Earth Day Party for the Planet - April 22

Here's another great Earth Day / Earth Week Activity!

April 22, 10 a.m.-12 p.m. at the National Zoo

Special activities will take place in the "Zoo in Your Backyard" exhibit, just off Olmsted Walk near Asia Trail.

Eco-Craft Recycling is great, but reusing is even better! Find out how to turn newspaper into a plant pot and take home your own. You'll make a pot, fill it with soil and drop in some seeds—when you get home you can put it right into the ground.

Recycle at the Zoo FONZ has partnered with an outside company to collect and recycle Zoo visitors' cell phones, batteries, and accessories. For many working cell phones, MP3 players, digital cameras, calculators, Apple laptop computers, gaming devices, and external drives—FONZ will get money to support conservation! All other devices will be recycled under strict environmental guidelines, keeping hazardous materials from reaching landfills and harming human and environmental health.

Bring all materials to be recycled to the front desk in the Visitor Center.

Click here more information about Earth Day at the National Zoo.

It's Earth Week! Stamp out eco-apathy with the new Go Green Stamps

Once you start making eco-friendly changes in your life, its hard to not want to share your new found wisdom with others. Perhaps you are saving money, energy and water in your eco-friendly garden or enjoying the delicious bounty of home-grown organic produce.

It's easy to share what you learn with others. Ask your friends to subscribe to the Metro DC Lawn and Garden blog or Like our Facebook fan page to learn the basics of green gardening and to keep informed of upcoming green events.

But now you can share your green tips with people even if you DON'T know their email address.

By using the new Go Green stamps from the United States Postal Service, you can send green tips along when mailing letters, notes, greeting cards, bills...even your taxes.

Have you seen a beautiful landscape in your neighborhood that you would like to compliment? Write down their address and send them an anonymous note, telling them you appreciate their efforts to Go Green.

Do you have a neighbor that is using too many chemicals or has invasive plants? Send them a photo of your beautiful eco-friendly landscape or print out one of your favorite posts from the Metro DC Lawn and Garden blog and drop it in the mail.

Whatever you decide to send, add one of the Go Green stamps to help pass along some of these great green tips:

Plant trees - Besides producing oxygen and removing carbon dioxide and contaminants from the air, trees and other plants provide a habitat for birds and other wildlife.

Compost - leaves you rake, the grass you mow, and the branches you trim are some of the ingredients you can use to make compost.

Buy Local Produce - Find locally grown organic produce or grow your own.

To order your Go Green stamps online, click here. And remember, These Forever stamps are always equal in value to the current First-Class Mail one-ounce rate.

What is your "Act of Green"?

Are you planning anything special for Earth Day or Earth Week? Perhaps you are planning on attending Green DC Day on April 20th or  the Chevy Chase Citizen's Association Garden Club meeting on April 19th to learn how to save money and conserve water.

Maybe you are committing to finally getting a rain barrel or starting a compost pile .

Whatever you have planned for the week, I hope that you will squeeze at least one "Act of Green" into your week.

If you need any ideas for Green Actions you can take, you can visit the Billion Acts of Green  page on the Earthday Network website.

If you are doing something unique or special for Earth Day and would like me to spread the word, I'll be happy to do so! Just list it in the comment section below.

Or, you can join me in my pledge to keep working on my Eco-Friendly garden by clicking the Pledge Button below. My pledge is:

By creating an eco-friendly landscape, I pledge to: eliminate chemicals, conserve water, create compost, choose plants compatible with my site conditions,  cut down on stormwater runoff and garden for wildlife.

GardenGal

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Green DC Day - April 20th

The District Department of the Environment (DDOE) is excited to host GreenDC Day 2011 on Wednesday, April 20^th from 10am until 3pm on Freedom Plaza.

GreenDC Day is an Earth Day Celebration where DDOE seeks to increase public awareness about environmental protection, energy efficiency and natural resources. While there is an exciting agenda planned - which includes the Mayor’s Press Conference and various fantastic music performances - the purpose of this annual event is to expose DC residents to the wide range of programs and services available to them, and to provide exposure to area businesses offering eco friendly options for greening their lives, homes, offices, schools etc. Local and federal VIPs are expected to attend the festivities and there will be vendors and exhibit booths informing the public about environmental practices.

The event will be held at Freedom Plaza again this year - as this is a highly visible public location - situated on Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC (between 13^th and 14^th Streets).  

The rain date is set for the following day - Thursday, April 21st.

For more information, please contact Robin Graham at robin.graham@dc.gov or 202.741.532.

Natives vs aliens - the great gardening debate continues

I did a search on this blog recently to see how often I've mentioned native plants. The answer is: A LOT. That, of course, is because native plants are often mentioned as a good choice for environmentally friendly landscapes.

In many cases, the use of native plants is cause for debate, and often, heated debate. Some advocates of native plants think that gardeners should plant ALL natives. Others feel that it’s okay to plant both natives and non-natives, which are sometimes called alien or exotic species.

The debate has been a hot topic on local gardening blogs recently, in part because of a New York Times Op Ed piece entitled Mother Nature’s Melting Pot, in which writer Hugh Raffles expresses his opinion that “non-native animals and plants …provide significant benefits to their new home.”

The debate has been a hot topic on local gardening blogs recently, in part because of a New York Times Op Ed piece entitled Mother Nature’s Melting Pot, in which writer Hugh Raffles expresses his opinion that “non-native animals and plants …provide significant benefits to their new home.”

Raffles goes on to make statements such as  “many of the species we now think of as natives may not be especially well suited to being here” and “non-native plants and animals have transformed the American landscape in unmistakably positive ways.”

The NYT’s piece has been noticed and mentioned on some of my favorite local garden blogs, including Garden Rant: Uprooting the Gardening World and Grounded Design.

I've been reluctant to add my two cents worth to the debate, since I admittedly do not have any formal education on the subject. So instead of an opinion, I thought I would mention some of the key points that keep me, and others, so confused about natives.

First, what is the definition of a native plant?

Native plants are generally defined as those that occurred here without human introduction. In other words, they are the plants that were here when this continent was wild and natural. They sprung up on their own, were dispersed by wind and wildlife, and evolved and were acclimated to the characteristics of the local conditions: the climate, soils, timing of rainfall, drought, and frost; and interactions with the other species inhabiting the local community.

This definition is the basis of why native plants are assumed  good for the environment. Plants which are acclimated to local conditions would logically be more adapted to surviving local conditions and supporting local wildlife.

Now, before I go any further with the discussion of native plants, picture for a moment what this continent looked like before it was “discovered” and “civilized”. In many ways, it was a wild, almost hostile wilderness. Was it beautiful and self-sustaining? Probably. Did it need pesticides and fertilizer and irrigation systems to survive? Of course not. Was it an environment in which the “pioneers” chose to live? No. Immigrants to this country immediately began chopping and thinning and adding and taking away things from the soil and planting new things that they brought from their home countries. The definition of native plants says that they were acclimated to the conditions of the land hundreds of years ago. In my un-trained, un-scientifically educated mind, it doesn't make sense to assume that those same plants would necessarily be acclimated to current site conditions.

My husband and I live on piece of property that is very, very wooded. We only have small  garden areas. So, yes, 95% of our yard consists of the native plants that have been here for hundreds of years. As for all of the other garden areas, when our home was built, huge truck loads of dirt were trucked in to raise the foundation. So whether we leave that dirt and try to plant in it or add supplements, whatever we end up with is NOT native soil. The truth is, not very many of the factors that affected the native landscape “before human intervention” are present in modern landscapes.  The soil is different, not just because it has been moved around  from place to place but also because hundreds of years of man-made "stuff" has seeped into it and trucks and homes have compacted it. The climate is different, the drainage patterns are different.

There is a great resource on Virginia.gov entitled Native Plants for Conservation, Restoration and Landscaping. Many of the points in the document only add to my confusion.

Plants evolve over geologic time in response to physical and biotic processes characteristic of a region: the climate, soils, timing of rainfall, drought, and frost; and interactions with the other species inhabiting the local community. Thus native plants possess certain traits that make them uniquely adapted to local conditions, providing a practical and ecologically valuable alternative for landscaping, conservation and restoration projects, and as livestock forage.

If plants evolve over time in response to the characteristics of the region (which certainly have changed over the last few hundred years), why is it logical to think that only the NATIVE plants have evolved to fit the characteristics of our present-day site conditions?

In North America, plant species are generally described as native if they occurred here prior to European settlement. This distinction is made because of the large-scale changes that have occurred since the arrival of the European settlers. The Europeans imported a variety of plants to this country, many are still the major component of traditional lawns and gardens. They also include many beneficial plants important in farming, such as vegetables and grains. Today, approximately 25% of flowering plants in North America are non-natives or alien species, most of Eurasian origin.

Again, if the European settlers brought plants over here hundred of years ago, wouldn't they now be adapted to current site conditions?

I have never advocated the use of ALL native plants to anyone who doesn't make the choice on their own. First, because I think that gardens should be places of pleasure and creativity.  Gardens are where humans can work hand in hand with nature to create their own, personal work of art, and trying to direct what or how someone plants would stifle their creative process.

But the main reason that I don't "push" native plants is because I believe much more in the theory of "right plant, right place", or choosing plants to fit your CURRENT site conditions, not the conditions of what your part of the continent was like before humans set foot on it. And it makes sense to me that if I choose plants that fit the soil, water and temperature conditions for my site, then they will need less maintenance, less water, less chemicals, and, therefore, will be better for the planet, as it is today.

Again, I'm not an expert on the subject. I learned the lessons of  Right Plant, Right Place from various horticultural classes that I have taken and they have lead to my continued advice to learn to Work With Mother Nature, not against her. I believe that  getting to know your own property is key. Walk around, see where the water settles, get a soil sample, check out where the sunny and shady spots are. I'm pretty sure you will find out that none of that is the same as it was hundreds of years ago.

I certainly understand the value of using some native plants. But the benefit of using plants that
are suited to our current site conditions is that they shouldn't require extra water or fertilizer or pesticides, which will keep us from harming the current environment  even more and maybe, just maybe, will help us get the planet back to the way it was before we started "civilizing " it.

To quote one of my favorite aliens, doing anything else would seem illogical.

Resource for more information on the concept of Right Plant, Right Place:

Landscaping and Gardening – Fairfax County

Soils and Drainage - Fairfax County

Plant Right for Your Site

Waterwise Landscaping and Watering Guide (pdf)

Chesapeake Bay Volunteer-a-thon - April 17th, 6pm

We've all heard of telethons, and when times are good, many of us reach into our pockets and donate funds to help support our favorite causes.

This Sunday, April 17th, starting at 6:00 PM, Maryland Public Television will be broadcasting their fifth annual Chesapeake Bay Volunteer-A-Thon, allowing environmentally concerned citizens to pledge  time,  rather than money, to help clean up the Chesapeake Bay.

"The volunteer-a-thon gives families, individuals, clubs and organizations the opportunity to come together to make a positive impact on the environmental health of our communities," said Kristin Cook, MPT’s Volunteer Coordinator for Chesapeake Bay Week™ since 2008.

"MPT offers volunteers of all skill sets the opportunity to help a broad range of organizations, everything from trail and river cleanups to answering phones and assisting with mailings."

The broadcast also features profiles on organizations around the state that are already making a difference by lending their support.

More than 500 groups and individuals participated in last year’s watershed restoration efforts, led by nearly 30 environmental nonprofits—a number Cook said is expected to grow in 2011.

"With the help of our volunteers, MPT raised nearly 15,000 hours of support across the region in 2010, the equivalent of 46 calendar days of cleanup efforts," Cook said. "Each year Bay Week and the Volunteer-a-thon are gaining momentum in our communities as awareness for protecting and restoring the bay continues to grow," Cook added. "We just want people to know how easy it is to make a difference."

The Chesapeake Bay Week Volunteer-a-thon airs Sunday, April 17 at 6:00 p.m. Interested volunteers are also encouraged to visit mpt.org/bayweek/volunteer to print and return this form or call (410) 581-4035. WTMD (89.7FM NPR) is simulcasting the Volunteer-a-thon, and WTMD General Manager Steve Yasko makes a guest appearance.

To read full press release.

Citizen Scientists needed this Sunday

Citizen Scientists Who Want to Help the Planet, Needed This Sunday! The American Chestnut Foundation's (ACF) has been developing a new blight-free American chestnut tree on an orchard that they are renting from Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission.  This Sunday, they need your help in measuring the diameter of these trees-in order to help move the goal of creating a blight-resistant strand a little farther.

 Join ACF and Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission this Sunday, April 17 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at ACF's orchard behind 2800 Triadelphia Lake Road (Cross Street: Georgia Avenue) in Brookeville.   Park along Triadelphia Lake Road.  We will provide all of the tools-we just need your help in saving the American Chestnut trees.

Water Wise - Saving Money and the Chesapeake Bay

Learn ways to save money and conserve water at  the Chevy Chase Citizens Association Garden Club's monthly meeting to be held, Tuesday, April 19th at 7:30 p.m.

This meeting is the club's  annual green meeting and will feature speakers from the EPA, the DC Dept of the Environment and a landscape designer who will discuss water-smart landscaping.

The meeting is in the Chevy Chase Community Center, Connecticut Avenue and McKinley Street, NW, at 7:30 pm. Everyone is welcome, come and bring friends.

For more details visit the CCCA website.

Can we outwit the stinkbugs?

Last fall I wrote a post called Stopping Stinkbugs without Poisons. Since these nasty little pests are predicted to cause more problems this year, I wanted to pass along this great post I saw on Susan Reimer's Garden Variety column.

Susan wondered if there are any type of vegetable plants that are less susceptible to stinkbug problems so she asked Ellen Nibali of the University of Maryland Extension's Home and Garden Information Center what she would recommend.

Here is some of the information from Ellen Nibali, as excerpted from Susan's blog post:

Early crops will probably avoid the wrath of the stink bugs, at least intense damage. Also, very late crops. So, timing is something to experiment with. ... 

we can say for certain that legumes, tomatoes, pepper and sweet corn were heavily infested last year . 

All of which is to say, plant other crops. Try lettuce or eggplant or any of the brassicas--cabbage, Brussel sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, kale, radish, turnips, etc. Stink bugs have been seen on eggplant, but no injury has been officially reported. 

In the case of tomatoes, we suspected that the thicker-skinned varieties may have been less attractive to the stink bugs. 

Incidentally, blueberries and blackberries were reported to have no injury. Red raspberries, I can say from experience, were hammered. 

To read the full post, visit Susan Reimer's Garden Variety column.

More about the Brown Marmorated Stinkbug can be found on the Invasive Species page from the University of Maryland Extension.

Earth Day on the National Mall - April 16th & 17th

EPA Earth Day on the National Mall
April 16-17, 2011, Washington, DC
National Mall between 4th and 7th Streets
Saturday 10am-5pm, Sunday 10am-3pm

Come join the fun on Saturday and Sunday! EPA’s Earth Day tent will contain 40 exhibits on clean air, clean water, green technology, green jobs, rain gardens, composting, an environmental crime scene and other ways in which EPA works to protect human and health and the environment. For children, eco-activities will include:

• "Earth Tales," co-sponsored with The Library of Congress, features environmentally-themed story time, read by VIPs hourly. Saturday 11-4.
• "Bash the Trash" will be an exciting opportunity for kids to build musical instruments from trash and recycled materials and create an “earth symphony.” Sunday 10-3.
• "Eco Art" is co-hosted by the Capital Hill Arts Workshop and invites kids to paint an earth-friendly image on a post card, and mail it from the event courtesy of the Post Office and their new “Go Green” stamp launch. Both days.

For more information, visit: EPA Earthday events