Native Suburbia
Environmentally friendly landscaping with native plants

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=> home => ruminations => 20091008_native_garden_is_ok

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October 08, 2009

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Native Garden Is OK

I wanted to take the time to respond to feedback we received from A neighbor to the East:

I think that your native garden is OK. I pass it several times per day, in my car, on my bike and on foot. I like your variety of plants. Even as an avid gardener, I often note plants that are new to me. Your landscape is benefitting nature. You should not be quick to yield to convention and the complaints of others. If the Village and your neighbor(s) persist in complaining then perhaps you should counter with a request that they work to mitigate the nearly 200 lbs. of herbicides and pesticides that each of our neighbors put on their patch of lawn annually in an attempt to attain an envious patch of acceptable turf - you know the stuff that children and pets can't walk on for a period post application. I would hope that the Village and your neighbor(s) have greater worries that the height of your wild flowers. Keep your native garden!

It is nice to hear that others in the neighborhood understand that Native Suburbia is beneficial to wildlife and the environment. No gas fumed lawnmower, no chemicals, and no bags of clippings to be trucked off. The air and the water can be a little bit cleaner and the soil is actually being enriched as we work with the natural decomposition cycles.

I am glad to know that the variety of plants can be enjoyed by people who take the time to appreciate more than hostas, daylilies, and lawn grass in suburbia. The significant increase in the number of birds, butterflies, and bees is a clear signal to me that I am doing the right thing. I wonder how many of my neighbors see hummingbirds. For the first time in years, I saw them several times a week this year. I do not put out those terrible sugar water feeders (Hummingbird McDonald's) either. They come for the natural food that I provide in the form of flowers such as columbine (Aquilegia canadensis) and purple giant hyssop (Agastache scrophulariifolia).

I hope more people will take the time to understand and perhaps someday mine will not be the only yard on the block with a fantastic variety of native plants. Imagine a world where the yard filled with a dazzling array of birds, butterflies, and plants is the envy of the neighborhood. Imagine a world where a sterile patch of lawn, punctuated with a few out of place hostas, and surrounded by red mulch is looked upon as lazy. The work of someone that did not care enough to treat our shared resources with respect. I have already imagined this... can you?

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