Kirkland Community Wildlife Habitat

10/14/2026

Great news: The City is trying to phase out the use of noisy and toxic (for workers too!) gas-powered leaf blowers in our parks 🌞🙏 Volunteer leaf rakers will help make this possible.
• When: Tuesdays, October 13 – November 17, from 4–5 p.m. (flexible)�• Where: Phyllis A. Needy Park, 10811 NE 47th St, Kirkland�• What to Bring: Closed‑toe shoes, your own rake, water bottle, and weather‑appropriate, activity-appropriate clothing. The organizers will have a couple of rakes available for those who don’t own a rake, but if you have a rake please bring it.

“You’ll be helping city parks crews rely more efficiently on electric equipment for mowing, edging, and blowing. Your time makes a real difference in showing how sustainable, low‑emission maintenance can work in our parks.”

10/10/2026

Nootka Rose 🌹 harvest time! Why spend money when you can get it for free?

10/07/2026

October is Bat Appreciation Month!
🦇 These remarkable fliers not only consume vast numbers of mosquitoes but also pollinate night-blooming flowers, making them essential to healthy ecosystems.
🦇 A recent report shows 52% of bat species in North America are at risk of population decline in the next 15 years. The time is now to learn more and take action for the only flying mammal on the planet.
🦇 Read NWF’s blog about these awesome creatures!

October is Bat Appreciation Month! Learn some bat facts and test your knowledge with our sharp bat quiz.

10/03/2026

TODAY (SATURDAY)

Fall is the best time to plant natives and Oxbow Farms is hosting their annual sale.
Oxbow Fall Native Plant Festival | Shop, Learn & Explore

Discover native plants, expert guidance, workshops, tours, crafts, and family activities during Oxbow's Fall Native Plant Festival.

09/08/2026

🍂 PSA: Fall is THE time to plant natives! 🌿

Your perennials are done flowering and ready to put all their energy into deep, happy roots. Plus it's plant sale season!

Why natives? 👇
🐝 90% of flowering plants need insect pollinators to survive
📉 Habitat loss + climate change + pollution = pollinator populations crashing
💪 But research shows if just 70% of a region's plants are native, we can support stable birds & insects!

We can fix this in our own yards, business landscaping, even a balcony pot. And nudge our city/county to do the same!

Want to start a pollinator garden? 4 easy rules:

1. 🚫 No sprays! No herbicides/pesticides. Those nibbles on leaves? Future butterflies. Mole holes? Cozy winter bee homes.

2. 🌈 Diversity is key! WA has ∼700 native bee species! A quarter are specialists that NEED specific native plants. One big lavender patch only helps generalists.

3. 💐 Plant in clumps! Bees love "flower constancy" - visiting the same flower over and over. Aim for 3-12 plants per clump, so they can spot them easily!

4. 📅 Stagger your blooms! Plant early, mid, and late-season bloomers in different colors & shapes - tubular for bumblebees & hummingbirds, flat clusters for butterflies & beetles.

Start simple, add more each year. Your future pollinators will thank you! 🦋🐞🌸

09/02/2026

News you can use, in your yard 🌱🍂🍃💚

Learn how to take care of your yard and plant right this fall from our friends at Tilth Alliance.

08/29/2026

Music, food, festive fun - and goodie giveaways at our booth 😎🌱Come see us at the Norkirk & Highlands Picnic today at Crestwoods Park! The sun is out and the air is fresh after last night’s rain 🌞

08/29/2026

Come see us at the Norkirk & Highlands Picnic today at Crestwoods Park! The sun is out and the air is fresh after last night’s rain 🌞

08/27/2026

Plant a tree to celebrate Trees for Wildlife Month🌳
Many different types of wildlife depend on trees for food, water, cover, or places to raise
their young. When you plant a native tree, you help to provide the habitat essentials that
wildlife needs to survive and thrive.

For the month of September, you can get 25% off all native tree purchases of $50 or more
from Garden for Wildlife Inc. using the code TREES25: https://gardenforwildlife.com/collections/trees-for-wildlife-month?utm_source=NWF&utm_medium=website&utm_campaign=cwh-tree-month-sept-2026

More about Trees for Wildlife Month: https://www.nwf.org/Trees-for-Wildlife/Get-Involved/TFW-Month

September is Trees for Wildlife™ Month! Learn how to support and celebrate the National Wildlife Federation’s efforts to plant native trees with our nationwide network of community partners.

07/24/2026

The International Monarch Monitoring Blitz is back! From July 31st to August 9th, 2026, you can help search for monarch butterflies and milkweed plants in Kirkland.

The Monarch Blitz is a community science initiative open to anyone in North America. You could join the 9,000 volunteers who contributed observations last year!

It's time for the International Monarch Monitoring Blitz! From July 25 to August 3, join us by spotting monarch eggs, caterpillars, adults or milkweed plants, and report your sightings to iNaturalist, Journey North, Monarch Larva Monitoring Project and Western Monarch Milkweed Mapper.

The information collected by North American community science observers helps researchers identify priority areas for monarch conservation actions. Thanks to our engaged community of observers, monarch researchers can analyze summer breeding population trends.

Last year's submitted observations included more than 16,000 monarch sightings and more than 68,000 milkweeds!

📷 Courtney Celley/USFWS