Gardening
growing and landscaping
Save the Bees!
Protect our water! Promote pollinators! Plant trees for clean air!
A
ll these mantras are important for us to survive. So how do we design our landscapes with a purpose? Do less. Reduce your lawn. Create a border that transitions from a formal lawn to naturalized meadows. Use native plants that host a variety of beneficial insects that are necessary for the birds’ survival. Design with what you have. Expand the beds around
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trees and plant layers. Add a few shrubs and perennials that spread to reduce the maintenance. There are many assertive, colorful, native plants to choose from. They will crowd out weeds, filling the new bed, which requires less mulch. Don’t deadhead the flowers. Leave them for the birds. A quick spring pruning is all that is needed for the garden to look maintained. See more suggestions on pages 30 and 31.
~ FingerL akesM agazine.com
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