gardening for all life
My Wild ClassroomCreating an Oasis for Wildlife on One Acre in Coastal Maine
the grounds
My Wild Classroom started out as one acre of cultivated gardens and lawn on the coast of Maine, now transitioning to multiple native pollinator and wildlife gardens, restored woodland habitat, and a native meadow.
The Purpose
This website is meant to document lessons learned and progress made as we transition our Maine acre from cultivated gardens to an oasis for wildlife of all shape and size, ideally providing helpful tips for others interested in creating a similar sanctuary for wild things in their own back yards.
Mission
MWC Mission & Vision
To create one acre of pollinator gardens and wildlife habitat; a place that inspires, soothes, and nurtures all who walk there. In creating this space, the goal is to educate others on the process and importance of this work, providing tools so that others can design similar gardens, ponds, and wild places in their own backyards.
A Word
From Jen
Wild spaces have always been sacred to me. They inspire and soothe, slow my mind and make every breath come a little bit easier. Likewise, I’ve always felt a kinship with wildlife: insects, amphibians, birds and bats and bears, and everything in between. These creatures feel like friends to me, a critical part of the complicated, interwoven web that is life on this planet. As I’ve grown older, the connection I’ve felt toward the wilder parts of our world has only deepened, and my despair over their loss of habitat and resources is something I feel keenly every day. This website and the mission it represents is my attempt to do something about the challenges faced by wildlife in Maine in these often troubling times.
– Jen Blood
My Wild Classroom
Grounds by Ecosystem
The one-acre plot here at My Wild Classroom has been divided into specific categories in order to simplify the process of logging flora and fauna, and creating and implementing landscaping designs. Click on the video below to learn more.
Gardens
“Cultivated” spaces planted with key pollinator perennials and annuals, with water sources and habitat readily available to those who frequent them.
Meadow
Along the shaded, southern side of our acre, we’ve elected to let things grow out over the leach field in our septic system. Gradually, invasives are replaced with valuable native perennials that provide both food and shelter for local wildlife.
Woodlands
Our home and grounds are surrounded on three sides by forest. A huge chunk of that was recently taken down by a new land owner, and we’ve mourned the critical loss of habitat that construction represented. In the meantime, we’re doing what we can to ensure the woods that are left are filled with native plants, trees, and shrubs critical for the survival of area wildlife.
Ecotones
The critical ‘in-between’ spaces between the woods and open spaces. Here, we have four designated areas that we recognize as ecotone, and are planting to provide shelter and sustenance for wildlife in those areas accordingly.
Human Zone
Our house, workshop, food garden, and limited lawn areas are all areas loosely recognized as falling into the ‘human zone.’
Blog
Pollinator Garden Tour
Welcome to our garden (or one of them, anyway)...This is a garden tour I did this past summer (2023). It's one of the first videos I did for my channel, and I'm definitely still getting the hang of things. But I think it's still worth posting here, since it...