If you see one of your neighbors hasn’t mowed their lawn in a while, it could be on purpose. On a walk the other day, a leafy, unmanicured yard at 42nd Avenue and Hamilton Street caught our eye. There weren’t any flowers planted and it looked like the trees and native plants hadn’t been pruned or tended to in a while. We assumed that was because no one was living in the house, but when we looked closer we saw a sign on one of the trees marked Certified Wildlife Habitat.

The National Wildlife Federation (NWF) will certify anything from an apartment balcony to a vast acreaged farm if you can show you’ve created an environment that attracts birds and other wildlife to restore the natural habitat in commercial and residential areas.

You can become certified through four easy steps on the NWF website. A video by NWF naturalist Dave Mizejewski gives tips on creating an inviting ecosystem for wildlife right in your own backyard.

We hope to see more signs like this around town.

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