Conservation News

The 2026 Fall Tree & Native Plant Sale distributed 5396 native plants (potted) and 3230 conifer seedlings to 401 customers throughout our region! WCCD staff, Master Rain Gardener partners, and over 53 volunteers made the event a smooth success getting more plant diversity into our home landscapes.

Read on for an update from the Michigan Conservation Stewardship for Farmers Project (MCSFP). This program supports farmers in Washtenaw, Wayne, Monroe, Lenawee, and Hillsdale counties were invited to apply to receive monetary awards to put towards on-farm conservation, farm management and marketing-related expenses. To date, the program has almost 60 applicants and has delegated over $600,000 in funds.

Did you know Michigan has over 460 native wild bees? They are excellent pollinators for farms, gardens, and orchards. These native bees evolved alongside the crops domesticated by Native Americans like tomatoes, blueberries, and squash. As most wild bees overwinter in plant stems or in the soil, fall garden care can either eliminate them or encourage their abundance. With a few small changes, you can invite these gentle guests to visit and stay awhile.

Your fields and compost piles are critical to turning organic resources back into healthy soil!

Washtenaw County Water Resources Commissioner’s Office Materials Management Division, in partnership with the Washtenaw County Conservation District, wants to learn more about composting on local farms. Whether you already manage a compost system or are just curious about how to do more, we want to hear from you!

With a large number of pollinators and insects relying on leaf litter for cover, what are the pros and cons of raking your leaves? This article covers some options for residents to consider about the annual leaf fall thats about to happen in Southeast Michigan.

Fourteen years ago, when we bought our house, we had exactly one milkweed plant in our rock landscape bed. It was weedy, scraggly, easy to overlook, but I saw it.
We didn't do anything heroic. We just didn't pull it.

A new Michigan handbook developed through the USDA Transition to Organic Partnership Program (TOPP) helps prospective Technical Service Providers (TSPs) navigate the certification process for developing NRCS Conservation Plan Supporting Organic Transition (CPA 138) plans, while also providing a helpful starting point for individuals interested in becoming TSPs in other conservation areas.

The WCCD has a transplanter that can plant up to 300 seedlings / hour! Soil conditions in fall are often the best for tree survival. The transplanter is on a trailer with a license plate allows easier transport on roads.

Michigan has an estimated 1.3 million septic systems serving roughly half of its population, and over 20% of them may be failing. Michigan is the only state lacking a statewide code regulating septic systems.

SepticSmart Week aims to encourage homeowners to properly use and maintain their systems. WCCD staff are currently working on an education project aiming to educate residents of the Ottawa-Stony North Watershed on how to reduce pollution risks from their septic systems.