Creating habitat for wildlife is an important part of The Maples Farm, and conservation practices such as installing hedgerows, windbreaks, and other perennial vegetation provide important on-farm habitat for native plants and animals while also improving soil health and sequestering carbon.
Habitat restoration efforts include installing 36 nesting boxes for bluebirds and tree swallows, two boxes for barn owls and two houses for bats. We are monitoring bird counts, native pollinators, and wildlife through bird and bee counts and wildlife camera traps.
Our ecological monitoring efforts are measuring the benefits of the improvements to the on-farm habitat at The Maples Farm. We are also planning new habitat restoration efforts, including a riparian restoration project on Cache Creek, along the northern boundary. Among the activities planned are construction of a 1⁄4 mile walking trail on Cache Creek with interpretive modules as well as land management workshops and native plant walks featuring Native speakers and practitioners.
