Spring News
Happy Spring!
As we plan for 2023 this is what I am thinking about - how do we bring our properties to their highest and best ecological use within the context of a residential property (and of course good design). When I design a garden, I start by focusing on supporting Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths). Why? Beauty and mystery aside, the total number of Lepidoptera that you sustain on your property is a good measure of that areas ecological health, i.e. it is Lepidoptera that form the basis of the food web (Doug Tallamy - see video below).
What are we going to focus on in 2023? Options to think about…
o reduce the lawn (if you’re not sure why we should do this, click here)?
o where could we add more layers - shrubs under big trees, perennials under shrubs, ground cover under perennials?
o where could we add a tree and what kind would it be? click here to see why it might be a species of oak.
o what critters are visiting your gardens and who would you most like to see more of? hummingbird moths, luna moths, songbirds, monarchs, tiger swallowtails….
o what trees, shrubs, grasses, perennials would be there if there was no house? how can we bring some of that back? think keystone species.
What I find most exciting about doing this work is how fast insects/pollinators show up once there is a plant that they find useful to them. Dave Goulson (Doug Tallamy’s British counterpart) is the person that really opened up the world of insects to me. Silent Earth: Averting the Insect Apocalypse is a heavy read (Similar to Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring) but weaving through the science of insect decline he tells stories about his fascination with insects. Reading his books are like taking a walk with him around his gardens as he describes what he plants, and why – the trials and tribulations of gardening for the insects he is trying to attract. He is every bit as fascinating as Doug Tallamy (and just as witty).
What would you like to work on in 2023? One of my goals is to have all of our gardens planted with both milkweed (monarch populations are down by 90%) and a couple keystone species. Another thing I’m looking forward to for myself is a big container garden (6’ x 2’ x 2’ galvanized steel cattle trough) filled with herbs and annuals.
And because they only keep getting better…. another Doug Tallamy video.
I am scheduling starting the first week in May. Get in touch to set up a start date!
