Our dear Beth Fiteni of Green Inside and Out was recently sharing word of a native plant, pollinator, and organic lawn care webinar organized by the North Fork Environmental Council.

Though the event passed, she says it was really informative and encourages folks to keep checking the NFEC Facebook page and the NFEC YouTube Channel for all the great resources they plan to share. She looks forward to offering the full video herself on the Green Inside and Out Facebook page once it is ready to go!

Meanwhile, Beth offers some basic tips for an organic yard:

• Avoid toxic pesticide use; instead use natural, non-synthetic fertilizers and compost to feed the soil.
• Mow higher to shade out weed seeds and ask for natural pest control products at your nursery.
• Choose native plants that require less maintenance- Check out the Long Island Native Plant Initiative for species best suited to our region.

The LINP is just one resource mentioned in a collection of Earth-and-Local-Ecology Friendly Landscaping Resources. that we ourselves compiled a few years ago. Grateful to all who contributed to it (send us more!) We’re still referring to it regularly!

One we will add soon is BlossomMeadow.com, which Beth recommends as a great LI company that participated in the NFEC webinar. There, they taught about various types of bees and where they live so we can create suitable places for them in our own yards.