In a letter to MyRye.com, after nitrogen runoff earned Milton Harbor a D+ grade for water quality, local native plant expert Lucy Berkoff of Lucy’s Garden Life explains that plants are the answer.
Dear MyRye.com:
It was hard to see the D+ for Milton Harbor.
I’ve been think about the marina since Charlie started rowing in 2018. Now Caleb is in there. In just that small area there is so much more we could be doing ecologically and it would be easy and inexpensive. It would be good for flood mitigation too. And for sediment in the Harbor. Progress could be made quickly by removing all the invasive trees that surround the Marina and planting double the native trees in their place. The ecological benefits would be huge! Native grasses are one of the best filters of pollutants we have. The roots go SO deep. They should be planted between the trees and the water. Happy to help organize this project with Rye Sustainability, the City, or the marina itself, if they wanted to take it on. It would be quick and effective.
The landscaping at Milton Harbor House is also a huge opportunity and could be softened with huge swathes of native grasses. Preserve the view, lock in filtration to the max. Deep roots.
So many thoughts. And, to be honest, I love a beautiful lawn. But there are so many easy, gorgeous, ways to raise this D+ grade and make it an ecological win. We are nature’s best hope.
Plants are the answer.
Best,
Lucy Berkoff
READ: Going Native: Meet Lucy Berkoff, Expert Helping Rye Rebuild Its Native Ecosystem and our entire Going Native series.
