How to Increase Wildlife Habitat in Your Garden

A garden can be a sanctuary for humans and animals alike. You can make your garden into a habitat for wildlife in your area, and enjoy viewing your animal visitors all year round.

Like all of us, animals need food, water, and shelter. If you provide these, animals will move in. Here are some tips for getting wildlife to make your garden the habitat of choice.

Food

Depending on the kind of wildlife you want to attract, there are all kinds of foods you can put out. For birds, you can use a store-bought mix of seeds and/or peanuts. Squirrels and chipmunks also love peanuts and seeds, especially sunflower seeds. If you can’t get a mix of seeds, go with black oil sunflower seeds. They are economical and enjoyed by most birds and squirrels.
Deer enjoy corn, as do blue jays, some woodpeckers and crows (ask any corn farmer how much crows and blackbirds like corn!).

If you mix table scraps such as dried fruits, cooked vegetables, or bread crumbs with solid animal fat (you can purchase this as suet or just use the fat from chicken broth or bacon), it will attract birds, raccoons, opossums, and other interesting critters. If you don’t have animal fat, use peanut butter. Raccoons are particularly fond of peanut butter.

Some of the best food sources are natural ones – plant a blackberry or raspberry patch (it will grow faster than weeds!) or berry-bearing shrubs such as holly or shrub roses.

Shelter

Animals are often homeless in these days of habitat destruction. Provide birdhouses for local birds. If you live in an area with wrens, they will happily move into a bucket that is hung from a tree or leaning against the house (placed on a high location first). Martins, which are birds that eat mosquitoes, like houses mounted on tall poles.

Construct rock piles to provide shelter for chipmunks, toads, and other rodents. Plant shrubbery that will attract and shelter animals. Dense, thorny shrubs may be an annoyance for us, but they are a protective sanctuary for small animals and birds.

Water

Water is essential to survival. Just providing water alone can attract wildlife to your garden, especially if you live in an area with hot, dry summers or cold winters (when all the water’s frozen).

It does not have to be complicated; some people just set out random containers such as pie plates or take-out food containers, set a rock inside them to hold them down, and fill with water. You can get more elaborate, of course, and construct an entire water feature or pond for your garden. No matter how you do it, make sure it’s near a window so you can watch the wildlife partake.

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The Benefits of Wheatgrass Juice

“Wheatgrass” is simply sprouted wheat. There are several stages of sprouting wheat kernels or berries. Very short sprouts can be dried and ground for a sugar substitute; fully-grown wheat sprouts, of course, are the high stalks of wheat harvested by farmers for more wheat berries. In between these is wheat grass, several inches of green, grass-like leaves sprouted from wheat berries. The juice from this grass is full of health benefits, some of which are discussed below.

1. Healing

Wheatgrass helps restore a balanced state in the body (homeostasis), creating an environment that is unfriendly for the growth of pathogens and “bad” bacteria.

A University of Texas Cancer Center study indicated cancer-inhibiting qualities in wheatgrass juice, due to the high chlorophyll content.

Anemia can be helped by the ingestion of wheatgrass juice. (see “Blood” below for more information)

2. Nutrition

The nutritional profile of wheatgrass is impressive. It is full of amino acids, which are the basic components of protein. It also has around 30 enzymes, calcium, iron, magnesium, beta-carotene, potassium, and zinc.

3. Skin

Creams, ointments, and lotions made with wheatgrass juice soothe sunburn and other burns. It can help itchy rashes and heal acne as well. Even soaking in a bath to which a cup or so of wheatgrass juice has been added can soothe and heal skin.

4. Cleansing

The saponins in wheatgrass juice are responsible for the “foamy” appearance of the juice, but they also help detoxify the body by boosting the lymphatic system.

Wheatgrass juice is said to remove mucus and other toxins from the body, making it an ideal internal cleanser.

The chlorophyll in wheatgrass juice purifies water, changing the chemical composition of some water additives, such as fluorine, into harmless ones. A small amount of wheatgrass juice added to the water used to wash produce helps remove toxic pesticides, preservatives, or other chemicals.

5. Blood

Wheatgrass juice is almost 70 percent chlorophyll, and the chlorophyll molecule closely resembles that of the human hemin molecule. Hemin, which has iron as its central component, binds with protein to produce hemoglobin. Chlorophyll has magnesium rather than iron as its central component, but is otherwise strikingly similar to the hemin molecule. Thus, wheatgrass helps build red blood cells, making it an all-around blood-builder and a good treatment for anemia.

The boosting effect wheatgrass has on the blood helps alleviate high blood pressure.

6. Weight control

Wheatgrass juice is full of protein, and chlorophyll inhibits the breakdown of protein. Thus, wheatgrass helps you to feel full for a long time after ingestion.

The high nutritional value of wheatgrass juice also contributes to feeling satisfied after drinking it. It is assimilated quickly by the body, which also contributes to appetite satisfaction.

Wheatgrass juice gives you energy, which helps motivate you to exercise and be more active, contributing to weight loss and maintenance.

Watercress – A Natural Superfood

Watercress, Nasturtium officinale, is a crispy, peppery source of vitamins such as C, B1, B6, K, and E. It also has iron, manganese, zinc, and potassium, as well as the key combination of calcium and magnesium. It has other components discussed below.

Historically, watercress was used to cure and prevent scurvy. This semi-aquatic plant is a natural superfood. Here are some of the ways you can benefit from eating this plant.

* Vitamin K, in which watercress is rich, helps promote blood clotting.

* Iodine present in watercress helps promote thyroid health.

* Iron and zinc are good for healthy hair and fingernails, and iron helps build healthy blood.

* Studies suggest that watercress can help prevent and fight cancer. It contains phenylethyl isothiocyanate, a glucosinolate that is strongly implicated in cancer prevention. At this writing, a study in England is occurring that is testing watercress’s ability to inhibit the growth of breast cancer cells. Glucosinolates also enhance the liver’s ability to detoxify the body.

* Watercress can enhance eye health. It contains lutein, a substance that is very good for the eyes.

* For treating colds, watercress can be very helpful. You can use the dried variety to make a tea, or eat an ounce or so on your salad when you have a cold.

* Watercress is implicated in skin health. It contains lysine, which helps fight the viral skin rash known as shingles.

* The fiber in watercress is a good addition to a healthful diet full of fiber.

So how can you incorporate this superfood into your diet? Here are some ideas and suggestions.

First, look for organic watercress that is dark green if you are buying it from a store. You can also grow it yourself, in a container or garden, as long as its environment is very wet.

Add a bunch of watercress to a hot pasta dish, and toss it until the watercress wilts a bit. Blend a bunch in a blender with mayonnaise (made from healthy oils) and a few teaspoons of lemon juice to make a creamy sauce for fish and chicken, or a spread for crusty bread or crackers.

Try using it as a base for pesto sauce. Sandwiches and wraps are enhanced with the addition of watercress. Cucumber sandwiches in particular work well with this vegetable, and salads benefit from its fresh flavor. Watercress can be baked in quiches, stirred into soups, and added to sautes and stir-fries. Use it in place of spinach or any leafy green, either raw or cooked.

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