AROUND THE GARDEN

Fourteen years ago, Dr. William Niering, then Professor of Botany at Connecticut College, published his manifesto “Smaller American Lawns Today.”

In this pithy description of the lawn problem, Dr. Niering wrote that approximately 3,000,000 tons of fertilizer are applied to lawns annually. Much of fertilizer, especially phosphate, is from non-renewable resources. The dwindling world supply of phosphate could mean the inverse of the “Green Revolution,” especially for the Third World. And, because of the evanescent nature of nitrogen, approximately 60% of that element, applied as fertilizer, ends up in our water supply, where it wreaks havoc with water quality and habitat.

I don’t know what the numbers are today, but I bet that the growth of McMansions in the last decade led to a similar explosion of lawns. Not long ago, a commenter here wrote, “A green bushy lawn is a sign of class.”

One hopes the irony was intended. To quote Dr. Niering: “Each of us must realize that he or she is part of a complex living system that would continue to function quite beautifully without us and that our challenge is therefore to work for a sustainable earth society that mimics the natural system all around us.”

“Sustainability” just might be the 2011 Word of the Year. And maybe, as Earth Day approaches, we can help sustain life on Mother Earth a bit longer, by practicing some of Dr. Niering’s precepts:

1. Shrink your lawn with mulch, ground-cover, gardens, or just leaving parts of it “natural.”

2. Reduce fertilizer applications: less fertilizer equals less mowing. Gas-powered mowers are among the worst polluters on the planet.

3. Resist the urge to herbicide every last “weed.” If you absolutely can’t stand the sight of dandelions, dig them early in the year and put them in your salad. Remember, you can only do this safely if you didn’t spray them with poison!

4. Celebrate your new, smaller lawn by buying a push, or reel, mower. You probably won’t sweat any more than you would at the gym, and it won’t cost you anything to do it.

5. Set the blades to mow high – grass kept at three inches in height will be much less sensitive to drought, and will shade out weed seeds that blow into your lawn. And leave the clippings on your lawn as a natural source of nitrogen.

6. Water your lawn only when absolutely necessary – for most of us, that means never. If you must, do it early in the day, certainly not more than once a week. Be aware of rainfall – how often do you see irrigation sprinklers working in the rain?

And lastly, if only I understood the livestock ordinance, I could tell you whether a couple of goats could replace your mower altogether…