When Science on Tap returns to Strawberry Alley Ale Works on Feb. 7, one of Austin Peay State University’s environmental and conservation experts will discuss how area residents can develop their yards to help native plants and pollinators thrive.
“We’re developing so fast, not just here but the whole United States, and our national parks and state parks alone are not enough to preserve the biodiversity in the world,” said Michelle Rogers, outreach and environmental education coordinator for the Center of Excellence for Field Biology at Austin Peay. “If we want to see our native plants and animals that have been here for millennia survive, we must find every little nook and cranny we can for habitat. People who have a small yard or deck, or maybe even some posts on their balcony, can provide that habitat.”
Rogers will talk about the Healthy Yard program, an initiative launched last fall by the City of Clarksville Sustainability Board with support from the Center of Excellence for Field Biology.
“You want your plants to be part of the ecosystem,” she said. “Pollinators enjoy the nectar from the flowers, and that provides a food source for birds. Even though lots of birds are happy to eat berries and nuts, most of them predominantly feed their young insects.
“We’ve got to have that mix. You have to have native plants, insects and birds,” she added. “All of these things are part of healthy ecosystems, and you provide that with your yard. Everybody can play their part, and that’s such a positive, happy way to a part of preserving nature.”
The presentation – titled “All About the Birds and the Bees and Clarksville’s Healthy Yards” – will start at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 7, at Strawberry Alley.
Laura Hunt from Austin Peay’s Southeastern Grasslands Institute also will talk at the event, discussing what SGI is doing to protect and restore the Southeast’s grasslands and the organisms dependent on them.
Science on Tap meets at 5:30 p.m. on the first Tuesday of every month during the academic year, bringing together two great things: science and local brews.
Strawberry Alley Ale Works will have happy hour prices on drinks and a full menu during Science on Tap, which will be in the Pilsner Room.
Austin Peay’s College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics hosts Science on Tap.