Getting Green with Microforests While Keeping Ticks at Bay
Description
In the 1970s, Yokohama University botantist Akira Miyawaki discovered that if you piled up a lot of native plants in a small space and then let them compete against each other, you could very quickly restore a degraded piece of land. The technique, now called the Miyawaki method, has proven successful in many parts of the world. Plots as small as 40 feet by 40 feet can provide increased oxygen and support a diverse ecosystem. Among that diversity, though, you might also find critters, such as ticks, that most people consider pests. Nikki Blunier has experience in both these positive and negative aspects of habitat, working for the Sustainable Communities Group and the Tick Working Group for the Integrated Pest Management Institute. Nikki joined the Monday 8 O’Clock Buzz on September 22, 2025.
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<figcaption class="wp-caption-text" id="caption-attachment-471164">Nikki Blunier (Photo courtesy IPM Institute)</figcaption></figure><figure class="wp-caption alignright" id="attachment_471165" style="width: 288px;">
<figcaption class="wp-caption-text" id="caption-attachment-471165">Infographic courtesy University of Wisconsin-Madison Design Studio.</figcaption></figure><figure class="wp-caption alignnone" id="attachment_471166" style="width: 361px;">
<figcaption class="wp-caption-text" id="caption-attachment-471166">Photo of American Dog Tick by Peterwchen, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons</figcaption></figure>
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