Beyond Lawns: Eco-Healthy Landscaping
Find here a few tips for healthy landscaping, whether on your own or with a landscaping service
Reduce pesticide use. Use pesticides only as a last resort when pest infestations have been identified, not on a pre-determined spray schedule. Use hand-weeding and other cultural methods instead of herbicides.
Go native. Landscape with native plants and other low-maintenance plants that require little use of chemicals and fertilizers. You’ll make the maintenance job easier, reduce chemical use, and provide habitat for wildlife such as birds and butterflies.
Put it in Writing. Stipulate these ecological requirements in the contract with your landscaping company, if you use one. Sample contract language is available from the Oregon Environmental Council; contact teresa h at oeconline.org.
Hire an ecologically-certified landscaper. The Ecobiz program takes the guesswork out of choosing someone who will do the job in a way that’s healthy for you and the environment. Find a list of ecologically-certified landscape professionals at www.ecobiz.org. If your landscaper is not on the list, encourage them to get certified.
Create a "cool planet" garden. National Wildlife Federation has teamed up with expert gardeners from the Garden Club of America to develop the Gardener's Guide to Global Warming, a useful guide that brings global warming solutions to your own back yard.
