Mending the Earth

A new book featuring Lorrie Otto quite prominently has hit the shelves. Mending the Earth in Milwaukee, written and published by Ney Tait Fraser, is a how-to guide about natural landscaping in southeastern Wisconsin, but is written in such lyrical fashion it’s like reading about an urban adventure. The stories are about Lorrie Otto and 15 friends and acquaintances, some of who took the plunge as early as the 1970s and 1980s, who began converting their yards to natural landscaping using native plants. Their stories are about a love affair with native flora that continues through to today, and the many photos included in the book only add to the adventure.

Lorrie Otto who led the battle to ban DDT in Wisconsin in the 1960s, went on to promote the use of native plants and natural landscaping as a way to heal the Earth one yard at a time. The not-for-profit national organization Wild Ones: Native Plants, Natural Landscapes is a reflection of her passion and her efforts.

Lorrie was inducted into the WCHF in 1999.

For more information about Ney Tait Fraser’s book, see Journal Sentinel.