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Tucson Audubon Society
Urban Habitat Gardening and Landscaping
This page has resources for people interested in making their yards and neighborhoods more friendly to wildlife. There is a growing interest in enjoying backyard birds and butterflies. Landscaping and gardening can also have a positive effect on wildlife populations by restoring native species to urban habitat.
Background—Urban Habitat Issues and
General Information
"Native Birds Are In Trouble In Tucson. Is
There Hope?"
Will Turner has written this article in the Tucson Audubon newsletter, the Vermilion Flycatcher, about the
status of urban birds in Tucson. While studies show that native bird species diversity decreases with density of
urban housing, one study suggests that the presence of native vegetation is a more
important factor for native bird diversity. This suggests that even where housing density
is high, the use of native vegetation could increase diversity and numbers
of native birds species!
Audubon magazine's backyard articles: Audubon magazine regularly runs articles about habitat gardening in backyards, and the issues that backyard gardeners face. Click the link above for the Web version.
Urban Habitat Programs and Studies
National
Wildlife Federation will certify your yard as wildlife habitat!
Learn about their backyard
wildlife habitat creation and certification program.
Tucson Bird Count: The "TBC" is a University of Arizona program that studies birds in the Tucson urban area and the factors (vegetation, zoning) that affect their numbers and diversity. Their results are beginning to point the way toward exactly what urban vegetation conditions we should encourage in order to maximize urban birds. Read Will Turner's explanation of the project published in the Tucson Audubon newsletter. You can volunteer to survey birds for the TBC!
Hand's-on Guidance to
Urban Habitat Gardening and Landscaping
"Enjoying Birds
in your Back Yard": You can get this pamphlet at the Tucson Audubon Nature
Shop, 300 E University Ave, #120, Tucson, AZ, 85705; call 629-0510.
Arizona Native Plant
Society booklets
The
Arizona Native Plant Society, a great source of information
about native plants, and has published a series of pamphlets on gardening (including
plants to attract birds and butterflies). Some of these are available in the
Tucson Audubon Nature Shops. The one
about gardening for birds was co-authored by the Tucson Audubon Society.
Rainwater Harvesting
Rainwater harvesting can be key to your efforts to restore habitat in
yards, lots and neighborhoods. Especially in dry climates, channeling rain
and runoff into basins, swales and cisterns can help to establish native
plants and keep them alive, with minimal use of our precious potable water
supply.
Rainwater
Harvesting for Drylands
Order this book by permaculture specialist Brad Lancaster. Everything you
need to know about working with rainwater in the Sonoran Desert.
Forgotten
Rain: Rediscovering Rainwater Harvesting
Another excellent book on rainwater harvesting oriented toward desert
regions, by Heather Kinkade-Levario.
City
of Tucson's Water Harvesting Guidance Manuel
This manual has been adopted by the Tucson City Council as a guidance
document for city workers and contractors in designing infrastructure that
makes use of rainwater, rather than simply shunting it into storm drains
and washes.
Demonstration
Sites for Habitat Gardening and Landscaping
Tohono
Chul Park is Located northwest of
Tucson, at 7366 N. Paseo del Norte (north side of Ina Road, west of Oracle Road). It is a
good place to get desert landscaping ideasContact the park at (520) 742-6455.
Tucson Botanical Garden
The Botanical Garden has many classes and tours, including regular bird gardening tours. There
is weekly Saturday morning assistance with composting, and there are a variety of other
educational opportunities there. It is also simply a good place to visit to get ideas for
desert gardening. It is located in Tucson, at 2150 North Alvernon Way. Contact them at
(520) 326-9686.
Arizona-Sonora Desert
Museum
The museum is another place to
go for educational opportunities and gardening ideas. It is a combination of zoo,
botanical garden, and natural history museum. It is located several miles west of Tucson,
at 2021 N Kinney Road. Contact them at (520) 883-1380.
Desert Botanical Garden
Located in Phoenix,
this also is a good place to get ideas
for desert gardening and landscaping. It is located at 1201 N Galvin Parkway,
Phoenix.
Other
Resources
Arid-Southwestern
Gardening Information is provided U of A College of Agriculture
and Life Sciences. Site has a vast amount of information on gardening in
arid climates. See also the U of A Cooperative
Extension Pima County Home Horticulture page.
Native Bees
More ideas about gardening to attracting dwindling native bees (quite safe and beneficial)
can be found at The Bee Works.
Gardening
& Composting
For more general
information about gardening in Tucson, consult the Tucson Organic Gardeners!
They have excellent advice on composting.
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This page was updated on 02/09/06