Environmental Stewardship

What is Environmental Stewardship?

"Environmental stewardship is a holistic concept encapsulating our relationship with the natural world. It refers to responsible use and protection of the environment through sustainable practices and conservation efforts. Environmental stewards recognize the importance of preserving resources and ecosystems not just for their generation but for future ones as well.

On an individual level, this stewardship role encompasses an array of responsibilities. It's about making mindful decisions that reduce environmental harm - whether it's minimizing waste, reducing energy consumption or supporting renewable resources. It involves advocating for the protection of ecosystem diversity and species. And at its core, it's about education - spreading awareness and fostering a deeper understanding of our impact on the planet. " [Utopia.org]

Aldo Leopold on Conservation

"The practice of conservation must spring from a conviction of what is ethically and aesthetically right, as well as what is economically expedient. A thing is right only when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability, and beauty of the community, and the community includes the soil, waters, fauna, and flora, as well as people."

Making a Difference

Everything we need to survive depends either directly or indirectly on our natural environment. Environmental stewardship, conservation, and sustainable practices are more important than ever as the global population tops 8 billion people. Simple ways we can help make a difference include lifestyle changes to reduce, recycle and reuse, plant more trees, shop and buy local, grow your own food, and composting. We can make a difference, one person, one household, one yard at a time.

The Pennyroyal Master Gardener Association is committed to public outreach and education about gardens and landscaping. This also means caring about the environment and everything affecting it. We have prepared a brochure that provides some practical, yet simple solutions to five environmental concerns. (Click on the image to access the brochure.)

"What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of a difference you want to make."

[Jane Goodall]

Pollinator-Friendly Gardening

Why Design Home Garden Spaces with Native Plants?

Native plant species in our home garden spaces provide the most beneficial food sources and habitats for the birds, bees, and butterflies (pollinators) that have evolved in the local ecosystems. Many species require specific plants to continue to exist. For example, the Monarch butterfly lays its eggs only on native milkweed

plants, which the caterpillar eats. Recent global awareness and concern over the decrease in the number of Monarch butterflies due to habitat loss is only one of thousands of examples of pollinators and wildlife losing the battle to habitat loss. Some species will adapt to change and many will not. But, everyone can help--one yard at a time!

Creating ecologically friendly landscape designs is one way each of us can have a part in bringing hope and awareness surrounding these concerns.

Native Plant Resources and Garden Designs

This list of links offer a wealth of information about using native plants in your landscape designs, where to purchase native plants in our area, and garden designs for specific gardening needs.

Bringing Nature Home by Douglas Tallamy has completely changed the way gardening and landscaping is being viewed.

"As Doug Tallamy eloquently explains, everyone can welcome more wildlife into their yards just by planting even a few native plants. With fascinating explanations and extensive lists of native plants for regional habitats, this scientifically researched book can help us all to make a difference. No prior training is needed to become a backyard ecologist--but Doug Tallamy's book can be a vital first step." Taken from the back cover of "Bringing Nature Home".

"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.” Taken from Doug Tallamy's website Homegrown National Park, which is filled with great educational information and tips for getting started with native plant gardening. Click on the button below to access.

Homegrown National Park

The Danger of Invasive Plant Species (& What to Grow Instead)

Established in 2000, the Kentucky Exotic Pest Plant Council (KY-EPPC) is responsible for maintaining a list of the most severely invasive plant threats to Kentucky. According to the council, these plants cause ecological harm in natural areas around the state by reducing native plant diversity, altering ecosystem processes and negatively impacting wildlife.

Currently their list includes 145 invasive plants with an additional 35 plants on a watch list. Many of these plants have been used and promoted as ornamental plants in our landscapes: Bradford Pear, Multiflora Rose, Butterfly Bush and Japanese Honeysuckle, to name a few.

Bush honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii)

Kentucky's Top 10 "Worst Plants"

Bush Honeysuckle
Chinese Silver Grass
Garlic Mustard
Japanese Knotweed
Japanese Stiltgrass
Kudzu
Multi-flora Rose
Oriental Bittersweet
Purple Loosestrife
Winged Burning Bush

Kudzu (Pueraria montana)

Identifying and Controlling Exotic Invasives from Your Landscape

If you have the time and resources, consider eliminating any exotic invasives from your yard, especially if they appear in the list above.

Uncertain if the honeysuckle in your yard is the invasive exotic Bush Honeysuckle or the native Coral Honeysuckle? Do you need help distinguishing between the invasive Chinese Silver Grass (Miscanthus sinensis) and our native Big Bluestem (Andropogon gerardii)? The two links below are useful resources.

Kentucky's Invasive Plant Threats

Kentucky Exotic Plant Pest Council

Early spring and late fall are ideal for locating and eliminating Bush Honeysuckle in the landscape, since it has leaves when our native shrubs and trees do not. The Missouri Botanical Garden has created a useful brochure on eradicating Bush Honeysuckle from our landscapes.

Click on the brochure to the right to learn more about how you can take action now to remove this threat to our local ecosystem.

Replace Exotic Invasives with Native Plants

The Kentucky Guide to Alternatives is organized by categories to help you select the right native plants for your landscape, whether you seek a trio of sun-loving herbaceous perennials with showy flowers, shade tolerant shrubs which provide fall color, or a tree which will provide food for wildlife. The guide also labels the invasive exotic plants by threat level to Kentucky (severe, significant, moderate). If you have a lot of invasives to remove, one approach is to remove plants which pose a severe threat first.

Replacing exotic invasives with native plants provides food for pollinators and wildlife, positively impacting the biodiversity of your yard. Do not be discouraged if you only have a small patio: you can make a difference with just a few native plants in pots!

Kentucky Guide to Alternatives