Earth Week and Earth Day April 22, 2011

I am linking my Earth Day post up to various blogs.  Please try visit Scenic Sunday and Mosaic Monday  and  That's My World

What are you doing on April 22, 2011? It is EARTH DAY!  I visited various websites that have wonderful suggestions on what you can do on Earth Day. The Nature Conservancy suggest going on a picnic that includes 5 easy choices:  eat smart, eat local, eat sustainably, eat green and eat out. A picnic on Earth Day sounds like a great idea to me.


This is the reservoir just  a walk away from my house and a great place to have a picnic.




My mosiac photos are of a Purple Finch in my backyard habitat, visit a National Wildlife Refuge like Chincoteague NWR, the Bald Eagles have made a huge comeback after the banning of DDT, plant some trees, find a nice place to have a picnic, cleanup a stream or river.

The Nature Conservancy also helping Fernando Veiga to plant one billion trees in the Atlantic Forest in Brazil.. One dollar plants one tree. Click on the link to donate a dollar.



                            I say plant a tree and stop the deforestation!!!!!!!

According to the WWF website the United Nations have declared 2011 the International year of the forest . WWF plans to work to increase and strengthen the protection of the worlds forest.



Here is a link to help protect your watersheds Adopt your watershed.  Stream cleanup sounds like a great idea, you get to be outside enjoying the sunshine and if you like to bird you might see some great bird sightings. 2011 marks the 20th  anniversary of National River Cleanup. My hubby will take a trash bag along on his walks to clean up the areas he likes to hike.

The Wilderness Society has some great suggestions too, volunteering on trail maintenance or leading wildlife tours in the refuges. Monitoring wildlife is one of my favorites and eBird makes it easy to record your bird count. Most of my ebird counts have been from my backyard and the reservoir's watershed around my house.


The National Wildlife Federation Certified Backyard habitat  is a website were you can learn how to make your backyard into a wildlife habitat. My yard was certified years ago, it is easy to provide food, water, shelter and a place for the birds to raise their families. My pond attracts frogs, birds dragonflies and other critters.

We planted various berry bushes and some nature provided like in my mosiac below. The birds just love these berries. I have a heated birdbath and a pond that provides water for the birds and wildlife. Trees, bushes, the wood pile and brush piles provide shelter for the birds and critters. I also provided houses for the birds, I see Bluebirds, Chickadees and wrens all using my housing.

                                 The Purple Finch is just one of the many yardbirds that visit my backyard  habitiat.




How about Pick 5 for the Environment here you are given many choices to pick from, simple easy ways to take action. Some actions that I like are protecting your water from pesticides, planting a trees or many trees, learning about the native species in your area and recycling is probably one of the easiest things my family does and last but not least please do not litter. Collecting rain water is another great idea.







I also would like to link Linda Lear's website  in memory of Rachel Carson a scientist and an ecologist with my Earth Day post.  Rachel Carson's book "Silent Spring " spurred a reversal in the national pesticide policy. The book led to a ban on DDT. Thanks to the ban we are enjoying an increase in the population of Bald Eagles. Pesticides have a negative impact on our health and environment. Rachel Carson has some award winning books The Sea Around Us and The Edge of the Sea and here is a a link to a few of her ebooks.  We live in an area with only well water so pesticides are a no-no. There are various types of organic fertilizers that can be used safely.







I feel Earth Day should be recognized by all and hopefully some of you will do one action or more I listed above. Even if it is just one action it could make a difference.

Thanks to all the hosts of the meme's I listed above and thanks for stopping by my post. Have a great Earth Week and Earth Day.