Going Native: Talking to Your Landscaper with Missy Fabel of Ecological Landscape Design
Going Native is our gardening series highlighting the contribution of native plants to building resilient landscapes. MyRye.com will introduce you to native plant experts that will tell you ways to get started with a small garden patch, a complete property or just a few garden containers.
Today we speak with Missy Fabel of Ecological Landscape Design.
MyRye.com: Many homeowners in Rye have landscapers that do some or all of the work taking care of their property.
What are three or four things each homeowner could ask their landscaper to do to lower their environmental impact and create a welcoming environment for pollinators and other wildlife?
Fabel: Meet your landscapers where they are when talking to them about best environmental practices. Explain why you are asking them to change some of their practices and point out that the changes you are asking for will improve the health of the workers as well as the environment.
- Use electric equipment (lawn mowers, string trimmers, leaf blowers, etc.)
- Leave leaves in garden beds, foundation plantings and natural areas, especially under canopy trees.
- Eliminate the use of pesticides and herbicides
- Reduce or eliminate mulch, especially around trees (no mulch volcanoes!)
Also read: Going Native: Ecological Landscape Design’s Missy Fabel and our Going Native series.
