When we first bought our home, a dense carpet of English ivy stretched from the first large tree all the way to the back fence, smothering the ground and climbing the trunks. Over four years, we removed it by hand, with the final push from a tree company, to give the soil and native plants room to breathe again.

Last year, I worked with Red Oak Permaculture to begin replanting the area with a mix of native woodland plants, adding more this year to fill in and strengthen the habitat. The winding mulch path is shaded by mulberry, sassafras, and pine, and lined with plants that support pollinators and wildlife. Among them are pawpaw saplings, native berry bushes like chokeberry, elderberry, and raspberry, and common milkweed for monarchs. In the far corner, a compost area recycles all of our yard clippings, branches, and weeds back into rich soil for the garden.

Note on Plant Names
I’ve identified these plants using the PictureThis app and my own observations. While I’ve tried to be as accurate as possible, I’m not a botanist — so there may be the occasional mix-up. If you spot something I’ve mislabeled or know a better ID, I’d love to hear from you!