Ready to impress butterflies with your green thumb? To reap the best environmental benefits of gardening, check out this eco-friendly guide.
My parents both love to garden, but they like to joke about how that love started. Early in our family life, we lived in Oregon (where I was born!) in the Willamette Valley, one of the most fertile growing regions in the United States. My parents thought they had super green-thumbs because of how easy it was to garden. Though they are both pretty handy with pruning shears, it turns out that having awesome dirt goes a long way. Despite leaving the Willamette Valley behind us, the love of gardening has continued.
Summer is currently in full swing in the Northern Hemisphere. Everywhere I look it seems that someone is outside landscaping, gardening, weeding, watering, or simply sweating just looking at all the projects that need to be done. While I have to applaud people for caring for their property, there are some common gardening mistakes that can harm the environment. The truth is that not all gardening or landscaping practices are good for the environment.
But let’s stick with the positive and look into the environment benefits of gardening first. Then we can follow up with lots of tips, tricks, and easily avoidable mistakes to help us better care for the earth. And if it’s done right, you might be lucky enough to be the new stomping ground for beautiful butterflies!
Environmental Benefits of Gardening
Maybe you haven’t started gardening at all, and you’re wondering if it’s a good idea to start. Sure, gardening can be a lot of work, but the payoff makes the back-breaking work worth the time. Not that easily convinced? Hopefully the following benefits will convince you that gardening should be your newest hobby.
Good for the Soil
The ground is important. Seems like a funny thing to say since I don’t look down at it often. But if someone were to ask you, “Is soil important?” you’d probably answer “What a silly question! Of course, it is!”. However, have you really thought about it? Thought about ways to protect it? Been thankful for growing things? Think how much uglier the world would be without soil! We need it for food production, beautiful trees, plants that turn into medicine. Good news! Gardening is one way to protect and nourish the soil and here’s how it does it:
- Plant roots bind together helping to prevent soil (especially topsoil) erosion
- Topsoil contains many nutrients that eventually go on to nourish all of the soil
- Certain plants help maintain soil nutrients too!
Maybe it’s worth looking down at the ground every once in a while. There’s a lot more going on beneath the surface than meets the eye. If you’re looking for extra credit, adding compost to the soil is even better!
Reaping the Harvest
I mean the whole point of gardening is getting to enjoy the beautiful plants, right? The literal fruits of your labor. I did already mention that plant roots help prevent soil erosion, but don’t you go thinking that’s all! Vegetation is also responsible for the following:
- Cleaning the air and the ground (a good reason for indoor plants too!)
- Keeping your home cooler with good tree and bush cover
- Blocking noise pollution from neighbors
My parents have been dealing with the construction of a huge new highway connector right outside their home. You wouldn’t believe the amount of noise and dust! Just as I’m writing this post, the local government in conjunction with their Homeowner’s Association is planting fully-grown trees in the front of the neighborhood to help with privacy and to reduce noise pollution. It really works!
Gardening to Reduce Carbon Footprint
I am always looking for ways that I can lessen my impact on the environment. Lucky for me, one of the environmental benefits of gardening is that it helps me lower my carbon footprint! In case you’re not familiar with the term “carbon footprint,” it is the total greenhouse gases that you as an individual are responsible for releasing into the environment. Want to calculate your footprint? Click here. Did you know that the average carbon footprint in the United States is 16 tons?! This is one of the highest in the world! Gardening helps reduce this through:
- Growing food (no driving to the store or relying on food from across the world)
- Turning carbon dioxide (a greenhouse gas!) into oxygen (I think we need this, right?)
We are going to be moving soon to a house that has a large number of fruit-producing grapevines in the backyard (pretty random for Minnesota). But can I just say how excited I am to grab a few garden-grown grapes?!
Good for Animals & Good for You
Caring for the environment is also about providing for the creatures that live in that environment (cue Circle of Life theme…you’re welcome). Intentional gardening helps encourage positive interaction with birds and insects. We need these pollinators for healthy plants! Gardening for beneficial animals will lead to the following results:
- Fewer bad insects (attracting birds = fewer mosquitos!)
- Healthier plants due to pollination
- Safe havens for animals
- A proper balance of good and bad organisms
We’ll dig into some of the ways you can encourage good animal life to visit your garden in just a little bit, so stick around!
While there are environmental benefits to gardening, I don’t want to downplay the effect of gardening on the soul. Hey, just a little reminder that you’re important! You’re a part of this world and you matter. I hope you know that. Gardening is a beautiful way to exercise, breathe in fresh air, connect with the earth, and relieve stress. And before you say that you don’t have the space for a garden, hear me out! There are so many ways to get creative from indoor plants, pots on your front step, or even this balcony garden I tried out last year.
Digging Deeper: Common Gardening Mistakes to Avoid
Hopefully you’re convinced that gardening is worth your time. If you’re not, well, I guess I’m not sure why you’re still reading…but I’m glad you are! Since you’re still here, it’s time for the scoop on common mistakes we all make when gardening. Why is this important? I want you to experience the full environmental benefits of gardening! Let’s avoid the 5 following mistakes:
1. Eww the Chemicals
Now here’s a “dirty” fact for you: an estimated 78 million U.S. households use pesticides for their lawns and gardens. And you might very well be one of them. No shame – it’s truly a common practice! The problem is that so many of these pesticides are toxic for the human body. The evaluation of the 30 most common pesticides reveals links to reproductive and hormonal damage, liver and kidney issues, neurotoxicity, possible cancer causation, and irritation.
Basically, they’re not good for us and, in reality, they’re not good for your garden either. This quick fix for your weed problem causes soil damage and contaminates the ground water. It will only hurt your plants in the long run.
Solution
What to do instead? Here are a few thoughts:
- Choose plants that deter unwanted insects and pests (Check out this list of recommendations!)
- Try some natural pesticides (how about these homemade options?)
- Native plants to your area will be your best friend (did you know they naturally repel local insects?)
There are so many alternatives out there, so why not try being a pesticide-free household? Your kids will thank you, as will the environment!
2. Ignoring Plant Diversity
So, you love petunias. I get it, they smell nice! But is there a reason you shouldn’t just plant petunias in your garden? Why yes, yes there is. Choosing only one type of plant for your garden can lead to several environmental issues. We’re talking plant disease, overuse of the nutrients in the soil, and few visits from pollinators.
Solution
This one is pretty easy. Variety. This isn’t your mom telling you to pick only one ice cream flavor. You get to choose many flavors! Some of these flavors might include: perennials, annuals, shrubs, groundcover, etc. It might take a little more thought, but it’s also a pretty sweet project!
A good tip is to select approximately 70% native plants from your area. This will really help keep those pesky pests away too. Minnesota friends, check out this link for information on our native plants!
3. Lawncare Woes
Does anyone live in a neighborhood where it feels like a competition for who can have the best lawn? We’re talking fancy lines, short grass, a watering system, a cool lawnmower…
What if I told you that most of us are doing it wrong? That lawncare could actually be easier: less competitive, more cost effective, and not as much clean-up. The truth is that most Americans are addicted to lawncare and it’s creating a problem for our environment. On top of that, the Economic Research Service found that Americans invest roughly $60 billion dollars a year in conventional lawncare. Oof.
The fertilizers and pesticides used in lawncare are among some of the biggest environmental catastrophe-makers. We’re talking toxic chemicals galore, plus the greenhouse gases emitted from the manufacturing of the products. And these chemicals are easily tracked into the house, putting children and pets at risk. The National Cancer Institute states that children in houses that use pesticides are 6.5% more likely to develop cancer.
And there’s so much more. From the chemicals contaminating groundwater and running off into our waterways to yard waste making up anywhere from 20 to 50% of our landfills, conventional lawncare is a problem.
Solution
That was some heavy stuff. Thanks for sticking with me. I do think lawn care is one of the biggest ways Americans can make changes in our outdoor spaces and experience the full environmental benefits of gardening. So here are some things to consider:
- Don’t keep your grass too short (longer grass, 2 1/2 -3 1/2 inches, will be healthier with fewer pests)
- Water carefully and don’t overwater (only water when your lawn REALLY needs it)
- Avoid picking up grass clippings (did you know grass clippings actually decompose quickly and release nutrients into the soil?)
- Maybe even invest in a mulching lawnmower
4. Mistreating Soil
Since we’re talking about getting some nutrients into the ground, let’s chat about overall treatment of soil. None of this gardening and landscaping stuff would even be possible without it! We need soil for filtration of our water supply, growth of food, medication production, and the ground we live on. Did you know that most antibiotics are actually derived from the microorganisms in soil?
Unfortunately, pesticide and fertilizer use, soil compaction, poor crop management, and other contaminants slowly degrade the quality of our soil. Sadly, about 24 billion tons of fertile soil are lost every year due to erosion and mismanagement. Since about 95% of our food comes from the soil, this is a big problem!
Solution
This one is tricky. It’s not like we can solve the soil problem on our own. While we may not have much influence over the agriculture sphere (except with choosing to buy wisely), we can treat the soil in our own backyards well! Here are a few thoughts:
- Avoid chemical fertilizers
- Use compost as a fertilizer to help solve soil compaction and provide nourishment
- Get to know what kind of soil you’re working with (get a soil test kit!)
Trying a soil test kit could be a fun science experiment if you’ve got kiddos. It’s never too early to get your kids interested in caring for the earth!
5. Not Planting for Pollinators
Let’s talk about our pollination population. Did you know that these little pollinators are responsible for one out of every three bites of food we eat? It’s not really “from farm to table” but from “pollinator to table.” We need these little friends, and they need us! Pollinators include bees, bats, butterflies, moths, beetles, wasps, flies, and a few small mammals. Bees are definitely the most important!
Researchers estimate that honeybees alone are responsible for anywhere between 1.2 and 5.4 billion dollars in the farming industry. Maybe you’re sick of hearing “save the bees!” but we really should be concerned with the welfare of these little creatures. Their numbers are declining due to things like pesticide use and lack of proper plants to pollinate. Unfortunately, this threatens our food supply and our beautiful plant life. Without pollinators, 180,000 different plants and 1200 crops would not have the pollination necessary for growth.
Solution
Turns out that saving the bees really is our buzzzziness (“business” if you don’t speak bee). How can we all help? Here are a few simple suggestions for beginners:
- Plant a pollinator garden (pollinators will love you and the neighbors will be really jealous.)
- Stop with the pesticides – I think this has been the theme of this post!
- Support local farmers and beekeepers by buying organic produce and honey
Farmer’s markets are one of my favorite places to be in the summer, and we love buying our honey there. From the Twin Cities area? Check out Wolf Honey Farm at the St. Paul Farmer’s Market – Beekeeper Dale likes to wear a honeybee hat, so you can’t miss him!
Enjoy the Environmental Benefits of Gardening
It’s time to stop talking, roll up our sleeves, and get to work. I can’t wait for you to experience all the environmental benefits of gardening. And that’s not all. I hope to hear from you about the other ways gardening inspires you – maybe it’s the suntan from the weeding, fresh-cut flowers in your home, or the animals that visit. One of the things I loved most about our balcony garden last year were the visits from the birds and the bees. A touch of nature in a fourth-floor apartment in the middle of the city.
One last word of encouragement. Gardening takes research, practice, and hard work. And sadly, we’ve all experienced gardening fails and plant loss. One of my favorite indoor plants (a beautiful Chinese Fan Palm) was a failure-to-thrive this past Minnesota winter. But don’t get discouraged – it’s still worth it! Happy planting, friends!
Be Well. With Love.
merridee benham says
This is great information Maggie. I loved it all and especially the beautiful photos and the timeless sweet picture of you gardening with your Daddy!
Maggie says
Such a sweet photo, isn’t it!? Thanks for taking a read!
~ Maggie