A few weeks ago, the dogs and I were wandering through the woods when we came to a patch that had been cleared years ago as part of a logging operation.

Steve had planted a few crabapple trees after the loggers vacated the area, but otherwise it remains relatively clear. Last fall, I had noticed a few milkweed plants in the area, but I was it surprised to see that this year, they’d taken over almost the whole area.

Milkweed is a native plant that attracts pollinators, particularly butterflies. The dogs bounded ahead of me, likely sniffing out the deer that come to inspect the crabapple trees regularly. As they did, they ran through the milkweed and startled hundreds of butterflies. That moment felt almost like a Disney movie, with yellow, orange and black butterflies swirling everywhere.

It was honestly one of the most magical moments of my life.

Most of them were some form of swallowtail, but a few unique orange ones caught my eye. I knew it wasn’t quite the right time for monarchs, and a quick Google search identified them as great spangled fritillaries. Over the next few days, I returned to the clearing, just to enjoy the butterflies. Also, I left the dogs at home, since they discovered they enjoyed trying to catch butterflies.

Once it was quiet in the clearing, I also noticed I could hear the hum of other pollinators as well.

We’ve made a concerted effort over the last few years to plant native species or non-invasive species that attract pollinators around our house. It has been exciting to see them bloom this year, and not only add pops of color but know that they are supporting the local habitat. Aside from the butterflies and bees, we’ve noticed more hummingbirds and other larger bird species in the backyard, too.

While I’m sure it’s a consequence of just spending more time outside and paying attention to the critters that are going to attract the dogs’ interest, I’ve noticed a total of five unique turtles within a few hundred yards of my house. I have gone years without seeing a single turtle, so I’m slightly optimistic that the things we’ve done to improve life for the birds, the bees and the flowers have spilled over to all members of the ecosystem.

I’ve had another thought, though. The main road that leads to our house has been closed for almost two years now. It is normally accessed by a major shipping company and another industrial complex. With the road closure, all that traffic has been rerouted.

It occurred to me, as I watched two fawns and their mother frolic in the middle of the closed road, not long after I moved a turtle off the same road, that perhaps the wildlife has been benefiting from this major inconvenience to the humans. Of course, the bear has taken major liberties with our garbage, since it’s basically undisturbed by traffic once we drop it at the end of the driveway, so not all the extra wildlife is appreciated.

It has brought a lot of joy to try to live in harmony with our environment, improving on it without destroying it. Sure, we’ve had encounters with predators that haven’t ended so well for some of our fowl, but we try our best to maintain a habitat that protects them while also allowing them to live their best lives.

When we first moved back to the farm, after the weeds had run rampant for a few years, Steve sprayed things heavily with weed killer. Within months, as he started reading more and more about how to sustainably farm, he deeply regretted that decision.

As G and I have moved forward with our planting, we’ve tried to keep that in mind and do our best to plant things that are naturally weed and bug repellent, or to cut back and remove weedy areas during the fall and early spring, before they overtake their surroundings.

Sometimes, when I feel like we might not be doing enough to preserve our environment, I think about how quickly the wildlife responded to that small stretch of road not being used anymore. Small changes over longer periods of time can add up. I know that nature can recover quickly, when she’s allowed.

Liz Pinkey’s column appears on Saturdays in the Times News