It's Official - We're Certified!!

Weaverville is now a National Wildlife Federation Certified Community Wildlife Habitat! We are the 33rd community to be certified and the second in North Carolina.

As of this posting, we have certified 63 individual homes, 10 properties in the businesses/commons category, and one school. We were required to achieve 250 points and, perhaps in a bit of over-achievement, accumulated 422.

We are working to schedule a certification ceremony, probably in early November. Thanks to all who have made this possible!

Habitat Team Gets Mayor's Community Service Award

At the Arbor Day ceremony on May 17th, Weaverville Wildlife Habitat was awarded the Community Service Award by Mayor Bett Stroud, who cited the group's contributions to making Weaverville a better place for both people and wildlife to live. Accepting the award for the group was Dr. Alicia Hulse, Habitat Team Leader. Families in attendance went home with a native butterfly perennial, compliments of the Habitat Team.

Spring Happenings!

It's probably safe to say that spring has finally arrived! While gardeners have been busy over the winter plotting spring gardens, Weaverville Wildlife Habitat has also been busy. We now have certified 51 homes - and more certifications will be announced shortly.

We will also be participating in two upcoming events. We will have a table with informational materials at the grand opening of the Weaverville Tailgate Market at Lake Louise (May 6th - 2:30 to 6:30 PM). We will also be on hand for the Arbor Day Celebration at Lake Louise (May 17th - starting at 3 PM). We have a new banner with our official logo, so you can't miss us!!

Main Street Nature Park Certified!!

We're pleased to announce that 2009 is starting out with a very important event - the certification of Main Street Nature Park as our newest Habitat in the "commons" category. This category includes our Town-owned lands, as well as other properties where land is held in common by an organization, business, or group of individuals.

The application emphasized the efforts made to remove exotic invasive plants and replace them with native species to augment the already abundant growth of native food and cover plants. Weaverville Wildlife Habitat salutes the efforts of the Town of Weaverville to develop this park and the time contributed by several individuals and groups - most notably the Weaverville maintenance crews, landscape architect Randy Burroughs, Weaverville Garden Club, Weaverville Tree Board and (more recently) members of the Habitat Team.

Look for us at "Art in Autumn"

Weaverville Wildlife Habitat will have an information table at the "Art in Autumn" festival on Saturday, September 20th. We will be located in the parking area of the Garden Station. Look for the blue canopy!

We only need 10 more homes to meet our goal for the private residence portion of our certification requirements. Stop by, chat with a member of the Habitat Team, and pick up an application!

Only 16 Homes To Go!!

As of late July, our official report from the National Wildlife Federation indicates that our goal of certifying 51 private residences is in sight!! In fact, we have just 16 to go. So, if you are thinking about applying, get those applications in soon so that you can be in the charter group. And keep your eye out for those habitat signs around town!

Weaverville Garden Tour a Bloomin' Success!!!

July 12th was a busy day for the Wildlife Habitat Team! Lots of folks from Weaverville and the greater Asheville area took advantage of the opportunity to visit Certified Wildlife Habitats in the morning, and learn about Gardening for Wildlife in the afternoon. Probably the most important take-home message of the day was that you can have beautiful landscapes that are welcoming to both wildlife and people! The Habitat Team thanks all the property owners who worked very hard to groom their gardens in preparation for this event!

Now, if you want to get started with planting some great perennials for butterflies, we understand that Reems Creek Garden Center just got in a shipment of butterflyweed. This is a great plant and one of our favorities (we even put it on our logo!) - and not always easy to find.