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'Walk on the Wild Side'
Grass meadows at Belmont, Gari Melchers Home and Studio, are habitat for wildlifeDate published: 7/28/2008 On a feverish summer afternoon before a storm, something is moving in the tall-grass meadows at Belmont. Some secretive creature brushes the stems of Indian grass, switch grass, big and little bluestem. The grasses, some as tall as corn, sway slightly. Bumblebees buzz the prairie blazingstar, rosinweed and purple coneflower that provide bursts of color among the green. Traditionalists might look at these meadows and see a mess. They're certainly a contrast from the genteel green lawns closer to the mansion and outbuildings at Gari Melchers Home and Studio at Belmont in Stafford County. But to grounds preservation supervisor Beate Jensen--and to birds, snakes, mice, groundhogs, butterflies, deer, foxes and countless insects--the two flowing grass meadows at Belmont are places of splendor. Jensen thinks people are slowly broadening their attitudes about outdoor beauty to encompass more than just dutifully mowed lawns and a fence or two. People are learning to appreciate a more natural-looking landscape, she said, where native plants thrive because they belong there and because they are mostly left alone. This weekend, Jensen will speak about how Belmont's grass meadows were created over the past few years. She'll discuss how area residents can replicate such wild places on their own properties, from small lots to park-size acreage. The free talk is part of "A Walk on the Wild Side," a session of the First Saturdays in the Garden series sponsored by several groups and coordinated by the Virginia Cooperative Extension Stafford Office. From 9 a.m. to noon, Master Gardeners and Master Naturalists will give guided tours of the property's butterfly garden, meadows and recently opened woodland paths. When Gari and Corinne Melchers lived at Belmont, they had hayfields and pastureland as well as tidy lawns. The grass meadows aren't exactly what the Melcherses had, but they echo that historic precedent, Jensen said. To start the fields, the state Department of Game and Inland Fisheries provided the grass seed mix and expertise. Jensen added seed for a selection of native wildflowers. Like any new planting, the meadows needed tending for the first couple of years. Jensen and others hand-weeded the fields, one adjacent to a parking lot and a the other below the Belmont mansion next to Washington Street. Now that the fields are established, each is mowed just once a year instead of one or two times a week. That saves money, effort and pollution. The annual mowing comes in late February or early March, before nesting season. It's the only time of year when deer regularly raid the gardens, Jensen noted. Even on a small scale, she said, meadows like this provide excellent wildlife habitat. At the Melchers estate there are at least two nesting pairs of red-shouldered hawks, a fox, and many deer, among other creatures. "Just continual activity," Jensen said. "It's been so satisfying," she said, "especially when you see this little fox poking its head up--'You guys gone yet?'" Laura Moyer: 540/374-5417
Date published: 7/28/2008
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