Short Run to the Sea: Green Yards Can Be… Green!

Bullwings: Orcas Issues is proud to collaborate with the Stewardship Network of the San Juans to bring its series, “A Short Run to the Sea” to our readers.

We will reproduce daily articles from the series created and published on Stewardship Connections, an electronic publication of the San Juan County Marine Resources Committee and Lead Entity for Salmon Recovery.

Green Yards Can Be… Green!

Yards are a source of enjoyment.  We watch in awe as they spring to life after the winter months.  Barbecues and evening dinners outside are summertime traditions.  In the fall we witness the turning of colors and falling of leaves.  And in the winter we wait for the warm sun to return.

How we care for our lawns can increase our enjoyment of them. One of the first steps is to determine how much lawn to maintain.  Some initial effort put into smart landscaping allows nature to do most of the work for us in the long term.

Begin by investigating the soil and getting to know your yard.  Dig down 8-12 inches and take a look.  Adding compost helps sandy soils hold nutrients and water and loosens clay soils.  Where is it sunny versus shaded?  Where is the soil dry or soggy and at what time of the year? Choose the right plant, shrub or tree for the right place based on its conditions. You may avoid or minimize pest problems by selecting plants that are suitable to your yard.

Plant in layers (ground cover, shrubs and trees) so your landscape is like the forest.  Native species, especially those with fruit and flowers will support birds, bees and butterflies.  It’s possible to choose plants that will increase beneficial insects that help control pests.  This is a useful technique to reduce our use of chemicals.

Smart watering practices can prevent common plant problems.  Watering deeply builds deeper, healthier root systems, but do so infrequently, as most plants do best if the soil is allowed to partially dry out between waterings. Use soaker hoses or drip irrigation on beds versus sprinklers and save 50% or more water.   Choose low water plants and native species that once established can often thrive on just rainfall.  Do what you can to conserve our freshwater resources.

Slugs can be a real problem, and snails too.  Prevention can go a long way.  Slugs like to hide underneath debris, boards, and pots, so keep areas around susceptible plants clean and free of debris.  Remove and/or kill the slugs you find: home-made beer traps work well.  Go slug hunting at night when they are most active.

Fertilizers containing nitrogen or phosphorus can become a water pollutant if over-applied.  They can stimulate aquatic plant growth and deplete oxygen in the water that fish and other critters need to survive.  You can make your own organic fertilizer.  Combine: 4 parts fishmeal or seed meal, 1 part agricultural lime or dolomite, 1 part rock phosphate or ½ part bonemeal and ½ part kelp meal.  This recipe comes from the Territorial Seed Catalog and the ingredients can be found at most garden stores.

If you choose to use chemical pesticides or fertilizers, choose the least toxic product and spot apply it.  Follow the label instructions exactly and remember that more is not better.  Avoid spreading it all over the yard, rather buy just what you need to spot apply sparingly.

Be realistic.  Recognize that weeds will always be a part of the landscape.  Use mulch to help control weeds instead of trying for complete eradication, which often requires frequent use of weed killers.   Don’t expect to kill all pests or have a picture-perfect yard all the time.  Low levels of pests keep beneficial species, such as birds and predator insects in your yard and actively controlling pest populations.

By employing key alternatives to pesticide and fertilizer use we can help to sustain safe water and healthy fresh and marine aquatic resources.

www.ecy.wa.gov/beyondwaste/compost.html

https://mastergardener.wsu.edu/gardening.html

https://gardening.wsu.edu/nwnative

For the full series of articles, go to www.shortruntothesea.org

The San Juan Marine Resources Committee (MRC) was started in 1996 as a grassroots effort to establish local management of marine resources.  It was the prototype for the creation of a federally sponsored network of seven MRCs working in northern Puget Sound and the Strait of Juan de Fuca.  The MRCs are supported by federal funding through the Northwest Straits Marine Conservation Initiative.

The “Short Run to the Sea” campaign has been supported by the Education, Communication and Outreach Network (ECONet) of the Puget Sound Partnership.