Wild Acres In Action: A Beautiful Backyard Pond

An historic house with a unique backyard in Chestertown, Kent County

Randall Cleaver first reached out to Wild Acres in October of 2023; he and wife Ashley Flory just purchased a historic house with a unique backyard in Chestertown, Kent County. He wanted to install a meadow and backyard pond, and he knew that planting native will always mean the hardiest plants and the most wildlife attraction potential. Like many clever Wild Acres readers, he had already done some homework, but we sent him links to our website with step-by-step instructions and recommended native plants for ponds.  

Recently we received a correspondence from Randall Cleaver about his exciting success.

The results in the summer of 2025 speak for themselves! The Cleavers planted more than 100 native plants including 22 trees. They now own a self-described “dragonfly and frog farm.”  Their favorite plants right now are the native wild asters, which attract and support a wide variety of insects. His words of wisdom for others taking on a similar meadow project: 

“It is a process, and you do have to maintain it,” Randall Cleaver says. “I do a search weekly to remove invasive plants…  I have kept adding flowering perennials and see what does well in our situation, and add more of whatever thrives!”

Many thanks to Randall Cleaver and Ashley Flory for the inspiration – keep up the great garden work in support of Maryland’s wildlife!

Cleavers’ House–BEFORE planting.

Another view

Don’t forget to certify your garden; signs that explain why you’ve planted native species can go a long way, helping educate the public about the importance of biodiversity. Check out our list of free resources at the bottom of the Wild Acres page.

Cleavers, AFTER native plant gardening

Do YOU want your garden to be featured in an upcoming issue of HabiChat? We’d love to hear from you! Email [email protected].