Griping about gardening abuses is easy to do and I’ve indulged myself here. I excuse my indulgence by arguing that these abuses are still so extensive that they bear repeating. I think we’re all guilty of some offense, if we’re being honest with one another, so I don’t consider myself sanctimonious while I rant here. I need the reminder too.
Take a look at what I consider the current Top 5 Garden Pans and if you disagree, post a comment and let’s open a constructive debate. I suspect we all have a lot to learn from each other.
SUV-Sized Lawn Trackers, Ultimate Leaf Blowers and Other Assorted Jet Engine Powered Equipment
It’s a weekly song and dance in tens of millions of households: we rev up the power equipment and groom our yards into manicured perfection. It’s estimated Americans alone use 800 million gallons of gas per year mowing their yards! According to the EPA, mowing for 1 hour with a gas powered lawn mower can emit as much pollution as driving 650 miles in a 1992 model automobile. Gas powered lawn equipment accounts for 5% of the overall air pollution in the U.S. Newer model mowers have improved on emissions, but the fact, as I see it, is that we have too much lawn, seeded with the wrong type of seed and we’re mowing it too low. This not only leads to an excessive waste of gas and unnecessary pollution, it means we have to dump chemicals onto our lawns (and eventually our water supply) to weed and feed this unnatural monoculture we find so attractive, yet make no use of.Raking Fallen Leaves
Going along with the neatly manicured lawn is our obsession with chasing down every last leaf that flutters down from the trees in the fall. Granted, a think coating of leaves will smother the grass underneath it. But when you consider how hard it is to grow grass under most trees, wouldn’t a nice soft cushion of leaf mulch be the perfect compromise?Thick coatings aside, there’s no need to remove a sprinkling of leaves that blow about the rest of the yard. Actually, it’s good for the grass and the surrounding trees and shrubs. Most of the leaves will blow into the shrubbery, providing winter protection and eventually breaking down into food. The remaining leaves will begin to decompose over the winter and then be mulched with the first spring mowing, again providing food for the soil. This is free mulch and fertilizer. Why do we insist on chasing it down with our leaf blowers and having someone haul it off to the landfill to be wasted? At the very least, we should blow it off into the woods, which are in sore need of more leaf mold.
Garden Snobs
We’ve all met them. They seem like perfectly nice people and as novice gardeners we gravitate toward them and their wealth of knowledge. By all means, learn all you can from them, about what grows well by you, how to prune plants so they’ll bloom longer, when to expect the four-lined plant bug and even what’s new and exciting in the plant world. But don’t let them squash your joie de gardening, just because Latin isn’t your mother tongue and you think petunias are just peachy. Garden snobs are so busy acting bored and unimpressed, they’ve lost track of why they garden. The don’t remember the simple delight of watching a seed grow and bloom or the wonder that something so precious could make it through the winter and thrive another season. Forget about it. Plant what you love.Mulch
Now hear me out here. Mulch in general is a good thing, but I think we’ve gone too far. We spend enormous amounts of money covering large areas of barren ground with chipped up wood from who knows what source, dyed with who knows what coloring agent. My feeling is: If you need mulch, you don’t have enough plants! Yes, yes, yes, mulch helps cool the soil and plant roots, suppresses weeds, retains moisture and feeds the soil. It can even complement your garden with the contrasting color against the green foliage. But moderation please. Don’t just automatically dump 4" of mulch on your beds each year. Your plants are getting buried alive. How about planting in layers and under-stories, the way nature does? And how about keeping those leaves and needles you rake out of your garden each fall and using them to mulch and feed the soil?Foundation Plantings
I’m told foundation plantings are a very American concept. It’s an unwritten rule that homes will have a homogenous planting of clipped evergreens in front of the house and the remainder of the front yard will be clipped lawn. It’s a shame really, because so many front lawns are the sunniest part of the yard. Just think of what you could do. I know gardening in the front yard can be upsetting to some neighbors, but take small steps. Garden around your walkway, your drive, the lamp post or your mailbox. Let them see that you’re not going to go wild and unkempt. It’s actually quite addictive.
This is what not to do. For what to do, check out Garden Picks - Great Ideas for the Garden.
