Focus on the beautiful and the bounty, please!

Supercascade Petunia, April in Paris Sweet Peas

It seems to me that if you focus on beauty, especially if it’s natural, you’re going to benefit in more than one way. I mean, who doesn’t love a beautiful sunset, or the glory of the morning dawn, or the bounty of spring and summer? And I do love a garden, I really do.

I want to lift up the idea of sustainable gardening and landscaping, not because I think it’s a politically good thing to do, or is virtuous, or will "save the earth," or whatnot. Seriously, every time I think of politically-motivated "good works" I get depressed and I do not want to do it, because inevitably it comes from people who become so pinch-mouthed grim and puritanical in their demeanor when they talk about it that it almost makes me want to get out an axe and hack down some trees and stomp on some flowers. Which is saying something because I love trees and flowers, and it would break my heart to hack and stomp them. I wouldn’t be surprised if other people are turned off by eco-puritans as well.

Eco-Puritans (not really, but still grim)

Instead, these people who are into "saving the environment" should relax and focus on showing the beauty and the joy. They should be telling us about the smells and the tastes, and saying, look, isn’t that garden heavenly? Isn’t that home-grown tomato sweet and luscious? They should be talking about the practical things like saving money and time. Because the bottom line is, who doesn’t like beauty, good-tasting food, and saving time and money? As an investment, it pays in the long run, both in enjoyment and the bank account. Even the worst Scrooge ever would at least like saving time and money.

My husband and I had landscaping around our house done last year, and he suggested focusing on a sustainable landscape, using native and climate-appropriate plants. Yes, my dear, conservative-leaning husband was the instigator, which blasts the really stupid stereotype of conservatives being against the environment. Maybe it’s because we live in the Pacific Northwest, but I have not met one conservative who did not do something to help the environment at least on a private level. And no, no environmentalist "finally" got to him--the hubby is a very practical, scientific, engineering guy and calculated the numbers. So stop with the freakin’ stereotyping already.

The back yard

So (ending rant) we went to some workshops about sustainable landscaping that was conducted by some Master Gardeners, and then contacted a small local landscaping company that had a Master Gardener as a landscape designer.

As a result, the landscape was designed to prevent the driveway and roof runoff from going into the storm drains, and allowing it to soak between the brick pavers at the entry way into the earth or into our rain garden instead. We love it, and my husband especially loves not having to spend hours mowing the lawn (we still have some grass, but it takes maybe 15 minutes to mow). Our water bills this summer have dropped, too.

Lavender angustifolia and purple lobelia

Bountiful and beautiful native and climate-friendly plants aren't hard to find, especially in the Pacific Northwest. Vine maples--so beautiful! Tatting fern for the shady spots. Lavender for color and scent.

These days, instead of dreading the muddy yard we used to get in the winter, I can now enjoy a little pond in the rain garden that occasionally forms right after a huge rainstorm. During the very dry months of summer, I can enjoy a French/Mediterranean-like garden that has rosemary, lavender, roses, and sweet peas (and our raised beds in the back yard are now showing some lovely ripe tomatoes!). In the north-facing back yard, we have delicate maidenhair fern, sword ferns, and salal (all native to the Northwest) that perfectly complements our front yard flowers in flower arrangements.

The hubby building raised vegetable beds.

And of course, there is the vegetable and herb garden that has become so abundant with growth that I have not been able to keep up with staking it and tying it back. I will, actually, have to (gulp!) hack back the tomato plants, I kid you not. Before we had the veggie garden we have now, the lemon verbena didn’t grow much more than a foot at most. Now it’s a good three feet tall. I grew WAY too much fennel (aka anise), but my justification for that is that I’ll be collecting the aniseed and making biscotti later on. I grew it next to the tomatoes, and since they’re companion plants, this also explains the crazy growth of the tomatoes. Yeah, I actually underestimated the growth of my herbs and vegetables this time.

Our neighbors like our yard, too. We’ve had neighbors say they really like walking past our house because of the lovely colors and perfume from the flowers. I’ve given away some sweet pea flowers to children who pass by, because heaven knows I don’t have enough vases, and the thought that the kids might bring them home to their parents reminds me of the delight I had when my son would spontaneously bring flowers home to me.

You can have a beautiful low-maintenance yard and garden and save money at the same time because you don't have to water as often or use expensive fertilizers. That's just plain old common sense and practical money management anyone can get behind--no politics need apply! It's a win-win situation all around.