Ecological Consulting for Homegrown Conservation

Connect. Conserve. Create.

Knowing the flora, the community of wild plants, of the place where one lives facilitates a deeper connection with the living Earth that sustains us. Terrestrial ecosystems, communities of species on land, are defined by the plants that grow in them. In a given forest for example, the species of trees that form the canopy and the understory plants beneath them collectively create the specific type of that forest. The bodies of these trees and other plants provide food and shelter for the wildlife of the forest. Which species of plants grow in a given ecosystem determine which animals can live there, and native plants provide the most benefits to the native animals, fungi and microbes of that place. Therefore which species of plants are encouraged or discouraged is central to land stewardship. If you own, or otherwise have stewardship of, a piece of land, you are in a powerful position to positively affect the health of our planet. Whether it’s replacing a few square feet of lawn with a pollinator garden or applying ecological forest management principals to acres of forest, Wild Niche is here to help you realize your conservation goals.

Services ~

Botanical Surveys

This is the signature service of Wild Niche. Knowledge of the wild plant species growing on a property is a powerful tool, especially when one’s objective is management for ecological benefits. Surveys identify woody plants, wildflowers, grasses, sedges, and rushes. The results of the survey are presented in a written summary. Common and scientific names are given for each species, and they are identified as native, naturalized non-native, or invasive. Ecological and landscape values of the native and naturalized species are included in the descriptions, as are the harms of and management recommendations for the invasives. Land that hasn’t been too aggressively cleared and/or landscaped will likely have the semblance of at least one natural plant community type, depending on the size of the property and how many soil types there are. Protecting, restoring and enhancing natural plant communities leads to low-maintenance landscapes with maximum ecological value, as well as beautiful natural aesthetic.

Ecological Forest Management

Ecological management of forests seeks to maximize the ecological services they provide; wildlife habitat, watershed health, including flood mitigation and groundwater recharge, and carbon sequestration. Some commercial harvesting can be compatible with some ecological forest management plans, but Wilde Niche specializes in managing forests solely for conservation value. While this management is non-extractive it does often include the felling of trees. Most of Vermont’s forests are largely comprised of dense stands of young trees that arose after the land was cleared. In the fierce competition for light and other resources most of these trees will ultimately die. In the meantime they severely limit the establishment of a healthy understory. Selective thinning favors species and individual trees that are most likely to grow to maturity, and enables them to do so in less time and in better health. It also allows more light to reach the forest floor, fostering understory plant communities, which are essential to a forest’s ecological value. Other ecological forestry treatments include invasive species management, creation of snags (standing dead trees), and brush piles for wildlife habitat, and introduction/reintroduction of plant species that enhance the forest’s plant community.

Native Plant Landscaping

The nursery trade and associated landscaping industry are largely focused on cultivars of exotic plant species selected for their aesthetic appeal. While inclusion of such plants isn’t always a bad thing, the extreme bias in their favor has real and harmful effects on ecosystems. These harms arise from the spread of the many invasive species that escape from cultivation, and from landscape plants’ lack of input into local food webs (Douglas Tallamy’s “ecological freeloaders”). Site-appropriate native plants are essentially zero-maintenance once they’re established, and they provide the most habitat value for native pollinators, birds, and other wildlife. Native plants can be effectively utilized in manicured landscapes, but as the name implies, Wild Niche invites you to embrace a more natural aesthetic. The perceived chaos of dense vegetation can be controlled to varying degrees according to one’s individual tastes, but once the right plants are in place simply letting them go enables natural processes to unfold. This rewilding of your yard is a powerful way of giving back to nature, and of deepening your connection to the natural world. Wild Niche is here to guide you through this beautiful transformation.

About Me

I was always a nature boy, but my naturalist journey began while working on my Bachelor of Science in conservation biology at the University of Washington in Seattle. My academic focus on forests and plants carried on after graduation as a plant identification hobby. I also decided to finally delve into my Sibley Field Guide of the Birds of Western North America. I was instantly enthralled as I met and got to know the birds around me, and I never turned back. I opted against grad school because I was eager to get into the field and do conservation work. That opportunity arrived in the form of Applied Ecology LLC, with whom I practiced ecological restoration in the forests of greater Seattle for five years. My start as a field technician quickly transitioned to being a crew lead, and later the field manager. Contracts, mostly for cities and counties, involved the removal of invasive plants and the subsequent planting and care of native trees and shrubs. In my time with Applied Ecology, I removed dozens of acres of English Ivy, Himalaya Blackberry and other invasives, and I planted thousands of native trees and shrubs. Closing that intense and productive chapter I moved on to start my first iteration of Wild Niche, based in Duvall, WA. With that sole proprietorship I designed and implemented ecological land stewardship for private landowners. Highlights of those three years include ecological restoration of several acres of forest, recovery of a previously neglected orchard from Himalaya Blackberry, and some conversions of lawns to native plant pollinator gardens. This was also when I started offering botanical surveys, enabling conservation-minded landowners to make informed management decisions. I love the land of Washington state and am proud to have served it. But the land I loved first, in my home state of Vermont, was calling me back. Immediately upon my return in June of ’24 I began my study of Vermont’s rich flora. I have always felt a strong connection with the forests and mountains of Vermont, and the more I learn about our flora and fauna the deeper that connection becomes. Wild Niche is a vessel for my mission to facilitate and nurture that connection in others. I do this for all the wild beings we share this space with, and for the people who want to be good neighbors to them.