, Misti! <3
Having lost my dad a few years ago, I can offer you condolences & love. There is no one to whom I could speak so openly & with the knowledge that my words would never go further. How I miss him! I have not been camping since he has not gone with me. Will I ever again? I hope so, but I just don’t know. Life goes on, in his honor, & I pray for you & yours that your life will carry on in his honor as well. Hang in there & keep spreading his love of life & joy for nature. : )
Susie, I’m so very sorry for your loss. Your memories of camping with him must be such a treasure, and I can understand why it would feel empty without him by your side. Though I hadn’t been camping with my dad in my adult life, some of my fondest memories of my whole lifetime are of being little and in the woods with him as we explored on our many camping trips. We are lucky to have had dads like that, aren’t we? Sending love to you too. <3
Nancy, I was very impressed with your Zoom presentation to a NPSOT chapter so joined your mailing list and just got my first message. I hate to bring this up here but I don’t know any other way to communicate with you. I wanted to read more about your successful battle with your sister’s HOA, but all I get is a request for a donation to the Humane Society. I am a retiree on a fixed income that is not supporting me well with all the current inflation, but I do give generously of my time and speaking skills as a Master Naturalist and Master Gardener to encourage others to use native plants and create habitats. Am I missing something or is a monetary donation required to read your articles?
Hi Janet, thanks so much for attending the NPSOT talk. I’m so happy you enjoyed it! As for my website, I am independent, and everything on my own site is free. The latest post does link to the HSUS, for which I write a freelance column. In clicking the link, I see that their donation box pops up — but if you look in the right-hand corner of that box, you’ll see that there is a little black “X.” Click on that “X,” and it will close the box. At that point, you will be able to read the article. I hope that helps! 🙂
Nancy,
Thank you for such a lovely tribute to your dad. He was absolutely one of a kind and such a gentle person. I know you must miss him so much.
~Missy
Thank you so much for reading it, Missy. He sure was a sweetie. We are grateful to have had him in our lives for so long. <3
I’m glad you had so many years with your father, and cheers to your sister and you for the success in battling detrimental HOA rules. So much great info in this article, and the linked sources. Thank you for all of your efforts to make the world a better, more humane and beautiful place.
Thank you so much, Mary! And thank you for all you do too. <3
Nancy,
I’m so sorry about your dad, it’s so frustrating how the elderly are treated in our healthcare system. I had the same experience with my mom in 2019, I lost her too.
Your book has given me a wealth of information, I love it!
I also feel pain watching my neighbors pull out trees because they think branches are going to fall on their houses, clearing the land of every living thing, or spraying everything in sight with herbicides. I really HATE the sound of chainsaws too!
I’m going to add one of your books to each of the Little Free Libraries near me, I think it will be a wonderful way to educate my community.
Hi Janet, it sounds like we are kindred spirits for sure. I’m so sorry that you had that experience with your mom as well. I’m also sorry that you have the painful experience of seeing nature so disrespected all around you. Every time I’m outside, I see something wonderful happening in our habitat, and then when the noise starts at the neighbors’ houses, all I can think is, “If you only knew how much you were missing!” We can only hope at some point they’ll make the connection. Thanks for sharing the book!