DETURKSVILLE — Ardella Marie Newswanger tries to plant at least one tree a year behind her home in Washington Township.
“People don’t usually think about going out and planting a hickory tree, but you have no idea how important they are to our environment,” Newswanger said Tuesday while strolling through the backyard of her 1.7-acre property at 167 Dad Burnhams Road.
While she’s had a lifelong appreciation of nature, Newswanger, a Penn State Extension Schuylkill Master Gardener, said she appreciates books and programs that encourage people to plant trees and hedge rows on their properties.
They can benefit both experts and novices, Ben Vaupel, Auburn, a volunteer with the Pennsylvania Forest Stewards, said.
“You have to know which tree to put where,” Vaupel said Tuesday.
He recommended people interested in improving their properties register for an upcoming program: The Forest Committee of Schuylkill County will host “Woods in Your Backyard” from 8 a.m. to noon Feb. 20 in the Health Wellness Center at Penn State Schuylkill, 200 University Drive, Schuylkill Haven.
Admission is $15 per person and $25 per couple, according to the website for the Schuylkill River National and State Heritage Area.
“Learn to create and enhance natural areas around your home at this workshop designed for small landscapes,” according to www.schuylkillriver.org.
The keynote speaker will be James Finley, a forest resources professor from Penn State University and one of the authors of “The Woods in Your Backyard: Learning to Create and Enhance Natural Areas Around Your Home.”
Two Penn State Extension Master Gardeners will give presentations, Vaupel said.
“Jessica Simkulet will talk about pollinator friendly plants and Howard Dry will talk about ecologically responsible lawns,” Vaupel said.
“Because the vast majority of landowners in Pennsylvania have less than 10 acres, these workshops are designed specifically but not exclusively for smaller landscapes. Owners of even the smallest landscapes can make a positive difference in their environment through planning and implementing simple stewardship practices,” according to www.schuylkillriver.org.
The last time such a program was held in Schuylkill County was in May 2011, according to Vaupel.
Newswanger is a homeowner who follows the precepts of “Woods in Your Backyard,” Jerry Bowman, a member of the forest committee, said Jan. 20.
“Forty-five years ago, we moved here. The backyard used to look like a park where you just had a few trees that you mowed around. But over the past seven years, we’ve charted out a plan to improve the grounds,” Newswanger said as she rolled out the plan.
It was a hand-drawn map of her property, which included the improvements, like a hedgerow and additional trees.
“I took the Master Gardener program because I wanted to have nicer plants and a nicer yard. And a speaker showed us pictures of yards and I realized a lot of backyards across the country look the same. So I did more research into native plants. And they’re just beautiful! I don’t know why someone would buy an ornamental tree when you have native dogwoods and oxydendrums and fringe trees and all the beautiful native trees,” Newswanger said.
“My lawn used to look manicured. It does not anymore. I’ve been naturalizing it,” she said.
“That’s part of what this workshop’s all about,” Vaupel said.
“A plant that isn’t being eaten isn’t doing its job,” Newswanger said.“So as I was studying native plants, I started to realize that so many of them are in the woods. So I started planting trees.”
Developing a layout for landscape improvements, the way Newswanger did, is recommended, Vaupel said.
To register or for more information, those interested can call Lorie Reichert at the Schuylkill Conservation District at 570-622-3742, Ext. 102, or email lreichert@co.schuylkill.pa.us.
The deadline for registration is Wednesday.