Sustainable Landscaping and Companion Planting - Massachusetts

1. Sustainable Landscaping
Melanie Trecek-King, Biology

2. What is sustainable landscaping?
• Promotes the use of environmentally
responsible landscaping practices that
preserve the functioning of natural
ecosystems
– Reduces/prevents pollution
– Conserves natural resources
– Maximizes ecological function
– Promotes usefulness
– Looks attractive!

3. Why use sustainable landscaping?
• Requires less
maintenance
• Reduces
environmental harm
– Pollution, climate
change, etc.
• Benefits wildlife
– Food, water, cover
• Provides seasonal
interest
• Maintains local
character

4. Your yard is part of a larger system
• Nature doesn’t know property boundaries
– Vegetation part of community
– Wildlife
– Water, nutrients, energy move through system
• If all yards provided good habitat the result
would be large, continuous, healthy landscape
– Large animals require large home ranges
– Difficulty migrating over patchy landscapes
– Become more important as climate changes,
species shift ranges

5. Our ideas of landscapes
change over time
• Current view: Human manipulation of nature
– Yards with planted flowers, shrubs, etc.
– Lawns
• Brief history: Landscapes should be useful
– Used to grow crops, pasture animals
– Lawn was English influence on early wealthy Americans
• Used to show wealthy status
• Future view: Sustainability
– Lawns reduced to usable size
• Consider alternatives
– Sustainable maintenance
– Consideration of wildlife, system as a whole

6. Impacts of Current Landscapes
• Pollution: Air, noise, water
– Climate change
• Flood damage/erosion
• Harm to biodiversity and wildlife
• Consumption of natural resources
• Impacts to public health and safety
• Cost and labor intensive
• Monotonous

7. Air Pollution
• Direct: Lawn and
garden equipment
– 1 hour mowing = 100
miles in car
– Emits 5% of ozone-
forming VOCs
– Emits 55 tons of VOCs
per day
• VOCs linked to health
effects and climate
change
Lawns cover >20 million acres in
• Indirect: U.S.; largest “crop”
Transportation,
manufacturing

8. Air Pollution:
GHG Emissions and Climate Change
• ~1/3 of anthropogenic CO2 emissions since 1850
attributed to land-use
– Includes deforestation, agriculture, development
• Landscaping practices release GHGs
– CO2 from fossil-fuel powered machines
– Nitrous oxide from fertilizer usage (300x more
powerful than CO2)
– Soil disturbances release GHGs
• Lawns release 4x more carbon than they store
through photosynthesis

9. Noise Pollution
Lawnmowers:
The sound of
suburbia…..

10. Water Pollution: Pesticides
• Homeowners use 10x more per acre than farmers
• 67 million lbs applied on lawns each year
• 2/3 users dispose of excess in trash, remainder
down drains
• Detectable limits found in 5-10% of wells
• Neurotoxins, carcinogens, endocrine disruptors

11. Water Pollution: Fertilizers
• Use has doubled
Eutrophic lake
nitrogen input covered in weeds
into ecosystems
• 40-60% of
nitrogen in surface
and groundwater
• Nitrogen and
phosphorus result
in eutrophication,
possibly dead
zones in aquatic
systems

12. Flood Damage and Erosion
• Lawn has shallow root systems
– Not able to stabilize banks
– Lawns only absorb 10% of rainfall of forest
– Runoff results in erosion, flash flooding, aquatic
habitat destruction

13. Flood Damage and Erosion
Prairie plants have
extensive root systems
Longer roots = stabilizes
soil more efficiently and
requires less water

14. Harm to Biodiversity: Habitat Loss
• Traditional development leads to habitat loss and
fragmentation
– Destroys and degrades natural habitat
– NASA: 1/3 to ½ of Earth’s land surfaces impacted by human
development
• ¼ of all species faced with extinction in 50 years
– Single largest cause is habitat loss

15. Harm to Biodiversity: Pesticides
• Pesticide use:
– 67 million lbs applied to lawns/yr
– 60-70 million birds poisoned/yr in U.S.
– <1% of the half million plant and animal species in U.S.
considered pests
• Overpopulation of a “pest” species usually means
unbalanced system
• Majority of herbivores that feed rest of food chain
are insects
• Beneficial species also killed
• Use can lead to pesticide-resistant pests

16. Harm to Biodiversity: Lawns
• Monoculture – the anti-
biodiversity
– Doesn’t exist in nature
– Requires maintenance!
• Sustainable landscapes
– Minimize lawn to usable
size
– Use sustainable
maintenance practices
– Consider alternatives

17. Harm to Biodiversity: Invasive Plants
• Native plant – evolved in an area with native
community
• Non-natives lack natural enemies, resist
population control
• Not all introduced plants will become invasive
• Gardens are staging areas for invasives
– We coddle them, give them competitive edge
– Lag phase – up to a decade in which potential
invasive seems “innocent”
• Pollinators, birds, etc. haven’t discovered yet
• Be wary of what you plant!

18. Invasive Plants Originally Ornamentals
Purple loosestrife,
Norway maple,
Burning bush,
Japanese knotweed
Invasive plants can take
over natural areas

19. Consumption of
Natural Resources: Water
• Lawns use 30% in East; 60% in West
• Droughts, water restrictions
Shorter root systems in
lawn grass require
more frequent
watering

20. Consumption of Natural Resources:
Fossil Fuels
• Much landscaping done with power
tools
• Average 1/3 acre of lawn consumes:
– 5 gal gas for mowing and trimming
– Equivalent of 7 gal fertilizing
• Natural gas is heated to combine
atmospheric nitrogen and hydrogen into
ammonia
– 5 gal watering
– 1 gal for cleanup
• 18 gal/household x 120 million
households = 2.2 billion gallons of gas
for lawn care per year
– Does not include other landscaping
activities

21. Impacts to Public Health and Safety
• Poisoning
– 50-75% don’t store pesticides safely
– 50% don’t read/follow pesticide labels
– 110k sickened by pesticides/yr in U.S.; 3 million
worldwide
• Accidents
– 75k/yr require ER treatment for mower injuries

22. Cost and Labor Intensive
• $25 billion/yr spent on lawn care
• 1 acre lawn costs $400-700/yr to maintain
• Average homeowner spends 40 hrs/yr mowing

23. Monotony, thy
name is lawn
Ecologically dead landscapes
•Big business horticulture
results in same plants sold
from coast to coast
•Loss of local character

24. Sustainable Landscaping Principles
DESIGN
MAINTENANCE
• Natural design
•Integrated Pest
• Ecological value
Management
• Lawn reduction
•Careful nutrient
• Native plants
application
• Biodiversity
•Water conservation
• Right plant, right place
•Energy conservation
• Plant for the long term
•Composting
• Energy conservation
•Mulching
• Water conservation
• Edible landscapes

25. Design: Natural Designs
• Require less
maintenance
• Benefits wildlife
• Provides local and
seasonal interest

26. Design: Ecological Value
VS
•Reconnects fragments, resulting in larger habitats and
corridors to aid in dispersal
•Captures carbon, through restoration of forests and other
natural vegetation
Your landscape is part of larger system!

27. Design: Lawn Reduction
• Minimize areas of lawn
• More sustainable maintenance
• Lawn alternatives
– “No mow” lawns mowed monthly or even less
frequently
• Use less water, fertilizers
• Ex: Buffalo grass, mixed fescues, sedges (Carex pensylvanica)
– Shortgrass meadows (mixed with wildflowers)
– Groundcovers
– Moss
• Remember to select non-invasive species!

28. Traditional lawn alternatives
From top left: buffalograss, Pearl’s premium, moss,
shortgrass meadow, Carex

29. Design: Use of Native Plants
• Have evolved in local
conditions (climate, soil, etc.)
so thrive with least care
– Less watering, fertilizing,
pesticide application
• Do not pose risk of exotic
invaders
• Provide “sense of place”
• Many to choose from!
Top: Norway maple
Bottom: native sugar maple

30. Design: Native Plants
• Improves quality of air,
soil and water
• Prevents flooding
• Controls erosion
• Enhances biodiversity
– Attracts beneficial
insects, which
outcompete and even
eat pest species
– Feeds food chain

31. Design: Biodiversity
• Diverse landscapes more pest-
resistant
• Attract beneficial insects
(predators, pollinators), insect-
eating birds, mammals

32. Design: Biodiversity
• Wildlife need habitat!
• NWF Backyard Habitat:
applies basics of wildlife
management to urban and
suburban landscapes
– 140k habitats and over 70k acres
– Basic elements:
• Food
• Water
• Cover
• Sustainable landscaping practices

33. Right Plant, Right Place!
• Assess site conditions
– Soil, amount of light
• Select plants
– That thrive in those conditions
– Whose size and shape fit needs
• Reduces maintenance, results in healthier plants

34. Design: Plant for the Long Term
• Perennials v. Annuals
– Perennials live for more than two years
• Herbaceous plants that die back in fall but come back in
spring
• Technically includes woody plants
– Annuals die every year
• Annuals provide instant gratification
• Perennial usage
– Take 3-5 years to mature
– Reduces cost and transportation impacts from annual
replacement

35. Design: Energy and Water
Conservation
• Using native plants adapted to local conditions
– Less maintenance = less resource usage
• Planting trees
– Improves air quality by filtering pollutants
– Reduces storm water runoff
– Provides habitat
– Reduce atmospheric CO2
– Reduces urban heat through evaporative cooling and
shading concrete areas
– Can lower winter heating bills by 25% and summer cooling
bills by 50%
• Evergreen windbreaks on north side
• Deciduous trees on south side to provide summer shade, winter
sun

37. Design:
Energy and Water Conservation
• Green roofs – layer of living
vegetation on roofs
– Moderates temperature
– Dramatically reduces storm
runoff
– Provides habitat
– Reduce GHG emissions: In
Detroit-sized city would
eliminate year’s worth of CO2
emitted by 10k SUVs and
trucks
• Living walls

38. Design: Edible Landscapes
• Integrates edible plants into design
– Reduces food miles
– Connects us to nature
– Contributes to food security
– Reduces climate change
– Produces healthy, organic food
– Saves money
– Produces interesting varieties
• Can include natives:
– Paw paw, raspberries, sage, some wild onion species, wild
grapes, wild strawberries, walnuts, blueberries, mulberries
• Others:
– Fruit trees; perennials like strawberries, asparagus, many
herbs; annuals like squashes, peppers, tomatoes, greens
• Edibles can be beautiful and don’t have to be limited to
“vegetable garden” in back yard!

39. Edibles can be beautiful
& provide an opportunity
for landscape to be useful

40. Maintenance: Integrated Pest
Management (IPM)
• Goal: reducing or eliminating pesticide use while
managing pests at acceptable level
• Three prongs:
– Prevention:
• Healthy plants less susceptible to pests
• Start right: right plant, right place
• Best varieties
• Watering practices, induced competition, companion planting
– Observation: monitor and identify pests
– Intervention:
• Mechanical controls: hand picking, traps, vacuuming, etc.
• Biological controls: use of beneficial insects, microorganisms
• Chemical controls: use least toxic chemicals
– Spot treat rather than broadcast

41. Maintenance:
Careful Nutrient Application
• Use soil testing to determine if fertilizing is
necessary
• Use compost
• Use organics and slow release
• Apply sparingly and at correct time
• Little to none needed for natives

42. Maintenance: Water Conservation
• Use less water
– Only water when needed
– Water early in day
– Don’t water concrete
– Water deeply,
infrequently
– Use drought tolerant or
native plants Drip
irrigation
• Xeriscaping: use of
drought tolerant plants,
but not necessarily native

43. Maintenance: Water Conservation
• Retain water
– Use mulch – protective
cover placed over soil
• Organic mulch provides
nutrients during decay
process: leaves, grass
clippings, wood chips, straw,
shredded newspaper, Don’t haul
cardboard, pine needles away your
leaves! Nature
• Also reduces erosion,
is giving you
suppresses weed growth
garden gold….
– Capture runoff (rain barrels
or rain gardens)

44. Maintenance: Energy Conservation
• Reduce lawn size and maintenance!
• Use hand tools over power tools
• Electric over gas tools

45. Maintenance: Composting
• Compost: decomposed organic matter from plants
(kitchen, lawn) and animals (not recommended)
– Encourages soil microorganisms
– Acts as slow-release fertilizer (eliminates need for synthetic)
– Suppresses plant diseases and pests
– Increases yields
– Improves soil structure, improving water retention
• Saves on disposal fees, landfill space, transportation
impacts
OM is ~25% of solid waste
in landfills
Breaks down anaerobically,
producing methane, which
is 23x more potent as GHG
than CO2

46. Sustainable Lawn Care
Mowing Chemicals
• Mow with a sharp blade • Avoid fertilizers and
• Don’t cut shorter than 3” pesticides
– Taller grass = longer roots = – Kill good and bad insects, kill
less watering microbes in soil; result is
– Taller grass shades out weed system out of balance
seeds
• Accept certain level of
• Leave grass clippings on insects and weeds
lawn • Encourage predators
– Breakdown provides nutrients
– Birds, bats, beneficial insects
– Does NOT cause thatch
buildup • Top dress with compost
• Mow when dry • Appropriately time chemical
– Otherwise blades cut applications & consider
unevenly, spreading disease organic alternatives
Watering – Ex. Corn gluten
• Only water when needed Limit lawn size
– Less frequent but deeper and consider alternatives!

47. Sustainable Landscaping Resources
• New England Wildflower Society
• Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
• Project Native
• Greenscapes
• EPA (Smithsonian)
• American Beauties
• NWF Backyard Habitat

48. Sustainable Landscaping Resources
ONLINE BOOKS
• New England Wildflower • “Bringing Nature Home” –
Society Tallamy
• Lady Bird Johnson • “Noah’s Garden” – Stein
Wildflower Center • “Native Plants of the
• Project Native Northeast” – Leopold
• Greenscapes • “Native Alternatives to
• EPA (Smithsonian) Invasive Plants” – Burrell
• Plant Native • W. Cullina (NEWFS)
• “Edible Estates: Attack on
the Front Lawn” – Haeg