(Cat picture - for no reason at all)
In the garden: Green thumbers should also be environmentalists
It was disappointing to see the lack of progress at the recent climate change talks in Durban, South Africa.
Governments are abandoning green initiatives to focus on the recovery of mismanaged economies despite dire warnings on the future of the planet. Consequently, chances are looking slim for an agreement among the 194 countries present that will lead to a reduction in greenhouse gases. It’s enough to make anyone want to retreat to the garden and simply hope for the best.
But burying one’s head in the compost pile won’t help at all. At least in the garden, there are positive things that can be done to help the environment.
Back in 2002, when the Kyoto protocols on climate change were making big news, I wrote a column suggesting a few ideas for the garden that would help improve air quality. Nine years later, it may seem we’re not much further ahead, but it’s interesting to see that some things have changed and improved, at least at the local level.
The concept of the 100-mile diet, where only foods produced within a 100-mile radius are consumed, is certainly taking hold, as people discover that food grown five or six metres from the back door saves enormous amounts of energy for transportation and tastes a lot better than fruit and veggies that had to be drugged for the journey (that’s how produce arrives in the store at peak ripeness).
One of the biggest changes is in the use of water. Supply costs for municipalities have risen substantially over the last few years as it takes a lot of greenhouse-gas-producing energy to pump water from the ground or a river, treat it, then send it down pipes to your backyard.
In the past, much was wasted by poor watering practices, whereas now the daily sprinkling of lawns has ended and that practice has become almost socially unacceptable. More and more front yards are now filled with plants and shrubs that have been selected for their ability to withstand drought conditions. And adding mulch and compost to flower beds is normal procedure.
Thanks to the green bin program, there has been a dramatic increase in the recycling of those wastes that can be converted to garden compost and made available to homeowners. This is great, although it does take a lot of energy to truck all that stuff around. The next step is to recycle these wastes right in the backyard. A huge pile of leaves will turn into garden gold in just a few months time.
One area where we are regressing is in the use of power around the yard. The leaf blower/vacuum, once rare, is replacing the broom and garden rake. It may be helpful for those with a huge property or physical limitations, but a cacophonic choral society in the neighbourhood is one thing we can do without.
Power tools all have an impact on air quality, especially that worst of polluters, the gasoline-powered lawn mower. Today’s push mowers do a fine job and, with other hand tools, are the most economical types of exercise equipment on the market — and far cheaper than the fees you will pay at a fitness centre.
I am happy to say that air quality has improved in Ontario — thanks to the restricted use of pesticides. No longer is there a chemical fragrance wafting over neighbourhoods each spring, a welcome change.
So despite what ultimately comes out of the discussions in Durban on greenhouse gases and climate change, there is much that has been done and can be done at the local level, especially by us gardeners.
