Google’s dictionary defines an ecosystem as “A biological community of interacting organisms and their physical environment.”
With that in mind, your backyard already functions as a living ecosystem.
It could boast a full of life from birds, rodents, and mammals, or even a much smaller ecosystem with bugs and insects, but it’s still functioning as an ecosystem.
But one area we could all improve in is making a better environment for this life to flourish.
If you’ve thought about creating an ecosystem in your backyard but don’t know where to start, you’re in the right place.
What to Expect? – In this article, we’re going to look at easy ways to create a lively backyard ecosystem, using items you may have on hand or could easily get your hands on.
Is My Backyard An Ecosystem?
Based on the previous description of an ecosystem, it’s clear that our garden or backyard is an ecosystem.
In fact, the entire world is made up of interconnected, distinct ecosystems. They’re sometimes overlapping ecosystems.
For example, consider where the ocean meets the sand, or where a newt or frog may live in a garden pond as well as adjacent to the garden pond.
Why Is It Important To Have A Backyard Ecosystem?
Never before in history has there been such a concentrated effort to care for our planet.
People are coming together to ensure the preservation of the planet’s nature, resources and humanity itself.
We can’t solve all of the worlds problems in our own backyards, but we can make them more sustainable and environmentally-friendly.
Imagine if each of us were to put a healthy ecosystem right outside of our own homes. It sure would make a big difference on a global scale!
So no matter whether you have a tiny balcony with a garden or an entire couple of acres of greenery, you can do something.
Ways To Build A Simple Backyard Ecosystem
You might think about creating your own backyard ecosystem and think that it’s going to be a crazy undertaking.
That is the furthest from the truth. Your yard is already an ecosystem, you just need to discover how to create a healthier and more inviting place for life.
Let us take a look at a few easy maneuvers that you can use to enhance your backyard ecosystem.
A Word About Microhabitats
A microhabitat is a small habitat that is part of a larger ecosystem but differs somewhat from the surrounding ecosystem.
It is a very good idea to try to incorporate as many of these as you can into your backyard ecosystem as it will attract a variety of wildlife.
In being creative about your backyard ecosystem, you may consider areas like a wet meadow, an alpine habitat, Japanese gardens, birdhouses, and something that mimics a wood floor, among other areas.
Think about your local area and what of these, along with others are most appropriate.
The Importance Of Using Native Plants
When you are in the process of creating your own backyard ecosystem, you can let go of your need to think outside the box, because there is none.
The majority of people tend to select, and try to grow non-native, and in many cases invasive, plants.
While growing and caring for these plants can be a great challenge for the discerning gardener and provide an interesting look, they do not really lend anything to creating an ecosystem.
There are fewer native species such as our valued butterflies and our long-standing valued birds, and this is a problem across all of the United States.
This issue exists for other reasons as well, but a major issue is the lack of native plants to feed on.
My Experience: When you establish habitats with native plants, you will see a marked increase in the number of native species visiting your yard; they are now have habitat for food, nesting and shelter from predators.
Layering Your Ecosystem
There is more than one layer to a wild environment, when you first think about what a wild environment looks like.
Consider a wood, forest, or jungle. Each of these wild environments is made up of multiple layers of trees, shrubs, ground cover, and other plants.
If you want to develop the fullest ecosystem, you want to do your best to create a layered effect in your garden.
Having layers in your ecosystem, at ground level, tall trees, mid-sized flowering plants, and others, has a dual purpose.
First, it will attract the widest variety of the possible visitors, not just birds.
Second, having layers in your ecosystem will help it to thrive and stay healthy.
If you used all of the same plant species, or plants that are similar, there is a higher risk of disease.
Having different layers will help with disease prevention, and much more!
Going Organic When Caring For Your Ecosystem
If you desire to provide care for the backyard ecosystem, you will need to consider some best practices.
This begins with ensuring you are not aiding to infect your backyard ecosystem with hard chemicals.
So many times – We cover our gardens with chemicals, and yet doing so could disturb the very foundation of your ecosystem – the soil.
Not only that, but those chemicals will just wash away and find their way to the local streams, rivers, or other bodies of water and cause a lot of damage that you may not even think about.
Furthermore, you should consider tending to your garden ecosystem in a way that promotes its health and well-being.
Let it be more natural, instead of cutting the plants down to almost nothing when they really don’t need it.
The best way to do this is wait until early spring so that you can do some light pruning of your plant life.
This provides a more inviting environment for all of the birds in your garden, especially through winter.
A benefit of leaving the plants in place and not pruning them too much is that it will leave some of the leaves on the ground, which actually is of great benefit and makes some great mulch.
Ideas For Habitats Within Your Ecosystem
As we discussed previously, a flourishing ecosystem should consist of a variety of contrasts in microhabitats.
Life that exists in one microhabitat may stick to its microhabitat, however, in many cases it will explore other areas of the ecosystem which can be a benefit.
Let’s take a look at some examples of things you can simply create and that will help you invite a plethora of life to your own backyard.
- Establishing a pond is really rather simple and there are a few approaches to create one. To simplify matters, you can buy a pre formed pond. This is some of the easiest to install and once you have filled it with water, in addition to the option of adding your own fish for your enjoyment and tranquility, would attract all sorts of insects, frogs, and birds among other animals. If you do not have the room for a full pond, and are still curious about having an attractive water feature, you could install something small, and you will still get a great deal of the benefits.
- For bird lovers just the addition of a birdhouse or some form of a feeder will enhance your ecosystem bringing in many different native species. These can be created or purchased; either way is fun to do and add to your ecosystem.
- Lower to the ground the most important thing you can do is make sure that you have the soil in the best condition possible. This will help soil organisms like earthworms to thrive. One of the best ways to achieve this is to mulch your soil with leaves fallen from nearby trees and grass clippings. This will also help to add organic matter to the soil. Compost is also a great way to add organic matter, and help to balance out nutrients in disturbed soil and help to bring it back to life. Honestly once you have established “good” soil quality you won’t have to do much, you just need to grow everything back in without changing it too much.
- How about adding several fruit trees and plants to your ecosystem? This will not only provide a food source for wildlife, but will also help reduce your food bill, because then you will have other good snacks from your garden! Just make sure you allow each tree enough space and sunlight, and water requirements.
Conclusion
You might not be aware of this, but your backyard is living and thriving ecosystem, and while these ecosystems already exist, you can do things to push with it.
Simply by establishing specific areas/regions and providing appropriate maintenance to your ecosystem, you will notice a significant increase in the number of animals, insects and birds visiting.
Not to mention, you will be doing your part for the planet.