My One Thing to Change
January 10, 2008 by Doug
Filed under Miscellaneous
Happy New Gardening Year to all. I’m writing this just after a small snowfall has covered all the branches and made my yard look like a white fairyland. I even managed to drag myself outside at first light to take some pictures of the snow and glistening trees. Who would have thought that I could be so inspired as to go outside into the winter cold before my first morning coffee just to take pictures of snowflakes. What is this world coming to anyway? You know it had to be good to stir the creative soul of this housebound gardening guy. And it was. I’ll be posting some of them on my blog in the next week and announcing a garden picture contest so watch for it.
Of course, the reason I’ve come out of my gardening funk is that the seed catalogues have started arriving. I have my major herb catalogue (Richters) and my old favourite vegetable seed one (Stokes) on my desk as I write and the pictures and plants are once again tempting me to dream of next year’s garden. My partner is looking through her seed catalogues and planning our vegetable garden. Given that her seed sources are ten times more numerous than mine (I tend to grow a lot of hybrid flowers, she goes after the old vegetable gems) you can imagine what our dining room table looks like. It’s awash in dreams.
One of the interesting dreams this week is a contest just announced at YouTube. It seems there’s a rather large and important world conference happening at Davos, Switzerland in the next little while and YouTube has arranged to present Internet video to the world leaders attending this event. The theme of the conference and contest is “What one single thing should individuals, companies, and governments do in 2008” You have to admit is is a bit intriguing to try to consider exactly what one single thing we should all focus on. The answers and entries in the contest are already intriguing. And I’ve decided to enter a video. In fact, not only am I going to enter a video, I’m going to encourage you to do the same thing or join the dialogue. Again, I’ll be announcing something on my blog and in this column over the next few weeks to give you a spot to enter the conversation.
So, what’s my one single thing for 2008? I think the single most important thing is the survival of our species. I want my grandchildren to be able to worry about their lives in the ways that I do. I want my great-grandchildren to have the same luxury; without the worry of having to figure out how to physically survive amidst the wreck of a chemical-ravaged environment. All the rest of the problems can be solved (or not) after we’re sure we have clean air and water. So this means, a sea-change in our use of chemicals and a serious adjustment of our priorities in living within a plastic society.
So without going pie in the sky, I think I’d very much like to start with a complete and immediate ban on the use of chemicals that are used for cosmetic purposes. Not only on lawns and flowers but on cars to clean them, in hygiene products to make them “smell better”, in just about every household cleaning product you can buy on the shelf. But because this is a gardening column after all, I just want to rant about things in the garden.
The biggest offender is the lawn. I’ve written about this before but the lawn is the single biggest sucker of cosmetic chemicals polluting our ground water that we can individually change. Next spring, simply say “no” to chemical fertilizers and sprays. There are organic alternatives (contrary to the doom and gloom of the chemical lawn applicators) that will accomplish the same thing as chemical controls. Want a natural weed and feeding compound? Use corn gluten. Want to get rid of grubs? Use predator nematodes. Want to get rid of existing dandelions? Use a simple and inexpensive tool called a “spud” and get a half hour of exercise a week to eliminate the problem. I’ve written about all them here before and it isn’t a rocket science.
Want to do something positive? Cancel any automatic spraying contract you have with a lawn care company. Don’t spray just because you’ve always sprayed. Lawn care companies make money spraying; they have an investment to protect. I know that some folks won’t take this step. I know that some homeowners don’t believe that chemicals are harmful to us all and our environment; not only in the use but in the production and transport. I know that some homeowners say, “It’s only my lawn.” The reality is that when we add up all those “only my lawns” we come up with significant amounts of chemicals that are being dumped into our environment. The last statistic I saw was that homeowners are putting almost 4 times the amount of chemicals per acre than farmers are to control a few dandelions and pests. Don’t worry about farmers overspraying, worry about the old guy next door that insists its his right to nuke weeds and insects. And it is almost some guy rather than a woman that makes this decision I note to my chagrin.
Want to make a difference with one small thing? Go completely organic in the lawn and garden. It’s a small thing but when we all do it, these small things add up to a big change. Make the decision to protect yourself and your family and we’ll all benefit.
That’s my one small thing that I’d like to see happen in 08. What’s yours?
Of the many things I plan to do differently this year, my biggest is to stop using bottled water. The chemicals/fuel/carbon emissions that go into the packaging and shipping are ridiculous, not to mention the chemicals that can leach into the water and the earth after you buy them, drink them, and throw them away. In other words….save money, save the planet, save your family….get a filter!
This should open a whole lot of good conversation, Doug. I’m already organic and don’t do anything to the lawn except reduce it, encourage clover and get my other half to mow it when it gets long. Dandelions are welcome in it, because I want to encourage pollinators as much as possible.
My thing this year is going to be to reduce the amount of plastic bags we use. This means getting better organized; like buying a few of the good big carryall bags that are available at a lot of stores, and then USING THEM! I’ll have to train myself to put them back in the car after they’re unloaded, so that I don’t forget to take them with me. I figure that will make a big difference, at least in our household.
I’m also considering cancelling the newspaper, more out of pique than anything else, but I do use it in garden-building, so maybe not just yet. One challenge at a time, right?
I should write a post linking back to this, and see what more conversation we can get going.
Hi Jodi – plastic bags are a great idea. I could do that one as well. Good thought!
And I already get my news on an rss reader so don’t get a newspaper. But if I could do something about all those darn flyers coming in, that would be a great thing to have happen.
Doug,
I’ve never put a chemical on my lawn, just very occasional lime, and the grass clipping when we’ve actually mowed at the proper time and didn’t have to do any raking. It is my understanding that lawns need no more fertilizing than that. Of course, my lawn is a ‘flowery mead’ with lots of dandelions, clover etc.
Like Jodi my plan is to cut down on plastic bags. I already have several canvas totes. Now I just have to remember to get them in the car – and bring them in the store.
Commonweeder – lawns are composed of individual grass plants and if you’re trying to grow a great turf area, you’re going to have to add fertilizer. I’ve written about organic lawns right here Grass clippings do provide some of the necessary nitrogen but not all, even if all the clippings are left on the lawn.
There are differences between Northern and Southern lawns (particularly with grass species) but there is no difference in the need for food.
Doug,
Being organic in an area of upscale homes with lush green lawns and cookie cutter landscaping, my 2/3 acre looks out of place. My lawn is a mixture of dandelions, violets, and ground ivy that competes with the grass. In Spring, the yellows and purple tapestry in the lawn is beautiful. I get great satisfaction knowing the wildlife that come here to feed are not being poisoned and that the runoff is not polluting the numerous creeks and streams that empty into the Ohio River. I find it amazing how the children in the schools nearby are being taught about pollution, etc., yet their parents continue to pollute the environment with pesticides and big SUV’s. We as a nation have to wise up quickly or our grandchildren will be facing a nightmare.
Barbara – according to folks such as James Lovelock, there is no “will” in the equation. At the very best, we can modify some of the timing but we and they are in for a very, very rough ride in a surprisingly short time. This is no longer a “far future” kind of thing.
Good ol’ vinegar and soap solution applied directly to the weeds. It was good enough for grandpa and it is good enough for me.
Corn gluten takes of that nasty nut grass.
I use dish soap, a bucket of water and a pair of pliers takes care of mole crickets.
We have a super large yard and have deliberately let the lower part that is a wetland go natural. We have planted some flowering trees in part of it as well as pine trees on the side to the road and trumpet vines along the fence. We do keep the rest well mowed, but let the dandelions, violets, hollyhocks, etc have at it.
However we have a neighbor who has the ulltr “manicured yard”. We get her run off. She poisons everything. Even had the city come in “while we were both at work” and cut some of our trees in the lower part that we have let go natural for birds and animals. She has managed to kill my family oldfashioned yellow rose with all her chemicals. It was planted there before she even moved there and gets the most of her poison runoff. I guess I am just venting, sorry. But, I don’t cause her problems because she wants a lawn with exactly so many geraniums planted exactly so many feet apart with—–. You get the picture, so why can’t she let us have our piece of “heaven”. We keep it all mowed and trimmed, except the wetland part. We just like a little surprise here and there. So what if a squirrel planted a walnut in the middle of nowhere, we just leave it and go around it.
Was really sick about the yellow rose, can remember the scent from my childhood Grandma’s yard. But now is gone forever. I had the last piece and it to is now gone forever.
PS your doing great and we all need to plant more trees, and cut less. Have more green and less concrete. Can’t breath if there is nothing green. Just get laughed at when try to tell that to those around here. They are too busy worrying that a tree might fall on their house to appreciate the shade it gives, etc. OK, I’m getting on my soapbox, so will go. Keep up the good work. Carol F.
Carol – I believe that if you can prove that the chemical spray is moving to your property that you can “do something” about it. You might check with a local lawyer to see if this is possible. Or small claims court if you just want to extract a little blood. But do understand that you’ll require real proof that the chemicals have done in your plants. And towns normally can’t cut things down without warning you first – giving you the chance to either do the work yourself or defend what you’re doing. You might want to check the bylaw officer and your representative on council for that one.
Having said that – yeah, bad neighbors are a pain in the anatomy! And I have a lot of sympathy for you. Those who live on the forefront of any environmental movement have had “stuff” to deal with from nutso-folks.
Sorry about the rose. That’s a loss to be sure.
(It was likely a Harrison’s Yellow – a very common old yellow shrub rose and still freely available in the nursery trade) 
Keep on!