It's no good denying that there are problems. It's no shame if you think about the harm we've inflicted on the world. But if you concentrate on doing the things you can do, and doing them well, it will make all the difference.

-Jane Goodall, from The Book of Hope, Survival Guide for Trying Times

NEONICTINOIDS

The irony of the gardening industry is that many of the products and practices are not good for the environment. Neonictinoids ("neonics") are an example. They have been referred to as the "new DDT" and described as 7000 times more lethal to insects than DDT, which was banned in the 1970s and had a devastating impact on birds. Since neonictinoid use has grown in the past 30-plus years, the total biomass of insects worldwide has declined 80 percent. Bird populations have also significantly declined.  

In 2025 Connecticut passed a law that will take effect in October 2027 to ban the use of neonictinoids on golf courses, lawns and most turf. However this pesticide that was banned in Europe in 2018 will still be permitted in agriculture and nursery plants, despite it's lethality to insects and ineffectiveness for farmers. You can read more about neonictinoids here:  https://www.ctpesticidereform.org/pesticide-policy/neonics-the-new-ddt/neonicotinoids 

Finding nurseries that sell plants free of neonictinoids definitely takes extra effort. But that is worth it because it makes no sense to buy plants that attract pollinators only to kill them. 

THE MOVEMENT TO RESTORE BIODIVERSITY IN OUR YARDS

Since about 90 percent of land in Connecticut is privately owned, many of us have an opportunity to protect habitat in our neighborhood and contribute to a pollinator pathway. Even renters can put a pot of native plants on their front step or balcony, which is also helpful. Doug Tallamy, an entomologist at the University of Delaware, writes and speaks about the idea of protecting biodiversity by aiming to  plant 70 percent or more of our yards with native plants. He has become an important voice on the necessity of native plants supporting the food web, and using our own yards as places to collectively create change for the benefit of the environment and our well being.

CONSIDER REDUCING LAWNS AND PLANTING NATIVE TREES AND PLANTS

Lawns have their place in providing an area for children to play, or on municipal or school sports grounds or parks where people can gather for a concert, or a pathway alongside gardens. But many of us could support biodiversity in our neighborhoods by reducing our lawns and planting native trees, shrubs, grasses, perennials,  sedges and groundcovers that are free of a class of pesticides called neonictinoids, the most widely used class of insecticide. More than 40 million acres of land in the United States have lawns on them, making them the largest irrigated crop in the country.  Maintaining turf  requires a massive amount of water, chemicals and fossil fuels. The chemicals run off into our watershed when it rains and pollute our drinking water. Treated lawns threaten exposing our children and pets to harmful chemicals. In terms of pollinators, lawns are dead zones. 

OUR INDIVIDUAL ACTIONS MATTER

If you want to use your power to do something to protect biodiversity and habitat in your country, town, neighborhood and yard, educate yourself about invasives and remove them from your property, preferably without chemicals. Plants like burning bush, Japanese barberry, autumn olive and more were once introduced by the garden trade but are now considered invasive.

• Learn to recognize invasives in your yard and how to remove them.

•  Learn about native plants and start by adding native trees, shrubs or perennials to your yard as your resources allow. 

• Deter mosquitoes with a mosquito dunk bucket instead of spraying which targets all life forms, not just mosquitoes.  Learn more about that here: https://homegrownnationalpark.org/mosquito-bucket-challenge/

• Ask nurseries to sell native plants that are free of neonictinoids and find those that do.  We list some below. Here is a guide from the Xerces Society on buying safe plants. https://xerces.org/publications/fact-sheets/buying-bee-safe-plants 

• Consider asking your local businesses to plant native plants to support biodiversity in their landscapes. Using our voices and voting with our wallets are powerful tools for change. 

In our communities we can each help to restore the essential variety of native life on which our lives depend. 

Resources to help you learn more

(Many of the books can be found in local libraries)

Websites & Guides

All of these websites have excellent information about protecting biodiversity

Audubon Society: A national organization working to protect decline of bird populations with chapters throughout Connecticut. https://www.audubon.org/get-involved

Connecticut Invasive Plant Working Group- a group based in UConn's College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources that meets annually to share information about invasive plants affecting the region. This website has accessible publications on invasive management and native plant alternatives. https://cipwg.uconn.edu/publications/

A detailed guide to Invasives in your backyard from the Connecticut River Coastal Conservation District https://www.conservect.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/invasives-guide-2025_final_web_reduced.pdf 

Homegrown National Park- Organization that Doug Tallamy co-founded to encourage planting natives to protect biodiversity. Provides lists of "keystone" plants for one's location that support biggest variety of life in one's yard.   https://homegrownnationalpark.org 

Native Plant Trust - The nation's first plant conservation organization and the only one that focuses on New England Plants. Home of the online plant identification resource: Go Botany and  the beautiful Garden in the Woods in Framingham, MA, a native plant nursery and garden, and a nursery closer to CT in Whately , MA, Nasami Farms.  https://www.nativeplanttrust.org 

Pollinator Partnership-A nonprofit based in California promoting the health of pollinators. https://www.pollinator.org 

Pollinator Pathway- This is a CT -based organization with an international reach that provides a wealth of information on planting a pollinator pathway, including suggested garden designs:  https://www.pollinator-pathway.org 

University of Connecticut List of Invasive Species https://cipwg.uconn.edu/invasive_plant_list/ 

University of Connecticut Guide to Nurseries that Sell Native Plants- (You will still need to ask about pesticide use.) https://ipm-cahnr.media.uconn.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/3216/2025/03/Native-Plant-Availability-List.pdf 

Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, an international nonprofit that works to help conserve invertebrates and protect habitat: https://www.xerces.org. The society's guide to plants for pollinators in the northeast can be found here: https://xerces.org/publications/plant-lists/native-plants-for-pollinators-and-beneficial-insects-northeast 

Local and Mailorder Native Plant Sources

Below is a list of a few businesses that sell native plants using organic practices, as well as some mail order catalogs that sell native seeds. We will continue to add to this list. 

EarthTones Native Plants & Landscapes, Woodbury, CT. https://www.earthtonesnatives.com 

ReWild Native Plant Nursery, at Thrive Farm in Simsbury, CT https://www.rewildct.com 

Tiny Meadow Farm, Danbury CT. https://tinymeadowfarm.com 

Prairie Moon Nursery (catalog), Winona, MN

https://www.prairiemoon.com

Northeast Seed Collective - a place to order native organic seeds gathered from our ecoregion. 

https://www.northeastseedcollective.com 

Another local resource: UConn Extension Hartford County Master Gardener office right here in Farmington, CT. You can email, call or visit the office with your questions about plants, pests, diseases etc. https://extension.uconn.edu/locations/hartford/