Meet Carol Rice, who has lived at her 5-acre property in Barrington for 29 years. Carol has an incredible amount of plant and animal diversity present in her oak savanna and prairie habitats. The savanna was her first restoration project, and has 6 species of oaks, 2 species of hickories, 10 species of ferns, 20 species of sedges, and many understory and shrub species in addition to the spring and summer wildflowers and grasses. Every year they try to remove invasive plant species, and continuously pull out lilies of the valley. They try to plant several new trees and shrubs each year. The prairie is a more recent project and is flourishing. She enjoys spreading the word about conservation to other homeowners, which is something that attracted her to the
[email protected] program. She advises those new to sustainable efforts to watch for an increase in the numbers of species on your property as the years go by and appreciate the improved health of the land. She is also heavily involved with the WPPC’s “Natural Garden in Your Yard” mentoring program, so be sure to check out their website if you’re not familiar with this fantastic local program (www.thewppc.org).