Keep Your Trees Healthy
Learn how to recognize insect damage to trees on your property, and what steps to take to minimize damage. Click this link to learn about Mountain Pine Beetles and other troublesome insects in our area.
Native Plants – Why and Where Can I Get Them?
There is an unbreakable link between native plant species and native wildlife. Indeed, most native insects cannot, or will not, eat alien plants. When native plant species disappear or are replaced by alien exotics, the insects disappear, thus impoverishing the food source for birds and other animals. In many parts of the world, habitat destruction has been so extensive that local wildlife populations are in crisis and may well be headed toward extinction.
By favoring native plants, gardeners can provide a welcoming environment for wildlife of all kinds. This doesn’t necessarily entail a drastic overhaul of existing gardens. The process can be gradual and can reflect both the gardener’s preferences and local sensitivities.
It also does not have to mean that your yard will be overrun with deer or other wildlife. As our valley fills up with new homes, we want to help you create beauty in your landscaping while providing continued habitat needs for the wild inhabitants of our valley.
For a list of recommended native species for landscaping, see Recommended Native Species for Flathead.
For a list of Local Native Plant sources click Native Plant Sources
Here are some local and regional sources for native plant information and materials: Websites for general information:
Montana Native Plant Society http://www.mtnativeplants.org/Home
Montana Plant Life http://montana.plant-life.org/
Native Seed Network http://www.nativeseednetwork.org/
Beware of Wildflower Seed Mixes
Be sure to check the seeds included in a commercial wildflower mix before you plant it. Some contain noxious weeds! Plants like Baby’s Breath (Gypsophila paniculata) and White Campion (Silene latifolia) are listed as noxious weeds in Flathead County, and Common Yarrow and Creeping Bellflower (Campanula rapunculoides) are undesirables.
Noxious weeds include: Spotted Knapweed, Diffuse Knapweed, Russian Knapweed, Canada Thistle, Field Bindweed, Whitetop, Leafy Spurge, Dalmatian Toadflax, Yellow Or Common Toadflax, St. Johnswort, Sulfur Cinquefoil, Common Tansy, Ox-Eye Daisy, Houndstongue, Dyers Woad, Purple Loosestrife, Tansy Ragwort, Meadow Hawkweed Complex, Orange Hawkweed, Tall Buttercup, Tamarisk (Salt Cedar), Perennial Pepperweed, Yellow Starthistle, Rush Skeletonweed, Eurasian Watermilfoil, Yellow Flag Iris.
Flathead County has additional noxious weeds that include: Baby’s Breath, Flowering Rush, Tumble (Jim Hill) Mustard, Russian Thistle and White Campion. Undesirables are Creeping Bellflower, Common Yarrow, Absinth Wormwood and Scentless Chamomile.
Please contact the Flathead County Weed Department for more information.
Cheatgrass – Not Just a Menace to Farmers
Cheatgrass (downy brome) is an undesirable grass species that is spreading in many western states. A cool season grass, it is first to come up in the spring and can show renewed growth in the fall. Dying off in summer, it provides fuel for wildfire. It also outcompetes many beneficial native grasses. Find out steps you can take to control it at http://www.ext.colostate.edu/PUBS/natres/06310.html
Make Your Home Safe From Wildfire
The national Firewise Communities program is a multi-agency effort designed to reach beyond fire service by involving homeowners, community leaders, planners, developers, and others in the effort to protect people, property, and natural resources from the risk of wildland fire – before a fire starts.
Firewise You Can Use is a series of interactive modules to help you prepare your home for wildfire season. On the same website, check out Resources for the Homeowner for checklists and information on construction materials, landscaping, watering and more. Go to the Firewise link to learn more.
Wildlife Habitat
Habitat Management suggestions for improving habitat for selected wildlife species.
Protecting Streams
he EPA website has lots of information about protecting our waters. When we keep the water clean we stay healthy and enjoy the place we live. Learn about Non-Point Source Pollution and how to keep our rivers clean.
What is Non-Point Source (NPS) Pollution? And how does it affect our water quality?
What Can You Do to prevent NPS pollution?
How to Conserve Water and Use it Effectively?
Do’s and Don’ts Around the Home that effect water quality.
More Ideas of what you can do to prevent non-point source pollution. Living with Wildlife
Montana Lake Book
Check out this recently revised book to learn about actions you can take anywhere in the watershed to protect your lake. Click on Montana Lake Book.
Wildlife HELP (Nooooo, not my tulips!)
Sometimes we find others trying to share the same space with us. Get advice on how to live with many different animals that call this place home. Living with Wildlife
Small Acreage Livestock
Many small acreage livestock owners live within or close to residential areas. The amount of land per animal is typically small, which can create problems with manure storage, handling and utilization. Rain and melting snow can carry pollutants associated with livestock manure and related activities into our waters. These pollutants can harm your own drinking water well or your neighbor’s, contaminate groundwater and adversely affect our properties.
Being informed is the first step to taking good care of your animals and land. Check out these valuable resources about managing livestock on small acreages at the Healthy Landscapes website.
Garden Guide
Grow a beautiful garden in Montana with the help of the Garden Guide. Get gardening tips, climatological data, planting guide and more at the Garden Guide link.
Armchair Knowledge for the Urban Rancher
Be comfortable at your computer while you explore rural contemporary living.
Learn about small acreage management focused on construction, landscape, food & garden, soils & water, fuels & utilities and more at the Urban Rancher website
Household Water Use
Do you get your water from a well? Learn how to keep your drinking water safe now and in the future. Topics include groundwater basics, drinking water quality and health, contaminants information, health effects of pesticides in drinking water and more. Go to the link for Household Water Use
News for Small Acreage Landowners
- FEMA Floodplain Map Changes Flathead County was notified in a letter from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) that about 1000 parcels in Evergreen will be added to an area known as the Special Flood Hazard Area.
- More on Cover Cropping "Cover crops a good step toward soil and livestock health" is the name of this informational article from the High Plains/Midwest Ag Journal. Check it out and the related articles by clicking the link here....
- Water Policy Interim Committee Meeting The group will hold a meeting in Kalispell this summer to gather public comment on legislative proposals regarding exempt wells.
- Research Reveals Benefits of Rain-Fed Winter Cover Crops Even farmers in areas with just seven inches of rain per year can reap the benefits of winter cover crops without irrigation, University of California research has found. Growing a winter cover crop helps retain soil nitrogen, improves water infiltration,...
- Living by the Water - Word of Wisdom Watch this 4 minute video from the Bitterroot about one man's experience of building next to the water. Follow this link...