Sustainable Gardening Blog

 (Blog version.  It’s here in its entirety, with off-topic sidebar.)

In the News 

• Great coverage of the growing anti-lawn movement in the New Yorker.

• From Dow, an herbicide lethal enough to survive a cow’s guts and produce toxic manure.  Wow.

• Kudos to the Missouri Botanical Garden for their plastic pot recycling program [pdf], now winning awards.  Started in 1997, the program has kept 300 tons of hort waste out of landfills.

• Treehugger reports some good news about switchgrass - that it improves the soil and is looks promising as a  nonfood biofuel.  Speaking of fuel, can kudzu be turned into ethanol?  How about giant miscanthus? It’s proving to yield more biofuel per acre than corn.

• In more plant news, rubber is being produced from dandelions, which may turn out to be THE low-cost alternative to trees.

• While there’s still no definitive explanation for the Colony Collapse Disorder of honeybees, bumblebees aren’t doing much better, reports Adrian Higgins.

• And the Boston Globe reports the no-surprise news that lead in the soil is putting a crimp on backyard veg gardening. City Farmer has more to say about that, and other contaminants.

• Great story about urban farming in Cuba - improving diets and creating 350,000 jobs.

• Troubled by deer in your garden?  Hey, it could be bears - the kind that attacks gardeners.

• Here’s a thorough update on weed laws in the news.

• Also on GardenRant, an owner’s report about chimneas sparked a meaty discussion of firepits and outdoor fires of all kinds. Tempers rose!

New on Sustainable-Gardening

Exciting news: more contributors! Like who?

• Rainyside Gardeners’ Debra Teachout-Teashon wrote "My gardening practices aren’t so out there after all!"

• Garden Lady C.L. Fornari wrote about her favorite "Carefree Perennials" for sustainable gardeners.

• Florida’s Ginny Stibolt urges readers to "Just say no to poisons". 

• And back to me, I try to cover the lawn basics for early fall: "How to start a new lawn," "How to overseed a crappy lawn" and "How to patch bare spots."  And thanks to Jeff Ball for all his help!

• Poison Ivy Update is all the latest advice, including comments from GardenRant readers.

• Weeds and Weeding is an overview of our Job One this time of year.  Then in The Weeds in My Garden I get up close and personal, with photos.

My So-called Second Career

Sustainable-Gardening.com has its first sponsors! They’re in the sidebar on every page and on the About Sponsors and Partners page.   Thanks and welcome!

New articles on OrganicGardener.com:

• Earthworms, those Fertilizing, Rototilling Wonders of the Soil
• Master Composters are Here to Teach
• Easy-Care, High-Impact Hydrangeas
• How to Water your Garden  
• Find a Gardening Blog Near You 
• Learn to Grow Food Organically and Sustainably

The July issue is out, and here’s what’s new to this blog:

In the News

• Found on Open Register: Proposed EPA guidelines pan water features.   

  

• Gas prices increase appeal of alternative mowers, also via my favorite source of garden-biz news.
• McDonalds in Chicago isn’t just serving fresh lettuce - they’re growing it on their living billboard.
• First there was the report that pesticide poisoning had put a bunch of folks in the hospital.  Then came the follow-up story with the facts - that the culprit was the lovely weed Datura.
• The news that the head gardener at Versailles is "environmental" got our attention.
• The New York Times reported on a totally new way of looking at invasive plants - as passengers.
• Buffalo’s co-op garden center Urban Roots celebrates its first anniversary. They’re teaching permaculture and water conservation and all that good stuff.
  
• Ellen Goodman interviews Roger Doiron of Kitchen Gardeners International.

On the Blogs

• Mr. Subjunctive takes us on a tour of flood-ravaged garden plants in Iowa, then shows us more photos of destruction in Cedar Rapids. 
• Amy Stewart revealed the results of her organic herbicide testing (orange oil v. vinegar) and lots of smart comments followed.
• I reported on Pogo Organics and their compost-heated greenhouse.
• Elizabeth covered gardening with slugs.
• Look what they’ve done to the organic lawn care demo on the National Mall! is a story that made it to Washington’sCity Paper.

New on Sustainable-Gardening

• Container Gardening includes design considerations, planting, care, and plant choices.
• Plants and Design for Screening includes my favorites and recommendations from Scott Aker of the National Arboretum.
• Gardeners have no choice but to Deal with Mosquitoes.
• In answer to questions from several coaching clients, I wrote Removing Stumps the Safe and Easy Way.
• In Seating Makes the Garden I try to convince you to use more chairs, benches and dining sets in your garden; even a hammock if you’re into napping.  And I show off all my own outdoor furniture.

Highlights from the latest newsletter.

In the News

• Consumer Reports did some polling about turf and found that 64% said their neighbor has a best lawn than they do; 23% said they spend at least 5 hours a week doing yard work, 79% said they never use hearing protection while mowing, and 12% said they throw back a few brews while pushing the mower.  Wow, it’s dangerous out there - surveys also show that almost no one reads product directions. 

• Speaking of gardeners who might be knocking back some brews (all national stereotyping aside, of course) how about these Aussies?  Would you believe - they’re Guerrilla Gardeners intent on doing good work.  Hmm, I thought law-breaking activists tried to stay under the radar.

• More on the increasing popularity of gardening: here in Michigan, in the SF Chronicle, the The Wall Street Journal, the News-Herald.com, and Knoxvillebiz.com.

On the Blogs

• Here’s a great review of the battery-powered Neuton lawnmower by Nancy at Gardening Gone Wild.

• Are rain barrels the new hot item? asks Project Green Industry. They say they haven’t seen so much buzz since Crocs!

• Treehugger.com is pretty excited about a product that might just meet city dwellers’ composting needs. 

• Just a month or so after About.com hired Colleen Vanderlinden to write their organic gardening articles, Robin got herself hired by the Examiner papers as National Gardening Examiner.  Woo-hoo!   And well deserved.  I met and bonded with my fellow Marylander at the Austin meet-up; now if I can only snag an invitation to come see her garden.

• Anne Raver wrote a terrific profile of journalist Margaret Roach, her garden, and her blog A Way to Garden.  This quote captures the feelings of so many bloggers: "’Do I want to hand stories to some magazine and have them rewrite them?’ she said. ‘Forget about it; I’m not doing it. I’m not doing it. Did I say I’m not doing it? You know what? I can’t. I’m sorry. It’s just not a stage in my life I can go to.’  Amen, sister."

What’s New on Sustainable-Gardening

• Organic Gardening has its own section now with my own articles, plus links and recommended books, but please suggest others.

In the Garden

• On GardenRant I proclaimed the Joys of Going Lawnless, so I’ll just add that the joy is spreading quite  nicely - in the form of creeping sedum.     

My So-Called Second Career

• That’s the home page of the EcoWomen website heralding (in a photo too large for comfort) their monthly event - ME.  And not talking about gardening this time but all about how I’m saving the environment. (Kidding!) Actually, EcoWomen promotes career advancement, so I plan to regale them with the story of my rise to the heights of garden bloggerdom. (More kidding!)

• Happy to be a go-to person for anything remotely garden-related, I agreed to speak at the opening of "A Man Named Pearl", the documentary about a topiary artist in rural South Carolina.  Here’s my report.

Sustainable Gardening News Archives

May 2008
April 2008
March 2008
February 2008
January 2008
December 2007
November 2007
October 2007
 

In the News

• A ban on many lawn and garden pesticides will go into effect next spring in Ontario, Canada. The new law would prohibit 80 chemicals and 300 products that experts say pose a potential health

• Even big business loves bees, especially if the business if Ben & Jerry’s.  Blogger Michele’s family are seriously into bees. Then over on Dry Ideas learn how to build your own solitary bee house.

• Thanks to Craig Cramer and Jane Berger for posting about this great hort student project.

• Slate tackles the debate over fake turf.

• Treehugger reports that condoms can save the rain forest.  Another great reason to use ‘em, I suppose.

• Great report in the Washington Post about trees, global warming, and our gardens.

• It had to come to this - treebhuggers battling it out in court with solar-panel-huggers.

On the Blogs

• I give Jeff Gillman’s proclamations about herbicides and fertilizers, organic or otherwise, a thorough look on my blog and in my local paper.

• Boy, the Germinatarix got into the thick of the lawn/anti-lawn debate when she supported SYNLawn for areas without enough rainfall for the real stuff.  Commenters spoke their minds.

• Andrea (at Heavy Petal) posted about amending your soil organically.

• Just say no to water-saving hydrogels is Idaho Gardener’s recap of a meaty discussion on the garden writers email group, and I thank Mary Ann for the great summary.

• Carol reviews cultivators, so we don’t have to.

• Great post by Saxon Holt at Gardening Gone Wild about marketing of new plants taking a bizarre turn of late.

• One blogger steps up to defend a lovely weed - violets - and finds out she’s not alone in admiring them. I’m in the pro-weed camp myself.

• Check out this great post about pesticides, organic and otherwise, comparing a news story with The Truth about Organic Gardening.

• I report on a movie about truly sustainable agriculture in Cuba, post-peak-oil.

• Read about invasive plants being removed from shelves.

• I reported on how advice about dandelions is changing - but not fast enough here in D.C. where it’s still "Nuke ‘em!"

• It’s a hard life in the city for a tree. This reports on the pro-tree message, and some anti-tree pushback.

• Wanna see how the more toxic elements in the petro-hort industry promote their smelly products?  Every way they can think of, including lobbying the garden writers.  Lots of juicy comments.

• Oh, yeah, We Heart the Zero-Impact Man.

In the Garden

•  With Organic Gardening and DC’s Channel 9 News both visiting this month, readers may have seen enough of my garden for a while.  In case you haven’t, here’s a nice woodland scene.

• Reports of my lawn-to-groundcover and lawn-to-veggies makeovers are coming soon.

My So-Called Second Career

• It’s peak season for gardening coaches, and I wrote about one client who received my services as an early Father’s Day gift.  I’m meeting some very, very cool people this way, I’ll tell ya. 

• I finally gave my first talk to a large group, using actual photos, on the subject of Creating and Maintaining a Sustainble Gardening - what else?  The crowd was not shy with their questions and a lively time was had by all.  But best of all, it’s over.

What I’m Reading

A wildly enthusiastic review of Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver is coming soon.  

What’s New

• Growing food is all over the news, as seen in this summary.
• Are we unintentionally doping our plants every time we water them? Check out this report about PharmaWater.
• The New Yorker challenges simple carbon-footprint-per-mile calculations.
• Hey, who defines what’s a "sustainable plant," anyway?  The nursery folks weigh in.
• Shearing roses works?  Radical notion, but check it out.
• How do the candidates compare on green issues?
• And check out the cool Sunflower Project.

On the Blogs

• When Good People Use Roundup laments how hard it is to be strictly anything. It asks: In these particular situations, what else would work?
• My first ever (blush) soil test is the story of the test, the results, and the question: Can I still brag about my soil?
• There were two meaty dissections of native plant ideology on GardenRant.  First Michael Pollan confirmed that he’s still Against Nativism. Then Amy Stewart got sucked into the debate, asking if a grove of redwoods is really the best use of her tiny yard, and a lively discussion ensued.
• Yet another reason to use compost is its side effect of sequestering carbon.
• Confused about invasive plants?  Ask THIS guy to figure it all out - John Peter Thompson

What’s New on Sustainable-Gardening

• What Carries a Garden extols the virtues of the lowliest of all garden "tools" - containers for hauling.

• Soil Tests are EASY, so why don’t we use them? Even doing them the right way is easy.

• Footwear in the Garden covers what I really wear, and what different choices in footwear other gardeners make, however inexplicably.

In My Garden

• Virgin veggie-grower vows to do better next year recounts the seed-choosing dilemma, and how on earth to get them in the ground with the right amount of soil on top and my back intact.

My So-Called Second Career

• The coaching biz is HOT, thanks to a wave of publicity in the Associated Press, Christian Science Monitor, Newsweek and the Washington Post.  Maybe this doing-what-you-love thing could actually work.
• I’m shocked to report that I’m doing a bit of public speaking.  It began with talks to college writing students about "Writing and Publishing on the Web" and has morphed into a full with-digital projection show given at DC’s public libraries.  Coming soon - taking it professional through the DC Historical Society’s Writer Series.  Gulp.

 See the full version, with more photos and off-topic wanderings, right here.

 In the News

• This weekend - Feb 15-18 - is the Great Backyard Bird Count, brought to us by the National Audubon Society and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.
• These 10 Rules of Eco-Gardening are great, including the very English "Thou leave a messy bit."  Both the language AND the content are distinctly different from similiar advice in the U.S.
• Simon Burch reports in London’s Financial Times that the English are paving over their front yards.

• Pesticides are STILL on our apples, according to this in the Seattle PI.
• There’s a report on California’s Sustainable Agriculture Conferfence on Grist. From the same source, check out "Buzz Kill," a beekeeper’s take on Colony Collapse Disorder.
• Leafblowers - not a climate problem? is certainly a provocative question, also on Grist.
• The European Union may ban all outdoor patio heaters,  because of complaints about their inefficiency.  And remember open fires are big polluters, so IS there a good alternative?
• The Green Gardener Certification Program is off and running - in California, at least.

On the Blogs

• A two-fer review of The Truth About Organic Gardening - first by Elizabeth and then by me. Then author Jeff Gillman answers our questions.
• The Soil-Food Web is explored, dissected, argued about. No matter where you stand on compost tea, Jeff Lowenfels is an amazing promoter for the cause of soil health.
• Jane Berger’s review of Native Ferns, Moss and Grasses by William Cullina makes me lust for both the book and the plants.  Frightening projections of changing cold-hardiness zones are included.
• "Substitutes" explores the many ways that gardeners compensate during the winter months.  Great discussion in the comments, too.
• Kathy Purdy reviews a great-looking book called Fallscaping by Nan Ondra and Stephanie Cohen.
• Pat, the Commonweeder, reviews Weeds of the Northeast.
• Our Commonweeder friend also reports having great success with the unintimidating rosa Rugosa.
  

  

• Pam Penick shows us what a green roof looks like in Texas.
• Here’s my rant against Arbor Day and Earth Day
  being in the spring.  People, fall is for planting.

What’s New on Sustainable-Gardening

• Pruning: Try it. You’ll Like it! directs readers to the best sources for learning to prune.
• My Standard Disclaimer about Lawn Removal
  defends the honor of turfgrass, as long as it’s grown organically.
• Digital Cameras have limitless capacity to enhance our enjoyment of our gardens and improve their design at the same time - if the technie stuff doesn’t drive us to drink first.
• Yeah, it’s been a slow month on the site.  Other web projects have interfered, but they’re done now (see below).

My So-Called Second Career

• I launched another joint venture this month - the Regional Garden Gurus.  Here’s the first announcement, followed soon by this update to announce another guru. And DO  send us your regional links for inclusion on the site - by responding to this email.

In My (Neighbor’s) Garden

• Gardenblogger Bloom Day in February?  Fuggedaboudit. But I love the winter decay on display in my neighbor’s garden.

Visit Sustainable-Gardening.com.  Email Susan@Sustainable-Gardening.com.  Click here to manage your subscription.

WHAT’S NEW

• The Seattle Times reports on what’s HOT in 2008 and it’s all green - organic practices, low-maintenance plants, rain barrels - everything that’s here on the site!  And OUT are big lawns and hiring contractors to do everything for you, though to that last item I say "Oh, really?". 

• Then the San Diego Union-Tribune weighs in with their hot trends for the new year and guess what leads the list - sustainable gardening!  (I’m not making this up.)   

• Now the bad news - the Herald Tribune says that gardening (as in digging in actual dirt) is down as a national trend, though upgrading the garden as a living area is a hot trend. You know, those fancy outdoor kitchens.   

• The NWF released some Tip Sheets for Wildlife (in pdf) - about bird feeders, nesting boxes, attracting butterflies and more   good stuff.  And here’s more expert advice about feeding birds in the winter from HGTV’s ornithologist.   

• Slate.com poses the the question: What’s the best tree for soaking up carbon?     

• Can tree protection laws go too far?  You bet. 

• What’s next? Climate-certified greenhouses in Sweden, so now flowers can be grown   sustainably even in the frozen North.   
   

ON THE BLOGS  

• Sure, we all love outdoor fires but gasp, squint, cough - that stuff’s toxic, you know?  Smoke, that is. The American Right to Burn Stuff explores the issue and commenters weigh in.   

• 21 Essential Skills of Gardeners is loaded with good ideas and links to more.    Thanks to Stuart, who’s enjoying spring in Western Australia.   

• The question was asked: Do cultivars of native plants "count" as native?  And readers had opinions.   

• Firefly in Maine considers the question: What IS a native plant?   

• Paradise Lost? Thanks to global warming, there are more ticks and tick-borne diseases in our gardens.   

NEW PLANT PROFILES  More evergreens for "winter interest"

• Canadian hemlocks 

• Pieris japonica and floribunda are evergreen shrubs for shade.

MORE NEW STUFF ON SUSTAINABLE-GARDENING.COM  

• Next up in the Tools and Stuff section are my favorite Tools for Pruning and Making Divisions, with lots of photos and favorite types and brands.   

• After this post solicited "real-life experiences with rain barrels" it was all compiled here on the site. This article about it being illegal to collect rainwater and from the comments it looks like it’s not just in Bolivia. 
   

• New combos are up and I’d LOVE to include photos of your favorites (with attribution, links, my first-born cat, whatever it takes).   

• Check out this cool family project for attracting butterflies, found on The Mulch and added to my   Butterfly resources.  

• I’ve discovered Constance Casey, garden writer for Slate, and have added links to her most on-point for readers here.  This meaty guide to beginning gardening has been added to the Getting Started section.  How to Water has been added to the Water/No Water section.  And I love this one: How to not be intimidated by roses.   

"ON THE HOMEFRONT" are the stories here about transformation of my backyard from lawn to something else, yet to be determined.  Just scroll down to see them. 
 

 Click here to subscribe to the monthly Sustainable Gardening News. 

The December issue is out and available right here.  "What’s New?" is a compilation of news and blog posts about such meaty topics as native plants, drought-resistance, composting, and organic gardening.  This month there’s a link to Kathy Purdy’s review of a new organic gardening book and Graham Rice’s review of New Gardening - a British take on all those subject that I can’t wait to read myself.  So please, if you know of good links or have written about these subjects yourself, drop me a line and I’ll include them - both in the newsletter and permanently on the site. 

Now it’s right here in the Archives and I’d love some help with:

• Additions, corrections to my article about Composting. I’ve noticed on local Yahoo groups that people can’t stop asking questions about compost, no matter how often they’re answered.  So we’re trying to get it right and park it on some websites for reference.
• In the On The Blogs section I’ve included some newsy or on-topic posts from the Rant and my own blog but please - if you have one, send it along so it can be added it to the discussion.  And you’d better believe I added Michele’s wonderful post about rules for beginners - with its 38 excellent comments - to my Getting Started page. 

And I welcome any other suggestions you might have.  I’ve decided to publish the newsletter at the leisurely pace of once a month, with no particular date of publication.  Staying loose, ya know.

[Yes, I've also posted this on GardenRant.  Guilty as charged.]