Backyard Audit - Audobon Society

Had a backyard audit by volunteers from the Audobon Society. Despite the weeds and the soil that doesn't drain, the back yard is not in bad shape. Only two invasive weed-type things that I need to pull up (and they're very small), and lots of options for shade-loving plants that can soak up the water. The toads made their appearance, and we can build them little toad houses to encourage them.
Lots of birds, as we knew, including owls and woodpeckers, and song birds. Many options for native plants that don't require lots of care, some ground cover options, etc. Plus, lots of places around here that specialize in truly native (i.e., local to this area) plants. So, lots of garden work, but we're going to start slowly, and examine the options.
I found two pictures of the yard: one is the day we had the house inspection in 2005 and the other is from last fall - with one of the water pools.