Ecological Landscaping

Summary: Ecological Landscaping

Description

Suburban lawns contribute significantly to environmental pollution -- however, yards also offer an opportunity to make a positive impact. 

What’s so bad about a prototypical suburban lawn? 

• Widespread use of synthetic fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides. These pollute waterways, kill pollinators, and deplete soil quality (leading to erosion and loss of good soil microbes). 
• High carbon footprint as compared to natural ecosystems. The fertilizer and lawn chemical industry contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions. (The carbon footprint of lawn equipment is discussed in another Action.) 
• Non-native species and mono-cultures of yard grasses. Lawns are usually composed of non-native grasses, often of just one or two species. Exotic ornamentals including flowers, trees, and shrubs usually make up the majority of garden borders. This lack of biodiversity increases pest populations, depletes soil, and reduces habitat and food sources for wildlife and pollinators. 
• Watering. Water is a limited resource, and it is wasted on a lawn. Green lawns are fertilized and watered to look green even during the hottest months when grasses are meant to go dormant and turn yellow or brown. 

Fortunately, it is relatively simple to avoid some of these environmental pitfalls. Skip the synthetic chemicals and go low or no mow. Best of all, learn to appreciate the look of a natural lawn!

Deep Dive

How much carbon dioxide can a tree remove from the atmosphere? Over the course of a year, a young tree can remove approximately 6 kilograms/13 pounds of atmospheric carbon dioxide. By the time that tree is ten years old, the amount of carbon dioxide it can absorb jumps to 22 kilograms/48 pounds. Within 50 years, a mature tree has removed almost one ton of carbon dioxide.

How do trees help cool the atmosphere? Trees cool the atmosphere and ground around them through transpiration, the process through which plants absorb water through their roots and release water vapor through the pores of their leaves. On a sunny day, a mature tree can transpire up to 100 liters of water and in the process convert 70 kilowatt-hours of solar energy into latent heat held in water vapor. Without tree cover, the soil absorbs heat instead. This contributes to a rise in temperature not only of the ground, but also the surrounding atmosphere.

What native trees and plants should I plant in my yard? Some resources to help you plan ahead: 

A list of internet databases on native species from Grow Native Massachusetts;

An article and links on how to shop for native plants from Wild Seed Project;

Planting for Resilience: Selecting Urban Trees in Massachusetts, published by UMass-Amherst Department of Environmental Conservation.

What is a Food Forest? A food forest is an edible forest garden -- find out more from the Boston Food Forest Coalition. A combination of tall trees, small trees, shrubs, herbs, ground covers, and some annual crops, it’s designed so that each plant receives sufficient sun exposure and requires minimal care as it enriches itself with organic matter. Far from a new idea, this is a time-tested system of farming found all over the world, perhaps most famously in the Amazon rainforest. 

What is a rain garden? A rain garden is a low lying area (natural or constructed) that has been designed to capture and filter stormwater run-off. The bowl-like area collects water that would otherwise flow away from hard surfaces, such as roofs and asphalt, and into local bodies of water -- in the process, depositing pollution, fertilizer, pet waste, petroleum products, etc. Storm run-off that ends up untreated in lakes and streams, and ultimately oceans, causes anaerobic conditions, algal blooms, and disrupts healthy ecosystems. 

Rain gardens should be filled with plants that have deep roots and thrive in wet soil. The plants help to hold and process stormwater in place, so it flows into the ground where it will be naturally filtered by healthy soil and roots. 

Did you know that seven rain gardens were established about a decade ago to filter run-off to Bare Hill Pond? Here are some details about the project which may be useful for planning a rain garden in your yard. 

Who can I consult locally with gardening questions?

The Garden Club of Harvard

The Massachusetts Master Gardener Association

Steps to Take

What can you do?

1. Learn more about native plants and alternatives to lawns from Grow Native Massachusetts, Native Plant Trust, and Wild Seed Project.
2. Stop applying synthetic fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides. 
3. Mow your lawn no more than every two weeks. Three week intervals are even better for supporting healthy populations of pollinators. 
4. Stop watering your lawn. Your well (or town water supply) will thank you.
5. Leave lawn clippings on your lawn to recycle the nutrients. Leave fall leaves in place, or rake into piles and let the leaves naturally decompose. Leaf mulch works great in garden beds.
6. Find a patch of lawn to let grow. If you don’t want it to revert to woods, weed out tree seedlings, shrubs, and invasive species a few times a year. Tall meadow grasses and wildflowers will begin to fill in your free patch of lawn, and the birds will love it.
7. Learn to identify the most common invasive plants that show up in your yard and pull them up. Invasive plants form mono-cultures in our ecosystems and threaten the diversity of native plant life. Be careful when you bring mulch, topsoil, or other garden materials in for landscaping purposes as they may contain seeds of invasive species. Try to find materials you can use in your own yard instead, such as leaf mulch or compost, rather than bringing in outside organic materials. 
8. Experiment with growing native plants and trees. Even just letting an oak tree (or two) grow up from an acorn that sprouted in your yard will have a positive impact over time. 
9. Don't have space for a garden at your home or would prefer to garden where there is lots of sun and where critters can't eat all your vegetables? Check out Harvard's Community Garden. Contact Mary Keefe at Mary.Keefe@charter.net.
10. Let us know how it went by leaving a Testimonial under the tab above!

Don’t have your own space but you love these ideas? Organize to bring biodiversity to public spaces or organizations like schools and places of worship near you.