This book covers all aspects of creating a wildlife school yard, and we recommend it highly to schools that are considering a NatureScaping project. The Botanic Garden is also developing a demonstration wildlife school yard for public viewing. The Greening Schoolgrounds program has recently been implemented in British Columbia. The Evergreen Foundation, an organization based in Ontario, sponsors a school ground naturalization program called Learning Grounds. For information on any of these projects and programs, contact the organizations and schools listed in the NatureScaped School Grounds section of Appendix 5 in the Naturescape Book.
Wild creatures require a safe place within which they can find food, water and shelter.
As with a residential NatureScaping project, a school ground naturalization project should take all of these requirements into account. See previous chapters for general NatureScaping principles and techniques. Here are some ideas that can be applied to school yards. It is always better to start off with a small area and expand, rather than begin with an overly ambitious project that is difficult to maintain. Try to retain existing natural features, rather than trying to create something completely different.