April 18, 2023

Beer Series @ Narrow Path Brewing co.

COMMUNITY! We definitely have it here! Our short-term goal is to educate people on the biodiversity crisis, how it affects our surroundings, and how we all can play a role in fixing it. Many of our local citizens and businesses can see the momentum taking place and are supporting this effort to get the word out.

Our long-term goal is to get our region to be filled with native plants that support so much life that we've lost or are losing. We will get there, but it takes us all. We'd really like to thank the local support of our members and businesses that are supporting these efforts.

Once such business, Narrow Path Brewing Company, is no stranger to helping out community initiatives. They have collaborated with us to create a beer series that will focus on various biodiversity topics! The first of the series will be American Bumble Bee Honey Amber Ale. It is now available at Narrow Path in Loveland and a portion of every beer sold will go to our organization. Again- we are so grateful for our community and and companies like Narrow Path! So, next time you are there- keep an eye out for this new brew!!

This Brew's Focus: The American Bumble bee 

American bumble bee (Bombus pensylvanicus) is a native bumble bee that once inhabited prairies and forests across the United States, pollinating a large variety of wild plants and agricultural crops. Historically, this bumble bee had the largest geographic range of any bumble bee in North America. Unfortunately, this species has declined by as much as 90 percent in significant portions of its range, including right here in Loveland, Ohio.

Habitat loss & degradation, introduction of nonnative diseases, widespread insecticide-use, and climate change have all played a role in the plight of this once widespread bumble bee. So far, the American bumble bee has disappeared from at least 8 states in the United States with more sure to follow if major efforts are not made to reverse the trajectory of this species’ decline.

Fortunately, scientists and conservation groups have sounded the alarm and petitioned the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service to add the bumble bee to the list of species protected by the Endangered Species Act. An initial 90-day finding indicated that listing the American bumble bee may be warranted, so now the Service is in the process of evaluating all scientific data and literature to determine whether the species will be listed or not. While this species is gone from some areas, it still occurs here in Loveland. Beyond federal protections, it is critical that local communities work to protect, enhance, and create habitat capable of supporting the American bumble bee and other at-risk pollinators.

Love Our Land with the help of Narrow Path Brewing Company, is educating people about the troubling loss of this and other imperiled species, and raising awareness regarding conservation efforts the public can implement, including planting native vegetation and removing nonnative invasive plants, to halt the decline of the American bumble bee and ultimately help this bumble bee recover. If you are interested in helping native pollinators, check out our website at www.loveourland.org/inform to learn more.

Also, keep an eye out for upcoming classes and events that will provide attendees the knowledge and skills necessary to tackle the environmental challenges our communities face. Together we can give the American bumble bee and other biodiversity a fighting chance

Our New Logo

Love Our Land has a new logo representing our community conservation organization. The large-flowered trillium (Trillium grandiflorum) is Ohio’s state wildflower due to its historic distribution across all 88 counties. In recent years, Love Our Land has worked to identify locations within Loveland that may harbor this denizen of mature forests, but we have come up empty handed. This is likely due to a variety of factors, but the most important being habitat loss & degradation. We simply don't have enough mature forests left in Loveland for populations of large-flowered trillium to handle the pressure caused by nonnative invasive vegetation, over browsing from deer, damage caused to forest soils by invasive earthworms, and compaction of topsoil.

Love Our Land's mission is to connect people with nature to encourage them to address the issues affecting local ecosystems and biodiversity. The extirpation of large-flowered trillium is an indicator of the less than stellar health of our local ecosystems. Love Our Land sees managing habitat on both private and public lands to support a great variety of native plants, including the once ubiquitous large-flowered trillium, as an integral part of healing the ecosystems that support our community.

In addition to the work Doug is doing with the City of Loveland to eradicate nonnative invasive vegetation, Love Our Land is working to propagate large-flowered trillium, and other native plants, to return them to their rightful place in our forests and green spaces. The success of these reintroduction efforts is dependent on members from all over the community working together to restore native plants and the biodiversity they support. With that said, Love Our Land is excited to introduce everyone to our new logo, a symbol of what can be accomplished when a community decides that saving nature is worth their time and effort.

Note: The new logo was Designed by high school student, entrepreneur and graphic artist, Lucy Chenault. You can check out her work on IG @lucy.art_and_design.portfolio or contact her via email at lucychenault@gmail.com

The Many

Benefits of Planting

Native Plants  

• They are more adapted to thrive in their local environment.

• They use less fertilizer and water.

• They are more drought resistant.

• They are low maintenance (i.e., will come back year after year with little to no assistance).

• They provide food and habitats for birds, butterflies, and other pollinators.

•  They are less prone to disease and can better withstand invasives and pests.

• They help filter pollutants from the soil and water.

• The can help control erosion.

Our Native Seed & Lending Library is in need of nature books for adults. If you have books on nature, ecology, the environment, etc...we'd love to stock up the library! Thanks all!

Creating an Oasis for Local Biodiversity
Loveland Learning Garden, local Girl Scout Troop 4025, and Love Our Land are partnering to convert an area with nonnative plants at Loveland Primary School to a native garden that will support native pollinators and other biodiversity. The native garden will host a diverse assemblage of native wildflowers and grasses that serve as food sources, nest sites, and cover for a wide variety of local wildlife, including imperiled species like the American bumble bee (Bombus pensylvanicus) and monarch (Danaus plexippus). The area is very visible to students, faculty, administrative staff, and parents who enter the school, which will help raise awareness about the importance of landscaping with native vegetation. An interpretive sign providing information about the intention of the space and how it will improve the health of the local environment will be placed in the native garden to educate students and passersby. The native garden plans to be used by Loveland Learning Garden and teachers to teach students about how native plants provide substantially more benefits to biodiversity than their nonnative counterparts. Want to join me in making a difference? I'm raising money to benefit Love Our Land, and any donation will help make an impact. Thanks in advance for your contribution to this cause that means so much to us all.

We seek to reconnect people and nature and in doing so, empower citizens with the skills and knowledge necessary to address the biodiversity crisis in their own neighborhoods and yards.

www.LoveOurLand.org