Our Bedrock
Mission Statement: Gardens and programs that inspire, educate and enrich our lives and our community.
Purpose Statement: To educate and encourage citizens on the importance of developing, restoring, maintaining and conserving wildlife habitat and the native plants that comprise that habitat.
Welcome new members–we hope to see you at our monthly classes and upcoming events (Art in the Garden)! And to those who have renewed–thank you! Memberships help support our organization and our gardens!
Note: We can now accept memberships and renewals online with this link: Membership/Renewals.
However, to help us cover our processing costs for the convenience of using online payments, it is necessary to include those costs in our online membership fees. Amounts remain the same as before for checks/cash.
Separate donations can also be transacted online!
July Class
Saturday July 15th at 10:00am ~ entitled Is the Grass Always Greener….? ~ conducted by Kathy Kidd Plamondon (a little background information below).
For some of us, lawns take up the most space in our yards, but why? We’ll talk about the history, environmental impacts and possible alternatives to our lawns and how it affects pollinators too. If you have any experiences along this line, please come to share!
Background information: I fell in love with the PNW on an excursion here when I was 11 years old, to quiet, beautiful Vancouver Washington. Always a nature enthusiast and outdoors-person I have been trained and now volunteer with several of our local organizations and agencies. I am from Southern California in 1978.
June Class-Recap
We had a group of interested folks wanting to learn about vermicomposting (thanks Brigg!) as a possible option for using their food scraps rather than the garbage/landfill. Hopefully we now have some less reluctant converts. A new member couple were the winners of the demonstration bin constructed for the class!
Saturday Morning Work Parties
Saturday morning work parties are ongoing and last through October. For those who would like to volunteer at the gardens, each Saturday morning (from 9:00am to noon) volunteers are guided by one of our garden coordinators to work in the gardens. Non-Saturday dates will also be available as determined. We have a sign-up system using SignUpGenius. Additional sign up dates will be routinely added. To sign up to work on listed days, here is the link: SignUpGenius
Art in the Garden
By now hopefully you’all know about the 11th anniversary Art in the Garden which will be on Sunday July 9th from 10am-4pm at The Wildlife Botanical Gardens, 11000 NE 149th Street in Brush Prairie. We are partnering with Clark County Special Interest Group of the Hardy Plant Society of Oregon (HPSO) to organize the event.
It’s a fun day of art, music (native-led drummers and a bagpiper), spinning demonstrations, and a mini plant sale in the beautiful setting of the gardens. We have returning artists and newbies this year. Also, there is a Clark County Composter Recycling Demo area ready to answer all of your compost and other questions.
Save the Date
Family Fun in the Garden
Saturday, August 5th, between 10 am – 12 noon
Can you eat a leaf? Build a bird’s nest? Draw a pollinator? And what about bugs? Do we need them? Join us for a morning of fun and learning in the garden! Follow the map, find a path and choose your own adventure along the way! Who knows, you may even eat a compost snack!
We are partnering with Master Gardener Children’s programming to set up activities in each of the gardens. The activities are interactive and created for a wide variety of ages. They can easily be done by families, with minimal instructions.
Tours/Talks
This is a busy time for visitors, tours (and Julie) in our gardens. The gardens are used in many different ways by many different folks! We had several activities in June and there are a few lined up already for July….stay tuned.
Julie gave a tour to a group from St. Andrew Lutheran Church who gave a nice donation in appreciation for the great time they had.
We also had quite an elaborate Birthday Tea Party held for a 7-year old in the Cottage Garden replete with costumes and elegant decorations.
Julie was also busy representing NatureScaping (and Master Gardeners) with a talk at the recent Pollinator Festival held by Clark PUD on June 24th. NatureScaping had a table there along with many of our partners and environmental friends. Hope many of you had the opportunity to be there!
Speaking about Julie…..don’t miss the walk(s) she is leading at Battle Ground Lake State Park:
Native Plant ID Walk
Saturday, July 8th
Saturday July 22nd
18002 N.E. 249th Street
Battle Ground, WA 98604
This 1-mile hike around the lake will reveal a variety of plant species that contribute to the park’s healthy ecosystem. Julie says: “I point out native plants, birds and other interesting things that come along”.
Limit: 20 people; sign up in advance at Contact Station or call (360) 687-4621.
Location: First covered picnic shelter off day-use parking lot. Follow signs.
Presenters: Julie Carlsen, Master Gardener and NatureScaping Volunteer.
Sharing……
Once again for our new members…….For anyone interested….
Booklet
With funding from a Washington Native Plant Society (WNPS) grant and with many volunteer hours from committee members (you know who you are) a longtime dream has been fulfilled. We have created a free 52-page booklet as an educational tool that includes dozens of high-quality photos, descriptions and other information regarding native plants found at The Wildlife Botanical Gardens and reasons to incorporate them in your landscape. Here is the link to finding it on our website:
https://naturescaping.org/resources/free-booklet/
Recent Comments from Business Google
Many visitors who took the time to give us a review (some with comments) and/or share pictures:
Megan-5 stars, photos and comments:
Definitely a Trip worth making! These Botanical Gardens are categorized by Butterfly Attractions, Bird Attractions, Hummingbird Attractions, and more! Each individual garden is GORGEOUS. My favorite part about the Botanical Garden was the wildlife (squirrels and birds), and enjoying how quiet it was within the garden. Each little garden has an area to sit as well so you can enjoy the sounds of Nature. Across the street are some Cows!!! I will most certainly return!
David-5 stars and comment:
A beautiful, quiet, thin place.(a small distance between heaven and earth)
Jade-5 stars, photos and comment:
Very peaceful and relaxing. Didn’t see as many birds as I thought I would but it was still beautiful.
Mischelle-5 stars & photos
Deloris-5 stars and comment:
It’s a nice little peaceful tucked away sanctuary. Hope you enjoy!!!
Cynthia-5 stars, photos and (partially reproduced) comment (very glowing but lengthy–read full review):
I visited this botanical garden today for the first time, and I could not stop taking photos…this place is amazing!
The grounds are absolutely beautiful! It is very apparent that whomever tends the grounds puts a lot of heart and soul into doing so, and I want to say thank you to them, because I was at such peace here, and I needed that.
Tami, Natgalia and Dan–all simply gave 5 stars! We’ll take it!
Martha, one of our gardeners, shared this interchange:
I had a mom and her 10 year old daughter come through the garden today. The little girl thought the gardens were the most beautiful garden she had been to. They are from the St. John’s area in North Portland. The little girl had questions about how do weeds get in with the flowers. She starts plants from seeds and she loved the waterfall in the Native Garden.
Did you Notice….
Walking through the gardens one might wonder about the various benches, tables, arbors, bird baths and other items found tucked away in various spots. What is the history behind some of them? Though some items are more obvious than others (they have plaques), in the following months we will occasionally share some of the “stories”. Here is one of them…..
In the Northwest Natives Garden, towards the rear, near the pond there is an iron bench dedicated to Monte Multanen given to the gardens by his daughter after his passing. See pic. Monte was a dedicated long time volunteer in various capacities at the gardens and really loved it there. When his daughter comes to visit you may see her sitting on Monte’s bench.
In Memoriam…..Recap
It was a lovely day in the gardens (Fran would have enjoyed it) as her family and friends gathered for her memorial celebration. Stories and remembrances were shared and presentations were made. Terry read the touching poem she composed and the memorial stone in Fran’s honor was unveiled in the Collector’s Garden. Thanks to all that participated and especially to Kelli, who did a great job putting it together and Lisa for her diligent work in getting the garden in top shape.
Volunteer Spotlight
Although there is no formal spotlight this month, a special shoutout to a few member volunteers (thank you John, Nigel and Ron) who have been extraordinarily helpful along with our gardeners of course!! We appreciate all of our volunteers!
Support through Shopping
Just a reminder…..whether you shop online or in person, a painless way to help support us year round is through your shopping at Fred Meyer–it would be much appreciated! Here’s how:
You must already have a Fred Meyer Rewards Card. You can choose NatureScaping as your charity and every time you use your rewards card it will benefit us. Go to the link and enter our name or number CC402 and click “enroll”. https://www.fredmeyer.com/topic/community-rewards-4
Nature Related Quote of the Month
From John Lubbock: Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under trees on a summer’s day, listening to the murmur of the water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is by no means a waste of time.
Enjoy! and hope to see lots of you at Art in the Garden!