I have been putting off a very large gardening project for close to a year now. We bought out house two years ago and it is new construction. So of course, that means it is nothing but sod over subsoil. Not exactly the best thing in the world in a lot of regards but for my wife and I we hate big boring expanses of grass. Never mind the fact I absolutely hate mowing grass. There are plenty of publications out there that will tell you about all the evils of lawns and the negative environmental impacts they have. I fully realize that as someone who purchased a new construction home in a place that a little over two years ago was a nice woodlot, I am part of the problem. Where once there were was a much more diverse mix of flora and fauna now stands homes, concrete and sun burnt sod. Acknowledging my own involvement in this I have sought to do something to help bring back some of that which has been lost.
As I said my wife and I are not fans of grass. We do not use chemicals or anything else that is not environmentally safe on our lawn other than the gas push mower I use to cut the grass. We have dogs and a teenager so during out back yard into a forest wonderland would be a bit difficult. Plus, we have an HOA that might not be very excited about goats and a meadow in my front yard. Therefore, what we have set out to do is expand on the foundational planting around our home. The front had the builder grade type flower beds one would expect. Last year I ripped out much of what was there, repurposing what I could, and planted a much more diverse mix of plants. The project for this year was to expand the front beds significantly and to reduce the lawn’s footprint in the back by about one third.
In accomplishing this project, which is still in progress at this time, the hope was to provide a more diverse environment full of a mixture of shrubs, trees and flowers. The front is completely done and looks amazing. The back is about halfway done and hopefully I will be done soon after you are reading this. In our planning for these beds our goal was to plant as many native species as we could as well as include a significant number of plants that support pollinators. Anyone who has been paying attention to environmental news will be aware of the blight of bees and other pollinators. Our hope is, though small, to make whatever impact we can to helping these populations. Maybe in doing to it will inspire others in our neighborhood to do the same. We have already inspired a couple to follow suit.
The work is not easy that is for sure. However, the reward is worth the time and effort this endeavor requires. I have literally been working until dark after work and on weekends for close to a month. Like I said though the rewards are worth it. Not only have we received wonderful comments from friends and neighbors, we have already seen wildlife finding refuge in our gardens. There are countless birds, bees, toads and others that have found our gardens in short time. Hopefully as the summer progress and I get the rest of the planting done we will see butterflies and humming birds as well. There is something very relaxing about walking around the yard seeing all the colors and variety of plants and the icing on the cake is seeing the wildlife enjoying it as well. I wish more people would be willing to put in the work to transform their barren lawns into diverse spaces like this. We expend so much time and effort on maintaining grass that could be focused on making a better space for wildlife. Especially in all the new construction that is being built. So much was taken in the process of making these homes the least we can do is try and mitigate it by building spaces like these. The same applies to so many other aspects of the community. There are common areas that do not get used that could easily be turned into pollinator gardens, rain gardens or some other space that is not just grass. There are countless road medians and other public spaces that could be transformed in some capacity as well. It is all about the will of people to demand these changes. At a time where we are at a critical tipping point in the health of our planet and the flora and fauna that inhabits this world, we have to get involve and take action. There’s a lot of work to do out there and we need to get busy or there will be nothing left for the generations to come.
