A new leaf
What better way to consider World Environment Day than to plant a few more trees and provide some critters with a home.
It can be a fruiting tree, a native tree, an ornamental deciduous tree or just one that you like the look of. Do your homework beforehand and make sure you get the tree to suit your purpose and the area it will grow in hopefully for the next 50 years or more.
I don’t want gardeners to feel guilty about maintaining a garden but rejoice in the fact that we are giving others the opportunity to belong to a community, grow food sustainably, provide habitats for many different animals, cool the planet by offering shade canopies, add to carbon sequestering and teach others to be caretakers of their patch. As gardeners we’re actually a pretty sharing and considerate lot who observe, contribute and appreciate the natural world.
There are, however, many ways in which we can improve what we do and how we do things around the garden.
Think about how you can re-use water in the garden, install a water tank and grey-water system and change over to the most efficient reticulation that uses water more effectively. Make a compost heap or worm farm to recycle food scraps and garden waste rather than adding to landfill. Share your excess seeds, seedlings and crops with your neighbours.
Gardeners often get a hammering about the amount of water that is consumed to maintain a garden but I think most gardeners are more aware of the impact of a changing climate and are making positive environmental changes for the good of all.
