September 2020
OCEAN COUNTY SOIL CONSERVATION DISTRICT NEWS, PROGRAMS & EVENTS
Soil is the foundation of all life on Earth! Attend one of OCSCD's online educational programs, or engage with our many environmental education partners throughout Ocean County. Experience nature at its roots!
EDUCATIONAL WEBINARS
Attracting Birds to Your Jersey-Friendly Yard
September 1, 7:00-8:00pm
Hosted by the Barnegat Bay Partnership, OCSCD and RCE
Join Barnegat Bay Partnership, OCSCD and RCE for our 2020 Jersey-Friendly Yards Webinar Series: Wild About Jersey-Friendly Yards. On September 1, join us for Attracting Birds to Your Jersey-Friendly Yard. Native plants are the key to attracting birds to your yard. They provide the habitat, food, shelter and nesting places that birds need to survive. By creating a landscape of beautiful plants that are compatible with our native soils, you can make your yard a low-maintenance, chemical-free oasis for the birds! Presenter: Becky Laboy, Education Outreach Specialist, OCSCD. Registration required. For more information contact Karen Walzer kwalzer@ocean.edu.
Get the Dirt on Your Soil - Webinar Series
September 9, 24 and October 8, 7:00-8:00pm
Hosted by Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Ocean County
Healthy lawns and gardens start with healthy soil. Join this webinar series to learn more about your soil and how to keep it healthy. Free!

Sept 9: Don't Treat Your Soil Like Dirt
An attractive and productive lawn and garden starts with getting to know your soil. This program will teach you the basics about soil, so you can start building a healthy foundation for your garden. Presented by Becky Laboy, Education Outreach Specialist, on September 9 at 7pm. Pre-registration required.

Sept 24: Digging Deeper: What's Your Soil Telling You?
Get the scoop on your soil by taking a soil test. Find out the importance of testing your soil, how to conduct a soil test, and how to interpret the results to keep your lawn and garden healthy and happy. Presented by Dr. Stephanie Murphy, Director of the Rutgers Soil testing Laboratory, on September 24 at 7pm. Pre-registration required.

Oct 8: Root Out Soil Compaction
Soil compaction is a major problem impacting your lawn and garden. Learn what causes soil compaction, how it affects soil health, and how to correct soil compaction in the home landscape. Presented by Dr. Steve Yergeau, County Agent with Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Atlantic and Ocean Counties, on October 8 at 7pm. Pre-registration required.

For more information please call 732-505-3671 or email tbecker@co.ocean.nj.us
Wild About Composting
September 15, 7:00-8:00pm
Hosted by the Barnegat Bay Partnership, OCSCD and RCE
Join Barnegat Bay Partnership, OCSCD and RCE for our 2020 Jersey-Friendly Yards Webinar Series: Wild About Jersey-Friendly Yards. On September 15, join us for Wild About Composting. Compost and leaves are great resources for gardeners and provide an excellent source of food and shelter for animals. Sandra Blain-Snow will discuss how to invite a host of animals, birds and beneficial insects into your yard by recycling organic materials. Stop bagging leaves and taking them to the curb and start building a wildlife sanctuary in your Jersey Friendly Yard. Presenter: Sandra Blain-Snow, Recycling Program Aide, Ocean County Department of Solid Waste Management. Registration required. For more information contact Karen Walzer kwalzer@ocean.edu.
How and When to Clean-up the Winter Wildlife Garden
September 29, 7:00-8:00pm
Hosted by the Barnegat Bay Partnership, OCSCD and RCE
Join Barnegat Bay Partnership, OCSCD and RCE for our 2020 Jersey-Friendly Yards Webinar Series: Wild About Jersey-Friendly Yards. On September 29, join us for How and When to Clean-up the Winter Wildlife Garden. From the perspective of a life-long naturalist intimate with the workings of the natural world, Pat Sutton will share countless common-sense garden maintenance techniques that will help property owners avoid common practices that actually harm rather than benefit wildlife. Presenter: Pat Sutton, Educator and Naturalist, Pat Sutton’s Wildlife Garden. Registration required. For more information contact Karen Walzer kwalzer@ocean.edu. Photo by Tony Hisgett
Weekends at the Reservoir
September 10, 7:00-8:00pm
Hosted by the Brick Township Municipal Utilities Authority
Join BTMUA for the final program in their Weekend at the Reservoir series this summer. On September 10 from 7:00-8:00pm, Ann Earon will present Fall - Putting Your Garden to Sleep. Learn how to prepare your garden for the fall and winter seasons. For questions and to register, contact Shari Kondrup at skondrup@brickmua.com
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT...
Combating Climate Change with a
Jersey-Friendly Yard
Live Webinar Recording Available
In case you missed our program, Combating Climate Change with a Jersey-Friendly Yard, on July 23, hosted by the Pinelands Commission, you can click to access a live recording, and watch it at your leisure on YouTube. No password needed.
Creature Feature - Shorebirds of NJ
Live Webinar Recording Available
In case you missed our program, Creature Feature: Shorebirds of New Jersey, on July 14, hosted by Jaques Cousteau National Estuarine Research Reserve, you can click to access a live recording, and watch it at your leisure. Password: CgCp33Zt
Introduction to Jersey-Friendly Yards
Live Webinar Recording Available
In case you missed our program, Introduction to Jersey-Friendly Yards, on July 7, hosted by the Barnegat Bay Partnership, you can click to access a live recording, and watch it at your leisure. Password: Wildwebinar1
Don't Treat your Soil Like Dirt!
Live Webinar Recording Available
In case you missed our program, Don't Treat Your Soil Like Dirt! on June 25, hosted by the Native Plant Society of New Jersey, you can click to access a live recording, and watch it at your leisure. Password: 0a.78+!8
Unique Plants & Wildflowers of
Barrens and Bogs
Live Webinar Recording Available
In case you missed our program, Unique Plants & Wildflowers of Barrens and Bogs on June 4, hosted by the Pinelands Commission, you can click to access a live recording, and watch it at your leisure on YouTube. No password needed.
PLANT THIS! - Monarch Magic
3,000 Mile Monarch Migration
Fall is when a 'super generation' of Monarchs travel 3,000 miles south to Mexico to wait out the winter. Along the way they require nectar for energy and milkweed to create a super-family of migrants, thousands strong. If you have native flowering perennials and native milkweed in your yard, it's likely you have Monarchs fluttering about, sipping nectar from your flowers and laying eggs on your milkweed.

Although Monarchs are common across the world, the subspecies known as Danaus plexippus plexippus is the only one that engages in this great North American migration, and this population is severely declining.

To learn more about Monarchs, their migration, and how you can support their populations, link to National Geographic, MonarchWatch, Journey North, Jersey-Friendly Yards and NJDEP.
Pictured above, a female Monarch deposits an egg on the leaf of Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca). Other milkweed species that host Monarch caterpillars include Butterflyweed (Asclepias tuberosa), Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata) and Whorled Milkweed (Asclepias verticillata).
Monarch Nectar Plants
Purple Mist Flower (Conoclineum coelestinum) showcases bluish-purple flowers from midsummer to frost. It is attractive to a variety of butterflies and bees. It prefers well-drained sandy or loamy soil in part-shade.
Seaside Goldenrod (Solidago sempervirens) is a favorite of migrating Monarchs and other fall foraging butterflies and bees. It features dense, deep-yellow flowers that bloom August-October.
Groundsel Bush (Baccharis halimifolia) is a densely branched flowering shrub with clusters of fall blooming yellowish-white flowers. Butterflies and bees sip the nectar. It provides nesting sites, cover and food for birds. 
For more information about education programs and events pertaining to soil, water, conservation and native gardening, please contact Becky Laboy, Education Outreach Specialist, Ocean County Soil Conservation District: education@soildistrict.org.