Invest in the Future: Keep Indianapolis Beautiful volunteers plant a tree as part of NeighborWoods. Photo courtesy Keep Indianapolis Beautiful Inc.
Greetings for the holidays. Thank you for enriching my life with your questions, comments and interest in gardening. Here are some suggestions for New Year’s resolutions for sustainable practices in the landscape.
Always identify the problem in the landscape before applying a cure. It’s a waste of resources to apply an insecticide if the problem is a fungus disease or drought. To learn more about identifying plant problems, the University of Tennessee Extension can help. Also check out May Dreams Gardens’ review of What’s Wrong With My Plant and How Do I Fix It? by David Deardorff and Kathryn Wadsworth.
Remove invasive plants from your landscape, neighborhood, park or other natural areas. For tips on identifying and removing invasive plants and suggestions for alternatives, see the Invasive Plant Species Assessment Working Group.
Don’t let the first question be ‘when do I prune it?’ when buying a tree or shrub. Select the right plant for the right place and you may never have to prune. Measure the space where you want to plant and know if it is sunny or shady or has dry or wet soil. Match that information with the tree or shrub you are interested in, taking into account the plant’s mature height and width.
Indianapolis Winter Farmers Market bustles on Saturday mornings. (C) Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp
Eat local, whether that is food from your own garden, the farmers markets or a restaurant. Here are tips for starting a vegetable garden.
Native plants are key to a healthy, sustainable ecosystem. They sustain native wildlife, which is hard wired to seek seasonal plants for food and shelter. Their beauty is an added benefit. To learn more about native plants, visit the Indiana Native Plant and Wildflower Society, www.inpaws.org
Learn something new about nature, gardening or the environment. Take a workshop about gardening, attend a lecture about plants or landscaping or sign up to be a Master Gardener.
Invest in the future and plant a tree. Or, support Keep Indianapolis Beautiful’s NeighborWoods program
Find a local park to support by visiting, volunteering or making a donation.
Educate a fledgling gardener. Share your knowledge and experience with a child, neighbor or friend.
Good advice all the way around. I’m going to support the local parks by donating my Christmas tree to them to turn into mulch. And thanks for the link to my book review.