Cape Fear's Going Green • Spring 2024

Letter from the Editor

We love Spring festival season, as we get the chance to talk with many of you at area festivals. Be sure to visit the Cape Fear’s Going Green online calendar of green events: it’s on the “Calendar” tab on GoingGreenPublications. com. You don’t want to miss any fun events! If you have an environmental event you’d like to propose we add, send us an email or complete the form at the bottom of our calendar page.

In this issue: Marina Richie spent time at Jack Spruill’s farm and wrote about his success in having it protected for the future. We offer tips on how to get more involved in cleaning up our environment, and this issue contains the second of our installments on living sustainably for families with children. Cape Fear Garden Club’s “Gardening for Wildlife” committee explains its plan to make Wilmington an official Wildlife-Friendly Wilmington, and we tell you about growing programs to keep Bradford pear trees from proliferating unchecked.

Emily Lyons is back, offering spring recipes! We learn what to expect from the upcoming rare emergence of cicadas, and our kids corner tells us about marsh rabbits.

I wish you a wonderful Earth Day and a delightful Spring.

— Valerie L. Robertson Editor

Front Cover: Eastern cottontail rabbits (Sylvilagus floridanus) enjoy a tasty meal. These rabbits are found all throughout the Eastern half of the U.S. and in the Pacific Northwest. See Kids Korner page on the back cover to learn about marsh rabbits (Sylvilagus palustris), which live only along Eastern coastal areas. photo © [Danita Delimont] Adobe Stock 472886446

photo by Jennifer Butler

Beth Ackerly (left) and Valerie Robertson demonstrate their enthusiasm for fighting pollution at the 2023 Wilmington Earth Day Festival in Long Leaf Park. They claim they did not coordinate their attire in advance.

Spruill Conservation Farm Now Under Permanent Protection

by Marina Richie

The author joined Jack Spruill on a tour of the farm in November—beginning with a late afternoon walk into what’s known as the Louis tract, followed by a full day on the main farm, which tallies 120 acres in total.

Clambering over fallen branches, Jack Spruill strode into a wooded part of the Spruill Conservation Farm, three hours north of Wilmington near the town of Roper. Duetting hoots of barred owls gave voice to a canopy of oaks, poplars, beeches, gums and bald cypress on an early November evening.

Silver-haired, sturdy, and at home in the woods he’s roamed since he was a boy, Spruill takes pride in the old-growth trees as well as cultivated lands of the 120-acre family farm with 1,600 feet of shoreline on the Albemarle Sound. This is the homeland of indigenous peoples who lived for millennia in the region, long before the first Europeans arrived in the 1500s.*

The next day, Jack and I ducked under the arbor of a 100-year-old Scuppernong grape vine, gathered fallen pecans from

stately trees encircling the old home place, and perused heritage fig trees, each with a label that inevitably would lead to one of Spruill’s favorite beginnings, “I’ve got a story about that…”

A retired banker living in Hampstead, Spruill is known locally for his tenacious advocacy on behalf of wildlife-filled lands and waters. For 13 years, he looked for a way to donate the farm for “perpetual conservation, low-impact public access, environmental research and education programs.”

In December of 2023, he and his wife Jenny Spruill signed a conservation easement with Unique Places to Save, a nonprofit based in Chapel Hill. That marked the official act of turning over the reins to The Peanut Factory, a nonprofit arts residency program run by Julia Townsend and Lincoln Adams of Edenton (about 20 miles away. The name of the protected farm is officially the Spruill Farm Conservation Project.

“From the first day Julia and Lincoln landed on the Sound shore on their boat

in 2018, they started showing interest and helping,” Spruill said, impressed by their work ethic and fresh ideas.

Spruill was convinced he’d found the ideal new owners, but it took time to secure the conservation easement, a voluntary legal agreement that permanently protects the natural values no matter who owns the property.

“We knew Jack wanted to donate the farm for conservation, but never thought we’d be worthy,” Townsend said. Instead, they dreamed of being stewards, and that remains their preferred term.

The couple has rolled up their sleeves on multiple projects, from maintaining three public campsites by the water to ex-

(continued on page 4)

* The Secotan were the dominant tribe on the south shore of the Albemarle Sound. On the north shore, the Chowanoke were in the far western part of the Albemarle sound, and northeast of Spruill Farm on the north shore of the sound on the Yeopim River were the Yeopim.

photo by Marina Richie

Jack Spruill (left) with Cliff Purvis, who grows a bountiful vegetable garden on the farm.

photo by Marina Richie

Jack Spruill with the signpost that shows the farm has been designated a Certified Wildlife Habitat by the NC Wildlife Federation.

conservation

Spruill Farm... (continued from page 3)

Spruill Conservation Farm

There are only 2 public access points directly on the Albemarle Sound, the largest freshwater sound in North America.

* map information from One NC Naturally Conservation Planning Tool Artwork

panding the forest trail system and starting an annual fig festival. Their skills complement one another. Townsend is the artist and outgoing networker. Adams is the quieter handyman and avid outdoorsman.

I asked them what their vision might be for the farm in ten years.

“My goal would be to have students from little kids through college actively using the farm for research projects,” said Townsend. “I would love to have an annual art retreat for drawing and landscape maybe twice a year.”

Adams pictures visitors regaining the lost art of quiet observation in nature to experience the “hundreds of different organisms living here” and volunteering to give back to the farm that yields so many gifts.

While the conservation easement spells out details on protecting natural values and wildlife-friendly farming, the public access also reflects Spruill’s desire to make amends.

“I grew up in a segregated society,” he said. “Schools were segregated. Job opportunities were not nearly as available for Black people as they were for white people. If I can make this a place where people of all colors feel welcome, that’s a very small contribution to say I’m sorry for the heritage of exploitation and discrimination.”

Today, there are common areas on the shoreline always available for locals to fish, picnic and swim. The conservation easement assures “low-impact public access to cultivated land,

(continued on page 5)

photo by Susan Inglis Julia Townsend and Lincoln Adams, now officially stewards of the farm, at water’s edge.

Spruill Conservation Farm is located on 120 acres on the south shore of the Albemarle Sound.

by Lara Berkley, B+O Design Studio

People participating in “Big Planting Day” on the farm, over a Labor Day weekend, are observed by journalist Doward Jones (far left).

conservation

Spruill Farm... (continued from page 4)

woodlands, wetlands, Kendrick Creek and the shore of Albemarle Sound without regard to race or religious preference.”

On my visit, I met Cliff Purvis, who grows vegetables on two acres by the home place to provide for his family and friends. The arrangement is reciprocal. Purvis farms without paying for land, and his green thumb yields a wealth of vegetables exceeding what he can use. Townsend is helping Purvis reach out to food banks and farmer’s markets.

In an era of dwindling family farms and forests in North Carolina, the Spruill Conservation Farm preserves a vanishing way of life and cultivates a new way forward.

Spruill recalled when fields and trees melded together seamlessly on local farms. A forest was never expendable.

“Families heated their house with wood,” he said. “They washed clothes on Monday in a washpot heated by wood. They smoked pork and, in our case, herrings in the smokehouse.”

It made sense to fence pigs under oak and hickory to eat the nuts and for the sows to go under the sheltering roots of a fallen tree to give birth there, he explained to me. Bees that pollinated

Trees of the Louis Tract

“The Louis tract is a separate wooded tract—mostly hardwoods and Bald Cypress—that my grandparents gave us because they knew all family farms needed substantial hardwoods to provide wood to burn for curing tobacco, home heating and cooking, cypress and pine logs to saw for lumber to build and repair barns, fence posts and poles for stacking peanuts in the field. The Louis tract has always been completely wooded.”

(continued on page 6)

contributed photo

Bobby Wilkins displays the sign marking the trail named after his uncle, Roy Wilkins.

Natural tree adaption in the wetlands on the Louis tract.

Marina Richie peers through a tupelo gum on the Louis tract.

Cypress knees are typical of wetlands.

—Jack Spruill

Photos this article by Jack Spruill unless otherwise specified.

conservation

Spruill Farm... (continued from page 5)

Bobby Wilkins built this footbridge to allow the Bobby Wilkins trail to cross the tannic swamp waters, known as “black water,” connecting the farm’s standing water swamp to the Albemarle Sound. This waterway creates connection for fish species such as American Eel. A biodiversity hotspot, it supports native plants such as the cardinal flower in the foreground.

Map-apples grow wild on the Elizabeth

Author Marina Richie records a belted kingfisher.

Pileated woodpeckers have excavated a tree, which continues to support insects, birds and all kinds of wildlife well past what some might consider the tree’s useful lifetime.

contributed photo

Thomas Nixon’s sisters Maxine (left) and Mary (right) with niece Eileen enjoy the trail named in his honor.

contributed photo

Thomas Nixon cultivates corn, circa 2005.

Chesson Trail.

Spruill Farm... (continued from page 6)

vegetables thrived by foraging in the woods on seasonal blooms and building their hives in the hollows of old trees.

Today, Spruill sees ecosystem values in the large trees storing carbon and hosting biodiversity. So far, he and other citizen scientists have recorded more than 433 species on iNaturalist, from belted kingfishers to black bears.

As Townsend and Adams apply new ideas, they are also returning to older ways of growing local foods and living in harmony with wildlife.

“I want people to see beyond grass lawns and how many houses can be built, and to appreciate the forest instead of chopping it down,” said Townsend. She’s referring to the rampant clearcutting of family-owned intact woods to feed the Enviva wood pellet mill in Ahoskie, 40 miles to the north.

Leading me through the named woodland trails adjacent to cultivated fields, Spruill lingered by a carved sign honoring Thomas Nixon, a family friend who farmed, fished and hunted with his father. At each junction, I heard more stories of Nixons, Wilkins, Chessons, and

Marina Richie is a nature writer based in Bend, Oregon. She is the author of the book Halcyon Journey, In Search of the Belted Kingfisher, winner of the 2024 John Burroughs Medal. She has a special affinity for Hampstead, where her parents had retired, and advocates for conservation of the threatened forests of the southeast. She writes a bi-monthly blog on her website, www.marinarichie.com. conservation

Simmons—all local Black families who regularly walk here.

“All the people for whom trails are named loved the land,” Spruill said. “It wasn’t just a livelihood; it was a commitment to doing what was right for the land and for each other.”

That legacy of the Spruill Conservation Farm will endure long into the future.

To visit the Spruill Conservation Farm, please contact Julia Townsend at julia@spruillfarm. org. Learn more about the farm at www. spruillfarm.org or visit www.facebook.com/ spruillfarm/.

contributed photo

Julia Townsend (front, blue shirt) hosts visitors to Spruill Conservation Farm.

Bobby Wilkins puts up trail signs with Spruill, including this one marking the Elizabeth Chesson Trail.

What CAN You Do? How to Get Started in Sustainability

by Valerie Robertson

Sustainability: What can you do to make a difference?

As we talk to readers of this magazine, we get more and more feedback that people are eager to do something to clean up the planet or to help reduce the amount of carbon that is endangering the climate status quo. It’s easy to get discouraged if you don’t have information on whether the efforts you are making are in fact having any effect. This is the first in a series of articles suggesting ways you might get involved in being part of the solution.

For individuals

In order to be helpful in any meaningful way, you have to be tackling some problem or issue that inspires you personally.

Think about whether you’re interested in cleaning our planet, or helping reduce carbon, or both.

Become aware of what’s important in your home region. Here are some Cape Fear area resources:

Cape Fear’s Going Green’s website, GoingGreenPublications.com, offers links to nearly everything mentioned on this page, on its resources and calendar pages. Read CoastalReview.org; listen to WHQR’s “Coastline” show; read StarNews reporting by Gareth McGrath; attend any Cape Fear River Watch (CFRW) 1st Saturday Seminar.

Your first goal is this: Find a topic that interests you. If you don’t know yet what interests you, or if you’re new in town, pick five different events to attend. You’ll meet like-minded people, start building your own personal environmental education network, and learn where you might want to devote your time.

If you like birds: go on bird hikes; participate in the Christmas Bird Count (there are multiple “count circles” in our threecounty area); join Cape Fear Audubon; help with the “Lights Out” campaign; volunteer to be an on-call driver to take injured birds to Skywatch bird rescue.

Drawdown is a good resource if you’d like to broaden your thinking about how you can make a difference in your community and beyond. It is available in many libraries, and many of the materials are available online at drawdown.org.

If you like sea turtles and long walks on the beach, volunteer to walk the beach during nesting season.

If you want to help with litter cleanups, several groups organize them, including Surfrider, North Carolina Wildlife Federation, Keep New Hanover Beautiful and CFRW. You could organize one for your own neighborhood. (The day after trash pick-up day is a good choice.) Organize a Styrofoam collection point and deliver the pieces to the recycling center at University of North Carolina Wilmington.

Eat less meat—try one of Wilmington’s two all-vegan restaurants; visit a Wilmington Vegan potluck or “carrot mob;” attend VegFest in April and Veg-OUT Festival in the fall (both of which will have vegan food trucks).

Water quality: Volunteer to help creekwatchers take water measurements.

Like to garden? Do you know what species of tree supports more beneficial insects than any other? View one of Doug Tallamy’s presentations online or read his books; learn what plants are native here;

learn which insects can eat certain plants. Attend September’s Native Plant Festival; join the NC Native Plant Society; surrender part of your lawn to native plants; team up with neighbors to have your patch of meadow adjoin theirs. The North Carolina cooperative extension plant clinic and their Master Gardeners are great resources, whether you want your soil tested, have gardening questions, or want help picking appropriate plants for your garden.

Learn about local politics, help change ordinances that are obstacles to sustainable choices, or help encourage people to vote for the environment: League of Women Voters Environmental Action Team, League of Conservation Voters, Environmental Voter Project, Cape Fear Chapter of NC Sierra Club.

Participate in any citizen science effort. It’s free, and it’s fun to do solo or with your family and friends. Participate by recording wildlife you observe in an app such as iNaturalist, eBird or FrogWatch. The observations you post provide invaluable data scientists worldwide can use. Participate in an iNaturalist BioBlitz.

Become mindful of waste: How much energy is used by the Internet? or by cleaning our tap water?

Too busy to help? Donate to a local group you like. CFRW offers scholarships to get kids out on the water—often, for the very first time.

For groups

Almost any activity can be done on your own or with any group you belong to: your family, your neighborhood, place of worship, your child’s school, even a partnership your employer arranges with a local organization. You can help Alliance for Cape Fear Trees with a one-time treeplanting, or agree to water newly-planted trees over time until they get established. If the City of Wilmington participates in an Urban Heat Island Effect study, you could volunteer to drive one day, or you or your company could help recruit drivers for the event.

sustainable living

What Can You Do? Getting Started... (continued from page 8)

Help in a community garden (no experience required—they’ll tell you what’s a weed). Start a community garden. Set up a Styrofoam collection point. Buy a Kill-aWatt electricity monitor to see how much power your home appliances draw. Your company or place of worship could buy several and offer a “Kill-a-Watt Lending Library” to employees or members of the congregation. Encourage minimizing food waste and composting food waste that cannot be avoided.

For The Big Picture: What can you do that will have the most impact?

How can you know whether your efforts will make any difference in the grand scheme of things? Which projects are worthy of your time and resources?

One of our favorite information sources is Project Drawdown. You can learn about Project Drawdown and its ranking of climate solutions from the book of that name or online at drawdown.org. A large team of scientists and other professionals assembled a list of 100 activities that can serve to reduce the amount of CO2 . They calculated how much money it would cost to make a significant difference on each category, and ranked each by (1) how much money it would cost globally between now and the year 2050 to make a significant difference, (2) how much CO2 would be eliminated or not released by

this effort, and (3) the net financial profit of such effort. The categories were then ranked, from the most impactful to the least. Consulting this list can help you choose where to devote your efforts. It might also help you realize that efforts you’re already engaged in—such as educating young women, for example—may already rank high in the list of what you can do for the planet.

In this first article we hope to point out that there are innumerable ways you can help make a difference. In future issues we will go into greater detail about some of the opportunities mentioned briefly here. Email us at Editor@ GoingGreenPublications.com if you want to suggest a particular topic you’d like us to cover in depth.

Valerie Robertson is the founder and publisher of Cape Fear’s Going Green magazine.

Youth Volunteerism

Many young people under the age of 18 are looking for meaningful ways they can volunteer. If your organization offers opportunities for teenagers (or even younger), send us your information, and we’ll add it to our list.

Where to Find Cape Fear’s Going Green

Read It Online

All of our current and back issues are now available online! Go to our home page, www. goinggreenpublications.com, and click on any of the covers to pull up recent issues. Select the green “VIEW ARCHIVE” button to view our entire archives.

In the Community

Pick up a free copy at one of the locations listed below or at in-person meetings of environmental groups as they return to meeting live.

Arboretum/New Hanover County Extension Service, Aunt Kerry’s Pet Stop, Lovey’s Market, Old Books on Front Street, Pomegranate Books, Tidal Creek Co-op, UNCW, Shelton Herb Farm, area public library branches and many area Food Lion and Harris Teeter locations. See https://arcg.is/1WWi0y for online map.

Subscribe

For the price of postage and packaging, you can receive the next four issues in your own mailbox. Mail a check payable to “Going Green Publications” in the amount of $24 to P. O. Box 3164, Wilmington, NC 28406. Back issues of Cape Fear’s Going Green are available by calling us at (910) 547-4390. Sign up for our email list to be alerted when each new issue becomes available. Write us at publisher@goinggreenpublications.com

Living Sustainably for Families with Children—Spring Edition

by Beth Ackerly

Spring is finally here! By now, we’re noticing a respite from the cold—thankfully! The days are growing longer, and you have probably noticed the sprouting of leaves and the return of green all around you. You may notice yourself coming out of your winter “shell” and wanting to be more active. And, if you’re a parent of young children, your kids are probably itching to go outside and enjoy this beautiful season.

In my first article, I pointed out the challenges that families face when thinking about our kids’ futures in a world affected by climate change. I’m a parent to a now seven-year-old daughter, and I have committed to instilling “green” values in her and leading by example. For this issue, I’ve compiled a list of fun, active, and planet-friendly activities to enjoy with your kids this spring.

In our fall edition, I explained how to create the perfect compost pile in your backyard without any bins or equipment. By now, your compost pile should be ready for use! You’ll know it’s ready when you no longer see large clumps or visible food products in the mix. The soil will be dark brown, crumble easily and smell like earth.

Our family has built both a rain barrel for irrigation and several raised beds for our backyard garden, and both projects were relatively easy to do—there are plenty of tutorials to be found online. For the raised beds, we used recycled pallet wood that we got for free. If you can’t or don’t want to build your rain barrel

or garden beds yourself, you can find companies online that sell them made of recycled materials. Remember, no one can be perfect when it comes to sustainability, and not all of us have the same amount of time, resources or ability to take on the same projects.

Now, when it comes to gardening, I am admittedly a novice, but there are plenty of resources in the Cape Fear area to get you started. First, you can consult with your local Master Gardeners to find out what type of soil you have and which plants to grow together in the spring sea-

son. New Hanover, Pender and Brunswick counties all have Cooperative Extension offices, and New Hanover’s office happens to be located at the Arboretum. A trip to the Arboretum is a great family outing— your kids will enjoy seeing native plants, veggie gardens, a play area, and even a koi fish pond. Seed swap programs at the Davis Center at Maides Park in Wilmington and at the Pender County Library in Burgaw allow you to use seeds that others have harvested and give your harvested seeds back to the program at the end of the growing season. Also, do consider buying from local nurseries instead of big-box stores—local growers are knowledgeable about native plants, and buying directly from them helps sustain our local economy. Your kids will enjoy planting and creating your garden with you, and depending on their age and skill level, they can help with many of the tasks.

A spring picnic followed by birdwatching at one of our beautiful local parks is also a great way to enjoy time with the family. Be sure to bring reusable dishes, trays and utensils, or try compostable items from bamboo or birch. If you normally eat meat, consider a plant-based recipe you’ve never tried before!*

If you’re wanting to buy flowers for Mother’s Day, consider that up to 80% of flowers sold in the U.S. are imported, and many are covered in chemicals and pesticides. If you are going to buy flowers, choose from a local company and compost the flowers afterwards, or consider gifting something that can be planted in your garden instead.

No matter what holiday your family may celebrate, spring also usually comes with activities like egg hunts and egg dying. For a few years now, my daughter and I have been using plants to dye our eggs instead of store-bought dyes, which have chemicals in them and aren’t great for the environment. All you have to do is boil water with two tablespoons of white vinegar, and then let it simmer with different plants to achieve different colors. Turmeric gives you a bright yellow color; red cabbage will make blue dye; beets will give you a red

photo by Beth Ackerly Seven-year-old Luna enjoys the spring flowers during a family picnic.

The Cape Fear Garden Club “Gardening for Wildlife” Joins Movement to Become a Wildlife-Friendly Wilmington, North Carolina

The community of Wilmington, North Carolina is launching a new partnership with the National Wildlife Federation’s Community Wildlife Habitat™ program to become healthier, greener and more wildlife-friendly by committing to create wildlife habitat throughout its communities while also educating and engaging residents.

Healthy habitats and healthy communities go hand in hand. Too often communities suffer from pollution, disinvestment or other challenges that separate people from the natural world. When human communities suffer, wildlife suffers as well.

“By joining the National Wildlife Federation’s Community Wildlife Habitat program, Wilmington, North Carolina is sending a clear and powerful message to communities all over America that people working together can create healthy habitats and healthy communities, and make a difference in their own community and beyond,” said Patrick Fitzgerald, Senior Director of Community Wildlife.

The Cape Fear Garden Club incorporated committees within its club years ago to address how gardeners can support wildlife through gardening. The “Gardening for Wildlife” committee registered with the National Wildlife Federation on December 4, 2023 and is working to turn Wilmington into a “Wildlife Habitat Community” to preserve the natural beauty and diversity of this area as our city grows in population.

The campaign launched in January 2024 with a presentation on the benefits of a city becoming a “Wildlife Habitat Community,” given by Natalie Bohorquez, North Carolina Wildlife Federation, at the club’s general meeting.

Recent and upcoming events include planting beneficial native trees at Eden Village on March 28, 2024 and participation in the Wilmington Earth Day Festival at Long Leaf Park on April 20. There will be information at these events on wildlife habitats and how residents of Wilmington can help. In addition, an informative workshop will be held on May 28 to explore mosquito prevention without harming pollinators and wildlife. Presentations will be given to local organizations such as the Wilmington Cape Fear Rose Society as well, in which presenters will call on Wilmington residents to join our efforts in making Wilmington a “Community Wildlife Habitat.”

Since 1973, the National Wildlife Federation has provided millions of people with the basic guidelines for making their landscapes more hospitable for wildlife.

To date, through the Certified Wildlife Habitat™ program, the National Wildlife Federation has certified more than 250,000 sites including yards, schools, businesses, community gardens, parks and places of worship. Each of these sites provides the four basic elements that all wildlife need to thrive: food, water, cover and places to

Living Sustainably... (continued from page 10)

dye; red onions for green and paprika for pink. The ingredients can be put in next year’s compost pile afterwards. These eggs may not be as bright neon as store-bought dye, but they are still beautiful!

Think about all the plastic Easter eggs you see at the dollar store every year. Chances are you already have some—do you really need more? Wooden eggs can be a fun project for kids to paint and hide too and are at the very least more sustainable than plastic. In place of plastic Easter

grass, my daughter likes to use construction paper or, if she’s feeling extra creative, she likes to actually collect grass or other “treasures” from the yard to decorate with.

So much learning can happen when we get our kids outdoors, and it’s my hope that the ideas I’ve shared will help your family develop eco-friendly habits that last a lifetime. Happy spring!

*See “sustainable picnics” article in the summer 2009 Cape Fear’s Going Green:

raise young, while integrating sustainable gardening and landscaping practices.

To become certified as a National Wildlife Federation Community Wildlife Habitat™ The Cape Fear Garden Club “Gardening for Wildlife” committee is calling on Wilmington residents to certify their own property at NWF.org/Certify and join the Club’s education and outreach efforts to learn about how residents can create a healthier, greener and more wildlifefriendly community.

For additional information about the Cape Fear Garden Club and its efforts to certify Wilmington as a Wildlife Habitat Community please visit:

www.facebook.com/gardeningforwildlifecf

www.capefeargardenclub.org/

For more information about the National Wildlife Federation’s Community Wildlife Habitat network, please go to: www.nwf.org/ community.

For more National Wildlife Federation news, visit: www.nwf.org/news.

*See nwf.org/CERTIFY for guidelines.

The National Wildlife Federation is America’s largest conservation organization, uniting all Americans to ensure wildlife thrive in a rapidly changing world. Follow them on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

issuu.com/capefearsgoinggreen/docs/ summer2009_vol.2-2.

Source:

sustainablerookie.com/homeandlifestyle/ sustainable-bucket-list-spring

Beth Ackerly is a current graduate student at UNCW, pursuing both her M.S. in Environmental Science and Education, and her graduate certificate in GIS. She enjoys hiking, writing, music and spending time with her seven-year-old daughter, Luna.

The N.C. Tree Bounty Program: Removing Invasive Species One Tree at a Time gardening

by Sara Rhue

Spring is here! And, therefore, so is the sound of baby birds chirping—and the rotten decay of fish drifting from white flowers? There is one tree in particular that stands out more than the rest: Pyrus calleryana ‘Bradford,’ also known as the Bradford pear tree.

Despite being part of the rose family, these trees smell horrid. But that is not the problem. These trees are an invasive species—plants or animals that are not native to an area—harming the southeastern United States by replacing native trees and creating “food deserts” for birds.* The Bradford pear is native to parts of Asia. In China, insects work in harmony with this tree, supporting native Chinese birds as a result. That is not happening in America.

The Bradford pear is a type of Callery pear, but bred to be sterile. However, Callery pears can on occasion crosspollinate with Bradfords, and when they do, they can create fruit that birds and mammals eat. When these animals move around, and spread excretion containing seeds, new fertile trees grow. And when they grow, they grow thorns.

Wildlife thrives with native plants, not invasive species. Bradford pears’ lifespans are short, they are prone to breakage, and sprout up in many places, blocking out native plants and grasses as a result. They

also have large, stiff thorns that can harm humans, animals or native wildlife. To combat these negative consequences, North Carolina has introduced a bounty program to reduce the number of Bradford pears, turning these trees into far less romantic outlaws.

The N.C. Tree Bounty Program occurs in select cities at select times. On an assigned day, participants can exchange evidence—before-and-after photos of Bradford Pear tree removal on the homeowners’ property—for a new, native tree. Up to five trees can be exchanged for participating residents. On November 4, 2023, the program came to Wilmington, with a total of 209 trees exchanged.

Fayetteville, Arkansas, was the first to create this bounty program. Their Urban Forestry Advisory Board had the idea of starting a bounty. John Scott, Fayetteville’s Urban Forester, recognized that the Burmese python bounty program in Florida might work as a model for a tree removal program. Fayetteville’s Parks and Recreation Department developed the program in 2018, with Scott’s help. They conduct the bounty program annually, and other states are starting to follow suit.

Thus far, the North Carolina version of the program has hit eight North Carolina locations (including Wilmington), with two more events planned for the near future. The program will be offered in Spindale on April 6 and in Hendersonville on May 4. (The latter is open to Henderson County residents only.) Organizations collaborating to make this program possible include the Urban Forest Council, N.C. Forest Service and North Carolina Wildlife Federation.

So the next time you are sitting on a sidewalk under a white blossoming tree, beware the smell of fish oil. Because while that waft may come from something beautiful, in the end, it’s truly harmful.

To learn more about North Carolina’s Tree Bounty Program, please visit treebountync.com.

Sources:

invasivespeciesinfo.gov/ what-are-invasive-species bellarmine.edu/faculty/drobinson/bradpear. asp#:~:text=Bradford%20Pear%20is%20 a%20variety,introduced%20into%20 western%20horticulture%20in1908.

conservingcarolina.org/bradford-pears-prettybut-invasive/#:~:text=Problematic%20 for%20the%20Landscape,poorest%20 conditions%20and%20proliferating%20fast. treebountync.com

forestry.ces.ncsu.edu/2023/02/nc-bradfordpear-bounty/#:~:text=Bradford%20 pears%20can%20also%20breed,to%20 be%20removed%20and%20replaced

usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2024/03/25/ bradford-pear-trees-smell-invasive-speciesbanned/73040722007/

usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2022/04/18/ bradford-pear-trees-ban/7122246001/

Sarah Rhue is a creative writing major and studio art minor at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. She is inspired by nature, history, and art. She is the Spring 2024 intern for Going Green.

Pyrus calleryana ‘Bradford’ is the scientific name for the Bradford pear cultivar. It is the same species as the callery pear, but the Bradford cultivar was specifically bred to be sterile, thornless and relatively resistant to pests.

photo Adobe 196028501

The Bradford pear was for a while the darling of landscapers, and still can be seen planted in rows along roadways.

* A food desert is an area with limited access to nutritious food.

photo Adobe 472886446

The Bradford pear was cultivated for its beauty but, as is often the case, cultivating the species had unintended consequences.

green walls

Green Wall – continued

Trees Please! Oaks Are the Most

trees by Marcia Doering

Oaks provide a host of offerings for wildlife. We are all familiar with the acorns produced over the summer and available for wildlife to eat late summer and fall. But in the spring, oaks are the larval host plant for specific moths and butterflies.

Oaks support more life forms and interactions than any other tree genus in North America, sustaining everything from acorn-collection woodpeckers to caterpillars that dazzle like jewels. Songbirds such as the Carolina chickadee can be seen carrying a caterpillar to feed its nestlings.

Per Doug Tallamy, an entomologist at the University of Delaware, ninety-six percent of terrestrial birds rear their young on insects, and caterpillars are a particularly important food source. In addition, he says that native trees support more of the caterpillars birds need to feed their young. During the breeding season, Carolina chickadees and other birds need a lot of insects—in the case of chickadees, more than 5,000 per clutch of hatchlings!

situated near the water. The appreciation of these trees is so important.

space. One of the tenants will be the Wilmington-based software company Untappd, creator of the popular beer app.

Frances Parnell, Emeritus Member of the Cape Fear Garden Club, posts: “It isn’t what we suggest for planting, but how we save what is already in place. Too many important trees like our oaks and hollies are needed for food, cover, and places to raise young are removed to plant lawns and smaller plants. Once the larger and slow-growing vegetation is removed it takes a long time to grow them again.”

August 1, 2024 is the Submission Deadline for the fall issue of Going Green

It’s Mott’s hope that, through the success of this green wall, they will grow in popularity in our area. And that way, more building occupants will enjoy the health and aesthetic benefits of systems like these in the near future.

Where to Find

Cape Fear’s Going Green

Read It Online

Please preserve our mature trees and garden for wildlife.

Suggested reading:

The Nature of Oaks, The Rich Ecology of Our Most Essential Native Trees, by Douglas W. Tallamy or Youtube video https://www. youtube.com/watch?v=M54o9052btE

Oak: The Frame of Civilization, by William Bryant Logan.

from the City of Wilmington Tree Commission for Outstanding Function Design at the New Hanover Regional Medical Center Betty Cameron Women’s and Children’s Center (a rooftop garden that can be visited by patients and their families).

This article was published previously in the February 2024 Clippings, the newsletter of the Cape Fear Garden Club.

What was it about this project that pulled Mott out of retirement for what was obviously going to involve a lot of time and effort?

For one thing, the sheer complexity of the project was enticing. It was new and different and challenging. “I had to learn an awful lot. I mean I’d done this kind of work forever, but still this is a new system I haven’t used... Also just the logistics of it, you know. Building something inside here is like building a ship in a bottle. It was complex enough to be interesting.”

Many species of oaks prosper in Wilmington. Along Market Street in the historic district are laurel oaks as well as seven live oaks in front of the Kenan House at 17th and Market. The campus of UNCW has more than a dozen species including the magnificent promenade of live oaks at the front Quadrangle. Airlie Road has many Live Oaks that have the characteristic wind-blown shape because they are

Marcia Doering is a Certified Arborist, Retired, of the International Society of Arboriculture and Landscape Consultant of National Garden Clubs, Inc. She is a passionate gardener, spending at least four hours a day in the garden—and sometimes eight. Retired from UNCW as Horticulture Specialist, Landscape Services, Doering had the pleasure of working all over campus as well as at the Chancellor’s home, Kenan House.

Even more important, though, this project was an opportunity for him to prove that such a complicated project could be very successful. And he was concerned that if a green wall were attempted but were not a success, that might be the end of using green wall technology in Wilmington. But he was confident he could make it work. “If it’s successful and it gets some of the notoriety I think it’s going to get, you’ll see a lot of them, maybe not this big. This is a major undertaking in anybody’s book.” He believes that the success of his green wall will encourage others.

We wouldn’t be here without our advertisers, and you could become one of them!

Would you like to reach consumers interested in sustainable lifestyles?

Mott plans to put together information on the newly completed green wall, enough so that people will have documentation on how it was created. What he’d really like is to put together a class to teach what he’s learned to people who are eager to learn.

Contact us today to learn more: (910)547-4390 or advertising@goinggreenpublications.com.

Who will get to visit the wall every day? As floors of the building are finished, the building will be rented out as office

All our current and back issues are now available online! Go to our home page, www.goinggreenpublications.com, and click on any of the covers to pull up the issue. Select the green “VIEW ARCHIVE” button to view our entire catalog of issues.

In the Community

Pick up a free copy at one of the locations listed below or at in-person meetings of environmental groups as they return to meeting live.

Arboretum/New Hanover County Extension Service, Aunt Kerry’s Pet Stop, Lovey’s Market, Old Books on Front Street, Pomegranate Books, Tidal Creek Co-op, UNCW, Shelton Herb Farm, area public library branches and many area Food Lion and Harris Teeter locations. See https://arcg.is/1WWi0y for online map.

Subscribe

For the price of postage and packaging, you can receive the next four issues in your own mailbox. Mail a check payable to “Going Green Publications” in the amount of $24 to P. O. Box 3164, Wilmington, NC 28406.

Back issues of Cape Fear’s Going Green are available by calling us at (910) 547-4390.

Sign up for our email list to be alerted when each new issue becomes available. Write us at publisher@goinggreenpublications.com.

Although Steve Mott has once again proclaimed himself to be retired, you may be able to reach him through his website, www. mottlandscaping.com. A

Year-Round • M-Sat 9-4

Year-Round • M-Sat 8-5

web page: LocalHarvest.org www.sheltonherbfarmnc.com www.sheltonherbfarm.com

photo by Valerie Robertson A scissor lift was used to allow placement of the plants. The lift only reached 22 feet, so Mott had to place a ladder on top of the platform shown at the top of this photo, in order to reach the last several feet of wall.

photo by Valerie Robertson Each plant in the wall lives in its original pot, which is placed directly in its tray. The plants will grow towards the light, so maintenance of the wall will include a monthly task of removing each pot by hand, turning it 180 degrees, and putting it back in place.

Have you tried one of our recipes?

We’d love to see a photo! Email us at publisher@goinggreenpublications.com.

Recipes

Welcome to Going Green’s recipe page, where we bring you new ideas for how to enjoy local and seasonal foods. For the purpose of this page, “local” includes North and South Carolina.

Local Berry Banana Ice Cream

• 2 large ripe bananas

• 1/4 cup chopped fresh strawberries

• 1/4 cup chopped fresh blueberries

Peel bananas and cut into small chunks. Place banana pieces flat, in a single layer, in a freezer-safe container or bag. Freeze until firm (at least 2 hours). When bananas are firm, process frozen bananas and fresh berries in a food processor until smooth. You may need to stop a few times to scrape down the sides of the food processor with a rubber spatula. Garnish with a few blueberries and slices of strawberry.

Rosemary Sweet Potato Hash

• 4 sweet potatoes

• 3 stalks celery, chopped finely

• 1/2 onion, diced

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• 1 Tablespoon fresh or dry rosemary

• salt and pepper, to taste

Peel sweet potatoes and cut into small cubes. In a large covered pot, boil sweet potato cubes until fork tender yet still firm, about 15 minutes. You don’t want them too soft or they will fall apart. Drain sweet potatoes. In a large pan, heat a slosh of cooking oil over medium high heat. When oil is hot, sautée celery, onion, garlic and rosemary until celery and onion are soft. Add the cooked sweet potato and cook an additional 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Original recipes courtesy of Emily Lyons. These recipes originally appeared in the Spring 2016 issue of Cape Fear’s Going Green. For more of our original vegan, gluten-free recipes, download our recipe booklet from issuu.com/capefearsgoinggreen.

Hot Pepper Vinegar

• handful local peppers of choice (jalapeño, tobacco, cayenne, habanero, ghost, reaper, etc.)

• 4 cloves garlic, smashed

• vinegar of choice (apple cider, white, etc.)

Place vinegar in a small pot and heat over medium high until simmering (do not bring to a boil). While vinegar is simmering, make small slits in your peppers and place peppers and garlic in a glass bottle or container. After a few minutes, pour the vinegar into your glass bottle or container. Let vinegar sit overnight to cool and allow flavors to develop.

Hot pepper vinegar goes great on cooked local greens!

Emily Lyons, previously a private vegan chef and cook for Sealevel City and Eatery 17, is currently a 10+ year vegan, CPA specializing in cybersecurity and data privacy, and ultrarunner. She is now known for her vegan ultrarunning snacks such as the famous pickle sandwich (pickle in a hollowed-out baguette) she eats during her 100+ mile races.

Riverfront Farmers’ Market

Reopens for the Season

Spring is here, which means the Riverfront Farmers’ Market in historic downtown Wilmington is, too. Opening April 13, 2024, Wilmington’s longest-running farmers’ market will be open Saturdays 8:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. through November 23 on Dock Street between Water Street and 2nd Street (except during Riverfest).

Entering its 21st season, farmers continue to be the soul of the market. Both Hanchey’s Farms and Backyard Gardeners have provided produce and plants since the market’s inception, with newcomer Old Heritage Farms entering its third season. Several customer favorites such as Lite Work Farms (mushrooms), CraftGrown Farms (microgreens) and Castle Hayne Farms (cut flowers) participate weekly. Products are locally grown, locally produced and locally made.

Everything from fresh eggs & honey, bread, baked goods, jams, pickles, meat, and fine art crafted by some of Wilmington’s top jewelers and artisans are readily available. Each Saturday will showcase a variety of alternating vendors, so no two weekends will be exactly the same.

Admission is free.

Visit www.riverfrontfarmersmarket.org for more information.

Hannah Block Historic USO Community Arts Center Presents

Vocal Workshop: Saturday, April 27th, 9 am - 4 pm

Concert Tech Rehearsal: Sunday, April 28th, 6 pm

Workshop Concert: Sunday, April 28th, 7 pm

Venue: Hannah Block Historic USO/ Community Arts Center 120 S 2nd St. Wilmington, NC

 Learn to refine the art of singing by ear

 Dive into new music Day 1, then perform Day 2

 No audition required! Just your enthusiasm and love for music

2DAY &VOCALWORKSHOP PERFORMANCE

 Connect with like-minded individuals in a supportive environment

Pre-Register Now Online at: www.acommunitychoir.net

Quality drinking water in our community is the heart and sou Whole Water Solutions We pro bottled water quality drinking w at your tap affordably, so you c feel good about the water you'r drinking and the plastic waste you're avoiding

sink RO system

inst

volunteerism Cape Fear Surfrider

The Surfrider Foundation is dedicated to the protection and enjoyment of the world’s ocean, waves, and beaches, for all people, through a powerful activist network. The local Cape Fear Chapter is one of the most active chapters in the Southeast region.

Opportunities to get involved include monthly beach cleanups, guest presentations at our bimonthly chapter parties, assisting in water quality monitoring, volunteering for our JEDI (justice, equity, diversity and inclusion) program offering swim, surf and eco-education lessons to the underserved communities in our region and more. Visit the website to learn when the next gathering is scheduled.

Memberships are another great way to support the work. Visit the capefear.surfrider.org website for details on upcoming events.

photo by Jess Kotrick Beach clean-ups are more fun with a few friends.

Making Infrastructure Greener Without Breaking the Bank

by Anna Reh-Gingerich

What comes to mind when you hear the words, “water pollution” or “polluted water?”

There is a high chance that what comes to mind has a physical component to it, like pipes discharging into a waterway or litter tangled up along a shoreline. However, our waterways are also frequently affected by pollutants that we cannot see that are easily picked up by stormwater runoff.

As rain falls on hard surfaces, like parking lots and rooftops, it will “run off” of these surfaces and into storm drains and ditches. It is important to remember that these are not connected to a treatment plant, so anything that goes into a storm drain or ditch will drain into local waterways. This includes pollutants we can see—such as litter—as well as pollutants we cannot see—such as bacteria. Bacteria can cause swimming advisories and shut down areas classified for shellfish harvest, which builds a solid case for it to be the main pollutant of concern within the Bradley and Hewletts Creeks Watershed Restoration Plan.

Restoring areas affected by pollution we cannot see requires some creativity. There are daily actions we can take to reduce bacterial pollution, like picking up after our pets on public and private property. However, stormwater runoff is not picky about what it picks up on its journey to our waterways. If we also target

A swale is a broad, vegetated channel that prevents pollutants from reaching local waterways by slowing down and soaking in stormwater runoff. A vegetated swale placed between parking aisles can treat stormwater runoff from a parking lot and add natural beauty to the space, like this example at UNCW’s Center for Marine Science.

and treat stormwater runoff itself, we can address several pollutants before they even have a chance to reach our waterways.

An effective method is to install green infrastructure, also known as naturebased stormwater solutions. Nature-based stormwater solutions work by slowing down, spreading out, and soaking in stormwater runoff before it can wash pollution into local waterways. Examples include infiltration areas, rain gardens, constructed

grow well in coastal rain gardens.

wetlands, rainwater harvesting systems, permeable pavement and more.

To help restore Bradley Creek and Hewletts Creek by preventing polluted stormwater runoff from reaching both creeks, the City of Wilmington’s Heal Our Waterways Program is excited to announce a new cost-share rebate program. This program incentivizes green infrastructure on commercial, mixed-use, high-density, and homeowners association (HOA) properties within the Bradley and Hewletts Creeks Watersheds. Developments are already subject to state and local stormwater treatment regulations, so the goal of this program is to go beyond the amount of treatment required within a property’s stormwater permit. Eligible properties can receive up to $10,000 in rebates upon successful installation of green infrastructure that accomplishes this goal.

By installing nature-based stormwater solutions that go above and beyond local and state stormwater regulations, we can actively work to restore water quality rather than maintain the status quo. And while we cannot always visibly see the pollutants we are treating, we absolutely can see the work being done on land to keep pollution out of the waterways we love.

Want to be part of the solution? Check out the eligibility requirements for the program below.

Eligibility for the New Heal Our Waterways Green Infrastructure Cost-Share Rebate Program

• Property must fall within the Bradley Creek or Hewletts Creek Watersheds (you can check your watershed address at www.wilmingtonnc.gov/watershedmap)

• Property type must be commercial, mixed-use, high-density or HOA common area

• Project must be approved by the City’s Heal Our Waterways Program prior to construction

• Project must provide greater treatment than permitted stormwater requirements

• Applicants will need to supply their own contractor for design and construction

Funding is first-come, first-served each fiscal year, so apply today!

Visit www.healourwaterways.org to see examples of nature-based stormwater solutions, the Bradley and Hewletts Creeks Watershed Restoration Plan, and the official cost-share program brochure. Anna Reh-Gingerich is the Watershed Coordinator for the City of Wilmington’s Heal Our Waterways Program.

photo by Anna Reh-Gingerich

A colorful rain garden at University of North Carolina Wilmington soaks in stormwater runoff from a nearby parking lot before it can wash pollutants into Bradley Creek. Native plants, like the coreopsis and dwarf palmetto pictured here,

photo by Anna Reh-Gingerich

No Mow May?

Consider letting your lawn relax a bit this May, to give the bees and other pollinators sustenance and cover until the full bloom of summer. Visit www.gbbg.org/ no-mow-may-benefits-pollinators-bees/ to learn three ways not mowing your lawn benefits your landscape and area pollinators. See migratorybirdday.org to learn how to celebrate World Migratory Bird Day on May 11 and October 12. The 2024 theme is “Protect Insects, Protect Birds.”

May 11 • October 12

migratorybirdday.org

environmental education

New Science Exhibitions Now Open at Cape Fear Museum

by Cape Fear Museum

Cape Fear Museum of History and Science is excited to announce the opening of two new traveling exhibitions— Hubble Space Telescope: New Views of the Universe and Science + You.

Hubble Space Telescope: New Views of the Universe is a NASA traveling exhibition that immerses visitors in the magnificence and mystery of Hubble’s mission and introduces the James Webb Space Telescope. The exhibit will be on view through June 23, 2024.

The exhibit features a scale model of the Hubble Space Telescope as well as several “satellite” stations that offer visitors a hands-on experience with the same technology that allows Hubble to gaze at distant galaxies.

Exhibit patrons will learn about Hubble’s various instruments and the role that each one plays in providing exciting new images and discoveries. The exhibit

showcases Hubble’s iconic images and data of planets, galaxies, regions around black holes, and many other fascinating cosmic entities that have captivated scientists for centuries. Experience the life and history of NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope through this stunning interactive exhibit.

Science + You is a groundbreaking interactive children’s exhibit that lets young learners ages 2 to 10 discover how science plays a role in health and wellness. The exhibit will be on view through September  8, 2024.

The bi-lingual exhibit offers a childsized laboratory for children to explore and experiment in. Through hands-on, interactive machinery, processes, and technology, Science + You demonstrates the role science plays in keeping the body healthy.

The exhibit was created by Kohl Children’s Museum of Greater Chicago, located in Glenview, Illinois. The Museum worked closely with scientists at Abbott

contributed photo

Cape Fear Museum is hosting a NASA traveling exhibit that immerses visitors in the magnificence and mystery of Hubble’s mission and introduces the James Webb Space Telescope. The exhibit features a scale model of the Hubble Space Telescope as well as several “satellite” units (stations) that offer visitors a hands-on experience with the same technology that allows Hubble to gaze at distant galaxies.

contributed photo

Children ages 2 to 10 become scientists in the Science + You exhibit as they learn about the human body, scientific tools and scientists through problem solving, investigation and experimentation. The immersive, open-ended exhibits provide children with opportunities to play, explore, discover, and experiment.

Laboratories to design the exhibit to reflect the environment of an actual laboratory.

Cape Fear Museum is excited to announce the opening of these two new exhibitions and encourages the public to plan a visit soon. “One of the Museum’s strategic objectives is to offer interactive

STEM-rich exhibits to our community,” stated Museum Director Kate Baillon. “We hope to inspire and engage all visitors and especially our youngest ones to cultivate a lifelong interest in science.”

Cape Fear Museum of History and Science, a Smithsonian Affiliate, is located at 814 Market Street and is open Tuesday–Saturday, 9 a.m.–5 p.m. and Sunday 1–5 p.m. Standard admission prices are $8 for adults; $7 for seniors, students and military with valid ID; $5 for children 6–17; and free for children 5 and under and for museum members. New Hanover County residents’ free day is the first Sunday of each month. Cape Fear Museum is also a proud partner of Museums for All and offers free admission to SNAP benefit recipients when they present an EBT card. For more information, see www.capefearmuseum.com.

Cape Fear Astronomical Society

Founded in 1983, the Cape Fear Astronomical Society of southeast North Carolina is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the advancement of amateur astronomy. They observe the heavens, hold cookouts for the whole family, take field trips to sites of astronomical interest and meet with other astronomers throughout the southeast. The public is welcome at their regularly scheduled public observing sessions, and many members let you view through their telescope. Learn more at www.capefearastro.org.

voting for the environment

Conservation Voting Scorecard

How are your elected officials voting on environmental issues?

The North Carolina League of Conservation Voters (NCLCV) has just released its 2023 Scorecard. Since 1999, NCLCV has consistently released a scorecard—their primary tool for evaluating and reporting on support or opposition by elected officials on environmental issues.

You can see how your legislator did at their website.

The Scorecard includes environmental and democracy adversaries and champions. These champions are recognized in the Scorecard and NCLCV will gather to celebrate them on Wednesday, May 22 at the organization’s annual Green Tie Awards. Learn more at nclcv.org.

Environmental Voter Project

The Environmental Voter Project is an organization that works to convert nonvoting environmentalists into voters. They identify inactive environmentalists and transform them into consistent voters to strengthen the environmental movement. You can participate by attending a training session and then contacting people on their list to encourage them to commit to voting in the next election. Learn more at environmentalvoter.org.

Do you have a new environmental job? Let us know!

E-mail us at editor@goinggreenpublications.com.

Similarly, do you have exciting environmental news? Let us know! E-mail us at editor@goinggreenpublications.com.

Duke Energy Will Pay You Up to $9,000 to Go Solar with a Battery

by Kayla Dorsey

Living by the coast, we are no strangers to power outages. They happen every summer during hurricane season, and sometimes even in the winter when all the energy consumed to heat our homes creates too much demand on the grid.

To mitigate this issue, the North Carolina Utilities Commission approved the PowerPair pilot and rebate program in January of 2024 for homeowners purchasing a battery-tied solar system. This program will not only allow homeowners to produce and own their own power, but also allow Duke Energy to study how distributed solar and battery storage can help stabilize North Carolina’s electric grid and reduce the potential for grid failure.

For those who participate in PowerPair, there are several incentives available based on the size of the installed system. All participants will receive a solar rebate of $0.36 per kW (maxing out at 10kW or $3,600) and a battery rebate of $400 per kWh (maxing out at 13.5kWh or $5,400). This means that Duke Energy will be paying up to $9,000 to customers to get solar panels and a battery, on top of the 30% federal tax credit.

Duke is willing to pay an additional monthly incentive for those who elect to participate in the Battery Control option of $6.50 per kW, per month, adjusted by a

70.9% capability factor for the duration of the ten-year program. This basically means that a participating homeowner will earn $6.50 per kW of 70.9% of the total power output of their storage system for ten years. And the best part is that there is no limit to this incentive!

This Battery Control option will permit the utility to discharge a home’s battery reserves down to 20% between 30-36 times per year when the grid is vulnerable. By tapping into nearby residential batteries, Duke hopes to supplement the required load during times of peak demand or when electrical transmission gets interrupted. The incentive for participation will be paid monthly regardless of any discharge; however, eligibility for participation in the Battery Control option will depend on your interconnection policy.

Duke’s PowerPair rebate is truly groundbreaking and the largest we’ve

seen in our area. What’s amazing is the fact that it has a twofold design that best serves both those who value energy independence and those who are trying to save the most money each month.

Did you watch the eclipse on April 8, 2024?

Did you travel to the path of totality, or watch a partial?

Did you notice a change in the animals around you, or the quality of sunlight? We’re collecting stories of what people experienced. Email us your impressions at—with a photo if you like—and we may share your comments.

publisher@GoingGreenPublications.com

To determine how much energy your roof can produce and see how much you could save with the PowerPair rebate, contact your local Duke Energy Trade Ally specializing in solar panels.

About Cape Fear Solar Systems

As a Duke Energy Trade Ally, Cape Fear Solar Systems has been installing high quality, turnkey systems in the Cape Fear region since 2007. The company is currently ranked as the number one installer in southeastern North Carolina and the Greenest Contractor in America by Solar Power World, with over 4,500 installations to-date. In addition to roof-mounted solar arrays and battery backups, Cape Fear Solar also offers electric vehicle charging stations, solar carports, and groundmounted systems.

Kayla Dorsey is Marketing Coordinator for Cape Fear Solar Systems, LLC.

HEALTHY LIVING • YOGA

FITNESS • GREEN VENDORS

VEGAN & VEGETARIAN FOOD

HEALTH & WELLNESS SPEAKERS

VEGAN BATH & BODY • RECYCLING

REUSABLE HOME GOODS

ALTERNATIVE & TRADITIONAL

HEALTH CARE • FOOD TRUCKS

GREEN BEAUTY & WELLNESS

VEGETARIAN & VEGAN LIFESTYLE VENDORS

NUTRITION & HOLISTIC PRODUCTS FREE

PRESENTS

HEALTHIER EATING & LIVING FOR A

green events

Cape Fear Youth Climate Summit April 27

Hoggard High Schools students have organized a Cape Fear Youth Climate Summit for the afternoon of April 27, 2024 at the Cameron Art Museum.

Calling all middle school and high school students for the Cape Fear Youth Climate Summit! Join us at the Cameron Art Museum Reception Hall from 1:00–4:30 p.m. on April 27, 2024 for an event filled with inspiring talks, interactive workshops, and collaborative discussions.

This in-person event is a great chance for young people passionate about the environment to come together, share ideas, and take action within our local community. From learning about how to advocate about local environmental issues to discussing climate change solutions, this summit is designed to make climate education more accessible to empower the next generation of environmental leaders.

The event is open to all middle school and high school students (and parents are welcome if they choose).

Don’t miss out on this exciting opportunity to make a difference in your local community! Feel free to contact capefearyouthclimatesummit@gmail.com if you have any questions, and check out their Instagram @capefearyouthclimatesummit for more information about the speakers and workshops.

To register, follow the link to the event’s Instagram page, where you will find a link to the eventbrite registration page: www.instagram.com/capefearyouthclimatesummit/. The Cameron Art Museum is located at 3201 South 17th Street, Wilmington.

Flytrap Frolic June 1

It’s time for the annual Flytrap Frolic celebration of carnivorrous plants, organized by the NC Coastal Land Trust.

Join the fun at the annual Flytrap Frolic at the Stanley Rehder Carnivorous Plant Garden for a free environmental education event featuring native carnivorous plants. Garden guides will be available to help you learn about the garden and special wetlands that are home to these amazing, local carnivorous plants. Enjoy garden hikes, arts and crafts, educational tables and more, bring your camera for some great photos and celebrate all plants carnivorous! Additional details will be available closer to the event.

The event is free to attend. Ethically sourced flytraps will be available for sale while supplies last.

The garden is located behind Alderman Elementary School, 3800 Canterbury Road, Wilmington, North Carolina 28403.

Event times will be announced, but the frolic usually takes place from 10 a.m.–3 p.m.

For more information, visit the NC Coastal Land Trust website at coastallandtrust.org or call them at (910) 790-4524 x2100.

Thank You

We at Cape Fear’s Going Green would like to acknowledge the help of the advertisers who believed in us enough to advertise with us in 2023.

B + O: design studio, pllc

• Brunswick Electric Membership Corporation (BEMC)

• Cape Fear Bird Observatory

• DoodyCalls

• Cape Fear Audubon

• Cape Fear Solar Systems

• Extension Master Gardener Volunteer Association of New Hanover County

• Going Native Gardens

Co.

• Friends of the New Hanover County Arboretum

• Gray Cat Botanicals

• Great Outdoor Provision

• Healthy Home Pest Control

• Heinberg Insurance

•

Mitzy Jonkheer Jewelry

• New Hanover County Senior Resource Center

• NC Native Plant Society

• NC Native Plant Society–SE Coastal Chapter

• Old Books on Front Street

• Plastic Ocean Project

• Pomegranate Books & Zola

• Riverfront Farmers Market

• Shelton Herb Farm

•

The Veg-OUT Festival

• WHQR

• We Use Worms

• Whole Water Solutions

• Wild Bird & Garden

• Wilmington Earth Day Festival

• The Wilmington Farmers Market •

Wilmington VegFest

• Wilmington Water Tours •

New in 2024:

The Garden Shop on Moss

• The Shoals Center

Call us at (910)547-4390 for advertising rates, or download them directly from goinggreenpublications.com/advertise/

Wilmington VegFest Is Back at Legion Sports Complex

On Sunday, April 21, 2024, the community will come together for Wilmington VegFest, at Legion Sports Complex in Wilmington. The goal of the event is to educate the public about the benefits of adopting plant-based choices and to promote vegan-friendly businesses and organizations’ resources in the Wilmington area and beyond.

Festival-goers will have the opportunity to enjoy plant-based culinary delights, samples and giveaways from vendors such as Gold Potato Sponsor and Superieur Electrolytes. Oh My Cod Vegan Seafood is coming from Florida, and RiCoQui PlantBased Street Food, who will also be at the Wilmington Earth Day Festival the day before, is coming from Charlotte, NC. Over 40 vendors will bring a variety of animalfriendly wellness and beauty products,

apparel, health services, educational resources and more. An up-to-date vendor list can be found on the Wilmington VegFest 2024 Facebook event page, or on the VegFest website, vegfestexpos.com.

Presenting the festival again this year is Blueberry Lane Farm Animal Sanctuary. A percentage of sales will be donated back to the sanctuary in honor of their late Founder, Debbie Davis.

“Wilmington is a favorite city for us to host our festivals,” Helene Greenberg, Executive Director of Triangle VegFest, shares. “We love bringing the festival to the community and being able to reach more people year after year.”

The organizers are joining forces again with the Wilmington Earth Day Festival, to be held Saturday, April 20 at Long Leaf

Park from 12 p.m.–6 p.m., making it a perfect weekend to come to Wilmington and check out both events.

In an effort to reduce the amount of plastic at the festivals, Appalachian Water Collective, the alkaline water sponsor for Wilmington VegFest again this year, will be selling $3 bring-your-own-bottle (BYOB) unlimited water passes. Don’t buy bottled water—bring your own bottle and fill up over the course of the day. Or, for $5 you can buy and use a compostable cup.

A DJ will be present, and MZ Jazzy will emcee the festival. Children will enjoy the Family Fun Zone, with life-sized games, corn hole, free face painting and many other fun options.

Wilmington VegFest will take place, rain or shine, from 12 p.m.–4 p.m. on

(continued on page 24)

34th Annual Wilmington Earth Day Festival

Day Festival on Saturday, April 20, from noon to 6:00 p.m. in Long Leaf Park. It’s a fun-filled afternoon of live music, good food, environmental information and activities for the whole family—and it’s free!

This year’s theme is “Planet vs. Plastics.” More than 50 environmentally-minded exhibitors and vendors will be there, explaining issues that affect our environment and illustrating how you can get involved.

Come enjoy live music, dancing on the lawn, food trucks, and a Kids’ EcoZone for children to engage in environmental activities. One lucky raffle prize winner will go home with a Hurricane Kayak donated by Great Outdoor Provision Co. There will be recycling and composting stations to help

Wilmington VegFest...

(continued from page 24)

Sunday, April 21, 2024. The event is outdoors at Legion Sports Complex, 2149 Carolina Beach Road, Wilmington, on the backfield.

Admission is $10—but $5 for a limited time ahead of the festival. VegFest has multiple swag and VIP options this year, starting at $15. All are welcome to VegFest’s inclusive events. Festival-goers are asked to please bring their own bags and water bottles. Composting is encouraged and recycling bins will be available for non-compostable items.

For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit wilmingtonvegfest.com or vegfestexpos.com.

this be a zero-waste event. Bring your own refillable water bottle! T-shirts featuring the 2024 festival logo will be for sale.

“This is my favorite festival of the year,” said Valerie Robertson, publisher of Cape Fear’s Going Green magazine. “Good music, good food, fun things to do. And it’s the biggest gathering of environmental groups in Wilmington, so if you’re looking for a group to join or a place to volunteer, it’s a great way to learn about opportunities.”

Enjoy live entertainment provided by Yard Doggs, Rose Tattoo, Community Drummers and Dancers, and The Possums. The Rapping Red Oak will perform children’s songs and lead the children’s Nature Brigade Parade after Yard Doggs’ performance.

Food trucks will offer Latin American plant-based street food from RiCoQui; smash burgers and subs from Smash & Dash; New this year: Eastside Food and Well Fed Ed. Beverages available for purchase include beer from Hi-Wire Brewing, Fermental Beer & Wine, and Good Hops Brewing; wine from Noni Bacca Winery; and fruit smoothies from Smart Smoothies. Kombucha and hard kombucha will be available for sale from Panacea Brewing Company. Culligan Water will provide drinking water, and guests are encouraged to bring their own reusable water bottles. The festival strives to be zero-waste: food scraps will be composted and festival beverage cups will be reusable. Food trucks will offer vegan and vegetarian options and will serve their food in compostable packaging and offer compostable cutlery.

The Festival will be held at Long Leaf Park, 314 Pine Grove Drive, Wilmington. Parking is free at the park and also at the New Hanover County Senior Resource Center at 2222 South College Road. (The entrance is on Shipyard Boulevard.) Wave Transit will run free trolley shuttles between the Senior Center and the Festival all afternoon. In honor of Earth Day, travel on Wave Transit on all routes will be free all day Saturday, April 20 across all services, including RideMICRO and Paratransit.

Leashed pets are welcome in the grassy areas (not inside the tents or in the food area). Only trained service animals may accompany their humans on the bus.

This year the Earth Day Alliance is once again joining forces with Wilmington VegFest (wilmingtonvegfest.com), a family-friendly all-vegan festival. VegFest is on Sunday, April 21, at Legion Sports Complex, making it a perfect weekend to come to Wilmington for both events. (See article on page 24.)

Festival sponsors this year: Ponysaurus Brewing Co., Wilmington Brewing Co., Fermental Beer & Wine, Good Hops Brewing, Coyle Solar, City of Wilmington Stormwater Services, New Hanover County Parks and Gardens, Heal Our Waterways, Hurricane Kayaks, Great Outdoor Provision Co., Boot Scrap Productions, Cape Fear’s Going Green, Wave Transit, Wilmington Compost Company, Culligan Water and Modern Sound and Staging.

For details: wilmingtonearthday.com or (910) 798-7130.

ReStore PopUp Events

Habitat for Humanity now offers weekly ReStore PopUps! The family-friendly Earth Day PopUp at the downtown Restore will have food trucks and local artists, furniture restoration demos with sustainable materials from Fleabody’s Antique Mall, special offers at the ReStore, raffles, and educational opportunities for all! New Hanover County Beekeepers Association will bring their live bee observation house, and Plastic Ocean Project will offer educational materials and activities.

Habitat welcomes a variety of food trucks to their ReStores Monday–Saturday, as well as fellow organizations and local vendors on Saturdays for their weekly ReStore PopUp Markets.

If you have any questions or are a food truck or business/organization interested in participating, please visit www.capefearhabitat.org/restore-popup-events/ or contact Olivia Baker at ReStoreVC@capefearhabitat.org.

Race for the Planet 5K

The Race for the Planet is on Sunday April 21, 2024 to Sunday April 28, 2024. It includes the following events: a Run for the Planet 5K, a Run for the Planet VIRTUAL 5K, and 1 Mile Fun Run (Timed). All race proceeds support the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher Green Team through the North Carolina Aquarium Society!

There will be three great race options. The virtual component of the race will allow you to participate in the run from anywhere on Earth, and the event will attract 10,000 runners from all over the planet.

The 2024 Race for the Planet welcomes racers of all skill levels with a fun, no-pressure atmosphere to do something healthy for themselves and for the planet.

Learn more at https://runsignup.com/Race/NC/KureBeach/ RaceforthePlanet5K.

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We love to hear from our readers.

Email us at editor@ goinggreenpublications.com.

pomegranate books

“A good little bookstore… is a laboratory for our coming together.”

Ross Gay

“I love walking into a bookstore. It's like all my friends are sitting on shelves, waving their pages at me.”

Where to Find Cape Fear’s Going Green

Read It Online

ALL our current and back issues are now available online! Go to our home page, www.goinggreenpublications.com, and click on any of the covers to pull up the issue. Select the green “VIEW ARCHIVE” button to view our entire catalog of issues.

In the Community

Pick up a free copy at one of the locations listed below or at in-person meetings of environmental groups as they return to meeting live.

Arboretum/New Hanover County Extension Service, Aunt Kerry’s Pet Stop, Lovey’s Market, Old Books on Front Street, Pomegranate Books, Tidal Creek Co-op, UNCW, Shelton Herb Farm, area public library branches and many area Food Lion and Harris Teeter locations. See https://arcg.is/1WWi0y for online map.

Subscribe

For the price of postage and packaging, you can receive the next four issues in your own mailbox. Mail a check payable to “Going Green Publications” in the amount of $24 to P. O. Box 3164, Wilmington, NC 28406.

Back issues of Cape Fear’s Going Green are available by calling us at (910) 547-4390.

Sign up for our email list to be alerted when each new issue becomes available. Email us at publisher@goinggreenpublications.com.

Environmental Film Festival Films Available for Viewing Online

The DC Environmental Film Festival is the largest green film festival in the world. Each March in Washington, D.C., the festival presents more than 100 films to audiences of more than 20,000. Since 1993 their mission has been to celebrate Earth and inspire understanding and stewardship of the environment through the power of film.

If you missed this year’s event, you can still watch many of the past films online, via dceff.org/watchnow.

a waterways and ocean friendly, plastic free business roasting organic, shade grown and small farm coffee lots

4418 PARK AVE

910.452.1107

Transitions

Sam Athey, Ph.D. recently accepted a position with EarthEcho International as Program Manager of their new Marine Plastics Ambassadors program. EarthEcho International is a nonprofit organization that envisions a world where every individual, from all backgrounds and experiences, has the opportunity and tools to create a healthy and thriving environment. EarthEcho’s mission is to build a global youth movement to protect and restore our ocean planet, a critical part of creating a sustainable and equitable future for all.

EarthEcho was established by explorer and advocate Philippe Cousteau, Jr., in honor of his father, Philippe Cousteau Sr., and grandfather, legendary explorer Jacques-Yves Cousteau. EarthEcho has reached more than 2 million people in 146 countries, providing original education content, immersive training and leadership experiences, and active collaboration networks free of charge for youth and the teachers and community leaders who work with them. Learn more at earthecho.org.

In October 2023, Athey was appointed to the board of the local Surfrider Cape Fear chapter as Vice Chair.

UNCW Professor of Economics Dr. Peter Schuhmann has been appointed by the United Nations as a member of the Pool of Experts of the United Nations Regular Process for Global Reporting and Assessment of the State of the Marine Environment. He is listed under “Specialty 4: The South Atlantic Ocean and the Wider Caribbean.”

Congratulations to author Marina Richie for being awarded the Burroughs Award for her book, Halcyon Journey: In Search of the Belted Kingfisher. Richie traveled to New York in April to receive the award.

Wilmington City Council member Salette Andrews has been appointed to the National League of Cities Energy, Environment and Natural Resources Federal Advocacy Committee. This will enable her to advocate for environmental issues important to us at the federal level.

hhpestcontrol.com/moisture-control/

4/15/24, 8:07 AM

All the words in the crossword can be found somewhere in the pages of this issue.

The answer key appears on page 30.

Crossword - Crossword Labs

Crossword

Across

5. A type of renewable energy that sources energy from the sun

7. A soft pear-shaped fruit with sweet dark flesh and many small seeds

10. An agency responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research

12. A type of nature-based stormwater solution

15. An edible tropical tuber with pinkish orange, slightly sweet flesh

16. A type of volunteer at Cape Fear River Watch

Down

1. A bright yellow aromatic powder

2. A non-profit dedicated to the protection and enjoyment of the world's ocean, waves, and beaches

3. A group of people living in the same place

4. The location of Wilmington's Riverfront Farmers’ Market

6. A set of principles focused on waste prevention that encourages redesigning resource life cycles

8. The variety of life in the world

9. A widely planted ornamental deciduous tree

11. A bird rescue in Castle Hayne, NC

13. Ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one biological cell

14. A sum paid for capturing a particular tree

Crossword by Shelby Diehl.

your ecological house™

It’s Time to Switch to Climate Survival Mode

“The era of global warming has ended, the era of global boiling has arrived.”

— Naomi Klein

This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate 2014

It’s a tale of two towns, and two fires.

In 2017, the 24,000-acre Milli fire roared through Oregon’s Deschutes National Forest toward the charming mountain community of Sisters, home to more than 2,000 people. It seemed that nothing would stop the conflagration from torching the whole town.

Nothing, that is, except the forest itself, which grew right up to Sisters’ edge. That’s because, earlier that year, the Deschutes Collaborative Forest Project (DCFP), a group of local volunteers consisting of loggers, environmentalists, firefighters and others, thinned the smaller trees and burned the underbrush—a process known as controlled or prescribed burning—in the woods surrounding the town. When the wildfire reached that buffer zone, lack of fuel caused it to slow enough so it could be extinguished by firefighters or, in some areas, die out on its own. Yet the beautiful, mature trees, though somewhat blackened, still stood like guardian spirits at the town’s boundary.

In 2023, two environmental factors, neglected ecosystem management and climate change, combined to reduce the historic Hawaiian oceanside town of Lahaina to smoldering embers. The management negligence was the failure—or refusal by the state and local governments, influenced by corporate landowners—to heed the warnings of ecologists about the fire hazard of vast fields of invasive grass growing down the nearby volcano slopes

to the edge of town, despite several previous, large-scale grass fires on the island. No prophylactic measures, such as allowing goats to eat the grasses near Lahaina, were taken.

The climate factor was twofold. During the weeks leading up to the fire, an abnormal, rapidly intensifying drought (“flash drought”) rendered Maui’s grass fields tinder dry. Then, just before the fire, a seasonal high-pressure zone north of the island combined with a low-pressure zone caused by an unusually strong hurricane passing to its south to produce high winds that rushed across the grass fields toward the town. Then something sparked the fire, and a few hours later 97 lives and 2,000 buildings were lost.

But the Lahaina fire was just one of many severe, and often tragic, impacts of climate change this year. To many environmental observers, 2023 marks the crossing of a threshold into a precarious future in which such impacts strike with greatly increased frequency but at unpredictable times and locations. If so, the question becomes, “What are we going to do about it?”

Perhaps another way to put that question is, “Should we emulate Sisters? Or, Lahaina?”

The obvious answer is for us to take a proactive approach and prepare for climate disasters—be they fires, extreme heat waves, flash droughts, flash floods or tornadoes—as well as we can.

To start, we must accept two premises: (1) yesteryear’s climate is gone, and next year’s climate impacts are potentially menacing, no matter where we are on the planet; and (2) focusing some of our attention and resources on survival doesn’t mean we should reduce our efforts to stop emissions, addressing only the symptoms and not the cause of the climate crisis. It is clear that we must do both. But we have to stay alive, and protect our infrastructure and economy, to maintain our capacity to tackle emissions.

While the task of building responsive and resilient systems to survive a global threat of climate change might seem daunting, we should remember that the hazards can be broken down into localespecific types, with floods prioritized in some areas and tornadoes in others, according to assessed local vulnerabilities. Much of the response, then, can be community based, as was the DCFP’s work to save the small town of Sisters at our ecological house.

© Philip S. Wenz, 2006–2024 Philip S. Wenz writes about the environment and related topics.

Visit his blog at firebirdjournal.com.

Cover Your Ears—Hear Come the Cicadas! insects

by Morgan Greene

If you’re planning a trip to Illinois this summer, pack some earplugs—it’s going to get pretty loud.

A very special event is happening in the cicada world this year: two different broods of periodical cicadas will be emerging across the country together for the first time in over 200 years! To understand just how rare this occurrence is, let’s take a look at the peculiarity of the cicada life cycle.

Cicadas are more than just large, noisy insects that herald the arrival of summer. These buzzy bugs all begin life as tiny nymphs that burrow into the ground shortly after hatching to live off the sap of tree roots. Annual cicada nymphs emerge from the ground two years later to molt and become adults (perhaps we should call them biannual cicadas), while periodical cicadas take either 13 or 17 years to reach maturity.

Although we see annual cicadas every summer, the longer brood time of periodical cicadas makes them a more rare phenomenon. It’s especially rare for periodical cicada broods to hatch at the same time—in fact, the last double emergence of periodical cicadas was in 1803—but this summer, both 13 and 17 year cicadas will be singing from the treetops across the country.

The 17-year cicadas of Brood XIII, otherwise known as the Northern Illinois Brood, will in fact be emerging in Northern Illinois, as well as parts of Wisconsin and Michigan. Brood XIX, the Great Southern Brood, will emerge throughout the South and parts of the Midwest—these are the cicadas joining our summer chorus in North Carolina. Although the broods are not expected

Morgan

to overlap very much, XIII and XIX cicadas could meet along the borders of their expected emergence zones around northern Illinois.

Keep an ear out for the Great Southern Brood this summer! If you’re thinking of traveling west, you might be one of the lucky few to hear both periodical broods this year. And if you’re heading to northern Illinois, well… maybe you’ll be able to hear again by the next double emergence.

Notes:

1 nationalgeographic.com/animals/ invertebrates/facts/cicadas

2 cicadas.uconn.edu/

3 nbcnews.com/science/science-news/ cicadas-2024-emergence-periodicalbrood-2024-map-cicada-rcna134152

4 livescience.com/animals/insects/a-trillion-cicadas-will-descend-on-the-usthis-spring-in-rare-event-that-couldleave-unforgettable-stench

Riley’s 13-Year Cicada, one of the species in Brood XIX that we could see in North Carolina. Observation © @nick_nc, inaturalist.org/photos/277105083. No changes made.

Pharoah Cicada, one of the species that will be emerging with Brood XIII. Observation © Hans Holbrook, inaturalist.org/photos/352035531. No changes made.

Pharoah Cicada, one of the species that will be emerging with Brood XIII. Observation © Hans Holbrook, inaturalist.org/photos/352035687.

Greene is an alum of University of North Carolina Wilmington and marketing associate at Bald Head Island Conservancy. In her spare time, she writes about insects and other arthropods on her blog, The Arthroblogger (arthroblogger.com).

Cape Fear’s Going Green

Marsh Rabbits (Sylvilagus palustris) are a type of Lagomorph native to our area. Lagomorphs are mammals that are very similar to rodents such as mice, except they have a few more teeth. These small rabbits live in undisturbed marshes and swamps along the Eastern United States coastal regions. Because they have to live in swamps and marshes that have not been touched by people, these little cottontails are on the endangered species list.

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Unlike marsh rabbits, this Eastern Cottontail rabbit, or Sylvilagus floridanus, has tall ears.

Kid’s Korner is brought to you by Shannon Bradburn Pragosa.

Marsh Rabbits— The Dancers of the Marsh

Did You Know?

When you think of a rabbit you probably think of the Eastern Cottontail that has big floppy ears and thick fur. The Marsh Rabbit is the same size as a cottontail, but they look much smaller because they have little ears and they do not have thick fur. They have short legs and a short tail. They may not look like a cartoon bunny, but they are adorable in their own way!

These small rabbits enjoy eating a variety of wetland plants. Some of their favorites include cattails, rushes and duck potato (also called lanceleaf arrowhead). They also enjoy the yummy blackberries that grow in the marsh. Do you like blackberries too?

Circle the Correct Answer

Which of the following animals is a Lagomorph?

Hare Rat Squirrel

Marsh Rabbits have to live in areas with large amounts of water. This is why they love marshes and swamps! They are great swimmers and jump into the water to get away from predators—animals that want to eat them.

Since a Marsh Rabbit eats aquatic plants and lives in swamps and marshes it has to be good at hiding. Alligators, hawks, owls and snakes all think these little rabbits make great snacks. It is a good thing these little bunnies are fast swimmers!

True or False?

Marsh Rabbits are most active during the day

What Can You Do to Help Marsh Rabbits?

Marsh Rabbits are currently considered endangered. This means that there are not many of them left. If we do not help them, then these little bunnies could become extinct. When a species of animal goes extinct, that means that there are no more of them living on earth.

In order to help the Marsh Rabbits, we have to protect our marshes, swamps, and wetlands. There are a lot of fun ways you and your family can do this!

If you have a yard, talk to your parents about starting a rain garden. These help clean water runoff before it winds up in our wetlands. If the water is clean then the Marsh Rabbits stay healthy. Your family can visit state parks, such as Carolina Beach State Park, to learn about wetlands and how you can protect them.

Even if you do not have a yard, or cannot get to a state park, you can still do your part by recycling what you can, and picking up any trash you see. When trash gets carried away by rainfall it can end up in our wetlands. This trash hurts all creatures living in these areas, including the cute little marsh rabbit.

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Marsh rabbits are strong swimmers and are found only near regions of water.

True or False?—False. They are more active at night.

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Marsh rabbits have short ears and a short tail.