Mounting NWF backyard sign......

I got my sign weeks ago. So far, I haven't come up with a very good way or place to mount it. How or what did you attach yours to? They're so big!

Thanks,

Terry

I didn't realize those signs were that big... what are the dimensions?

I have been thinking about making my own ... organic lawn sign...

My neighborhood is filled with those "chem lawn - do not walk on grass for three days"

I'd like to put one up that is similar in size but just says the opposite of what those signs say...

The sign is 12" high by 9" wide. A friend of mine down in TN has, I guess an old one, his about 8" wide by maybe 6" tall? His is wider than tall, that I know. Wanna see a pic? I had to go at an angle, the flash kept whitening up a nice big area otherwise.

Our block only has 3 houses on my side, 4 on the other side. Next block N and the one S don't have any little signs either. I don't see any one using any kind of chem lawn or their own. I know what you mean...a sign that says "Chem free, please walk on the grass in your barefeet to get the most enjoyment"

I don't understand the Wildlife habitat program. You do whatever you like on your property and could very well lie about it but you'll get certified no matter what as long as you pay them however much they're asking.

I guess what I'm asking is, what do you get from joining with them?

Umm...I don't know quite how to answer this. I would sincerely hope, that anyone who is out to become certified, doesn't do it by lying.

I paid the $15 because it was a matter of pride for me. It was something I have been striving for and wanting to do in my last 3 homes. I finally took the time and just did it. I answered their questions honestly. What I got was the knowledge that what I'm doing is being recognized by someone other than me. I also get a wildlife magazine once a month. I honestly don't know what else you "get" by joining. I can't answer for anyone else. I can say however, that I would hope, that if you want to do it, you do so honestly. There are no NWF police that come to make sure you are truthful. That's up to each individual.

Terry

That makes sense. I think I remember seeing a site on enature.com a while ago for a program like this but they help you with expenses towards making your property a santcuary.

Does any one have any idea of what I'm talking about or any ideas where I could even locate a program like this? They don't have it on enature any more.

Your State might have a program. My State has Acres For Wildlife. The home owner is responsible for surveys and species inventories which can get rather pricey. This is not an "on your honor system" and they do have minimum land requirements and there is a tremendous amount of paperwork and then you sit and wait and wait and wait. Once you qualify, there are benefits in that one's property taxes are reduced. Don't be fooled by this because by the time you qualify, you will have spent far more money than that by which your taxes will be reduced. The property tax reductions to us are thousands annually so there is some incentive to keep cleaning up. The downstroke is that the signs denoting one is certified as Acres For Wildlife are pumpkin orange. They are quite large at about 18" x 30" and mine is hanging on the wall in my garage.

As with any program such as the NWF that is an "on your honor" system, there will always be people who go and get themselves certified yet make no attempts to remove invasive species like Terry has done. I've seen a few sporting the NWF signs with Burning Bushes flanking their front doors and the good old staple Bradford Pear in the front lawn and there's not much you can do. For the most part, I believe the vast majority of people who apply do make a concerted effort to do their best to practice sustainable gardening and that's all that should be asked of anyone.

Equil, can you send me the info and/or link on the program you're in? It might be the thing for my parents....and it also might have a lot more info in there on invasive species and how bad they are than I can ever remember. I would also love something, facts, to show my dad just how harmful his weed n feeding and grub killer are for the environment.

Terry

I feel the same way with my folks Terry. They're cleaning up the woods. Cutting ugly trees down, cleaning up the dead wood and "garbage". I guess we won't be seeing many woodpeckers in these parts anymore...

The reason I'm standing by is because we have sooo many invasives that I'd like to replace with natives. The bad part is that in the mean time, many homes are gone until the replacements grow up.

Thanks! I found my state's and I've just sent them an email on how to join up.

Terry, bring your parents with you when you come to my house. Otherwise, you can just plug Acres For Wildlife Illinois into a search engine and I think the forms are on line. They'll need to contact their heritage biologist. They find out what district they are in and initiate contact that way.

Capt, I know how you feel. Are you wringing your hands like I am? I keep telling my dad that timber trees don't need a 30 ft radius around them, dead trees don't do any harm, timber trees aren't supposed to be perfect with only one header and they don't need pruned up. I told him before, we needed to build a brush pile. First I was poo pooed on it. Then he called me and said that if I put it out of the way (meaning out of view) that I could do it. I wasn't nice (it's a long story) and I told him I could put it out of view so mom doesn't think it looks just awful and that I could plant native vines at the bottom to cover it up. My dad gets so tickled when he sees a woodpecker, and they have a ton. I've told him time and time again that if he takes out all dead trees that the woodpeckers will be no more. I gave him the book Noah's Garden, I wish he'd read it.

Lauren, Dad's here right now for a few more days. My mom is still in AR. I would love to bring them with to show them all the uglies that pop up on your land. I think my dads favorite bush is the burning bush. They'll still be in AR when we come though. I'll plug it in and see what I come up with. Thanks!

The more the merrier and I certainly have a lot of spontaneous seedlings here.

I'll bring my camera and the pictures will just have to do.

Nobody has yet to tell me how they mounted their sign!! Come on people! :o)

I mounted my sign on the wall in the garage by the door that leads into the house. I think my husband hung a pool stick or fishing pole rack over the top of it. The hideous orange still shows through.

I can't find anything on my search for Acres for Wildlife?

Start here-
http://dnr.state.il.us/

From there go to here-
http://dnr.state.il.us/about/officeadd.htm

Figure out which region your parents would be in and contact that office. Tell them you would be interested in receiving a packet on the Acres For Wildlife program. These people can be fun to get a hold of. Be persistent and... don't hold your breath.

Terry, your dad and my dad should really sit down to talk. Lol. They're just a like.

They were really excited about having bought a wooded lot, which was a big deciding factor. We've only been here for about 4 years, it's a lot different than our old 1/4 acres in a cookie cutter community.

I keep telling them I don't understand why they got this lot if they don't want the woods.

The newest thing is that they're putting a fence around part of the property to keep out the deer in the woods. Oh my gosh! They don't want the weeds but they want to keep the deer from eating them??? I'm puzzled. It didn't seem to matter either when I told them that the deer will just jump it. So no harm done, I guess?

By the way, maybe they made the sign that color so it would stand out amongst your beautiful native greens? Think of it this way, you can't lose it!

Fishing Poles! I knew he mounted something over the top of it.

For some reason, the sign is appearing as reddish orange in the photo and it's definitely orange. Tacky, eh? Needless to say, it is proudly displayed in the garage.

Wow Capt! How funny! My parents didn't live in a cookie cutter house, but it was a 4 bedroom, around 2300 sq ft. home. They wanted to downsize. I don't know what the size of the lot was, but it was just right by my standards. Then they go and buy 16 acres and the house is only 3 bedrooms, but about 5000 sq ft. Yea, that's downsizing alright! Why buy woods, when they want it perfect? Doesn't make any sense to me. Those darn leaves anyway!

Equil, I like your sign! You'll have to show it to me when we come up. It does look reddish orange and not orange. I want to display mine, no matter how big or tacky it is. I'm proud of it. I just can't figure out how. I need to build a fence where I want it and attach it there. The city will probably holler at me because it's not where they want the fence. Think they'll just get over it? Too bad City Hall is behind and caddy corner.....I saw a fence just last night that shouldn't be where it is. Hmmm.....such fun to be a rebel.....

I saw one of the signs like what I have displayed in a neat frame. It almost made the gross orange sign look tolerable. I'll try to get a photo of it tomorrow for you. Your sign is not glaring. Maybe your husband would be able to create a frame for your sign that looks like the one I'll get a picture of.

Oh my!!! I'm laughing so hard I can barely type!! My husband you say??? Make a frame??? Oh jeepers........that is hysterical!!! Maybe I can make my own, you mean?? Thank you so much for the laugh! It will continue on, I'm sure!

Oops, again. I guess he's not too handy with tools? Mine is. I'll get a photo of the frame that's really nice and you see if you can do it. I couldn't.

He's handy with tools, he just doesn't get into woodworking or anything. I've got an old dresser I want to modify. Will he help? Nope. Ask him to tear apart some machine at work, and he's all over it! Unless you mean metal. Do you mean a metal frame?

Nope, it's wood. Sorry about that.

I can make it. No problem :o)

terryr,
Congratulations! I know how you feel. I lost a husband and gained a little over 3 acres of land about 16 years ago. I was so thrilled by both :). Most of the land is woods and the neighbors thought I was nuts because I spent the first two summers going through the woods and pulling out Kudzu, an invasive, imported vine that is literally eating the South! Next I started a brush pile, and so on. I finally established my wildlife habitat. Then I got ill and things got out of hand but I am back in full swing now and just sent off for my sign. I am proud of having earned it. I didn't realize what they looked like or how big they were until I saw your posting. I don't know if this would work for you but bamboo grows like crazy here is SC. Would there be a way of lashing 3 pieces of it together and hanging the sign from it? Like you, I want to display mine. As to the $15 someone ask about, I am not sure but I know that the organization does a lot of free things for teachers to help educate the younger generation. I will just tell myself that it is going for that. I have used their materials for years.

Hi Molly! Uhh...congratulations on your loss (gain?) :o) and on getting certified! We lived in TN from July 03 to Dec 04, and I remember Kudzu. How could one ever forget that nasty stuff? I was a mad woman down there, planting and planting away. I didn't have any on our acre down there though. Whew! I was all set to become certified, but we decided (company went bankrupt after they moved the whole plant down there) to move back home. The new people ripped out all the trees, the shrubs, the flowers, everything.

I never thought about bamboo....I'm going to see if I can't buy some, that isn't growing of course. That would be sturdy enough I would think. The big fat kind. Thanks for the suggestion. My sign is just sitting here doing nothing.

Again, congrats on all the work you've done and finally getting a sign of your own. It feels good, doesn't it?

Yes, it feels great! I just finished reading some of the other forums. Its kinda sad how hard we have to work to return things to their natural state. It doesn't say much for what man has done to the earth. Oh, well, I sense a movement in the right direction! And that is great!

So true Mollie. Man has made a mess of things, so man has to clean it up.

Congrat's on getting certified and promoting the movement by PROUDLY displaying your sign.

Just saw March of the Penguins - my Round Up & dimatoceous earth are now forbidden - need to get a water feature. ...

Started a brush pile on my neighbors side (they had a shed right up against the fence maybe 2 feet away and I honestly do not know who had been dumping used motor oil so we cleaned it up and "took it over" ) just seemed like a perfect spot for protection from the over abundant cats for the quail and that. Well, who knew meth heads would finally clean up their yard and remove the shed and the pile - have to start again yes on my own property - I really did not mean to make a pile it just happened you know - was trying to monitor if who ever was doing it was still soing it because the oil will leach into my area....

if anyone has kids like me, having a summer backyard science party for the neighbor kids, friends from school etc. has been fun for me.
my first one was themed on butterflies - lifecycles, host plants, nectar plants etc. each kid got to take home a ready-to-hang-j caterpillar, unless mom wanted to start from scratch (egg).
my second party was natural and industrial recycling - this one was not near as boring as it sounds! Lots of hands on here.

nothing like passing on the passion to garden for wildlife to future gens (and spreading a little knowledge around the chem-dependent 'hood) !!!

if interested, can pass on some ideas for events/experiments/take homes/freebies

i am now hs and teaching coop science, but still would like to do another party someday - probably on birds - and to think - i hated sci in school!

MQN, you make me feel guilt for hanging my sign in the garage. But, but, but... my sign is so butt ugly compared to hers.

Sorry about your brush pile. I hate that when things like that happen.

indirt, I'll take all the information you have. I work with groups of kids already. The more information and ideas I get the better.

Equil! Your sign is NOT butt ugly! It's not a bad orange, it's a pretty shade of orange almost going into a burnt orange. I told you that when we were there! The green on mine isn't even a natural green. I don't care though, it's getting hung.....sometime!

indirt - I teach school and would love any of your ideas for kids!

Congrats Terry, did you ever get your sign up?

*blush* noooooo..........I don't know what I'm waiting for. I guess I haven't really been anywhere to look for bamboo and Equil never did show me the frame her hubby made and and and.........I'm not even a procrastinator!

Egads, I forgot to photograph that frame. It's down the road. My husband didn't make it. A neighbor made it.

Well Egads, take a picture and post it!

Call me and remind me this weekend.