The January catalog season is over and we have a little lull in gardening activity, so I can take some time to respond to one of the biggest onslaughts of emails I have received over the past 40 years of writing this column. It is astonishing, actually. Many more of you than I thought apparently agree with the idea that the time for the Great Alaska Lawn is gone.
One question asked is, what do we do about it? How do you get rid of a lawn that has been the backbone of a yard ever since the good topsoil was taken away and the lawn was installed?
The only answer I can give is that right now, I do not know. I do know that replacing a lawn is not an easy thing to do. It has to be done properly. In my book, that means without a huge expenditure of money and effort.
So, this idea is going to take some study. Lots of it, actually. And each of us will have to confront some tough questions. I am quite sure the place to start is my friend Doug Tallamy's "Bringing Nature Home: How You Can Sustain Wildlife with Native Plants." If you have not read it, you really should, whether you intend to reduce the size of your lawn or not. You can get copies at Alaska Mill and Feed or on the Internet.
Now, the idea of reading something that will help Alaskans who already have plenty of wildlife in our gardens (and are not really looking for any more!) get more might seem a little silly. It can be a bit difficult to imagine we have a lack of biodiversity in our yards when we are still surrounded by millions of acres of natural biodiversity and are already landscaping with native trees -- birch and spruce here in Southcentral Alaska. This as opposed to places in the Lower 48 that haven't seen a native tree in a century.
Still, we have created some big islands of non-native plants and we surely want to start being a lot more careful about that. These islands shouldn't get bigger. We have to start paying a lot more attention to the reality of invasives, as well as ensuring things we plant don't attract and support disease and insect populations we don't want.
"Bringing Nature Home" will stimulate some thoughts, though the native plants suggested in the book don't really work here. Still, if we don't understand the basic tenets professor Tallamy lays out in this book, I am convinced we will continue going down the wrong road.
Yes, there is the philosophical aspect of all of this. What is wrong with what we have? (Doug will set that all out.) And all native plants? Isn't that going to be too dull? How does a more sustainable system fit into our Alaskan gardening scene? Do we need more animals?
Of course, there are some "easy ways" to convert a lawn into more useful space. How about making the lawn all food plants instead? (Oh, the weeding -- but oh, the eating!) This wouldn't be a natural ecosystem, and Tallamy would surely suggest moderation. Or how about planting more native trees? That makes sense. So does the idea of sharing large patches of native bushes with neighboring yards.
The point that Tallamy drives home is that we need to change our thinking. It isn't that lawns are evil. It is just that we have been so biased toward creating a green lawn and then yardening for color and what I will call "Versailles" aesthetics, that we missed the point: to have a healthy ecosystem where we don't need to pesticide anything, or add to air and noise pollution, or displace whole populations of animals that were here before we came.
Now, just to be sure, I am not suggesting that we get rid of vegetable gardens or that we do away with non-native perennials or even grass. There is a place for both. They just don't have to be the whole yard. And I am not suggesting we wipe out botanical gardens and colorful annuals.
So, Alaskan yardeners, it is the winter lull, and I am suggesting that we all read a book that explains much better than I can why we need to be a bit smarter about what plants we use and how we use them. I know, after 40 years of writing this column, that Alaskans are thinking gardeners and that we can not only learn to appreciate gardening and landscaping without destroying our natural diversity but also figure out a way to put this knowledge into practice.
Jeffs Alaska Garden Calendar
Stored bulbs and plants: Check to make sure the soil is slightly moist on fuchsia and the like that are in storage.
Alaska Botanical Garden: Join and keep checking the website (alaskabg.org) as new classes and workshops are being posted all the time.
Seed starting: It is really too early. Most folks start with celery and Brussels sprouts, which take about 14 weeks. Start in February.
Jeff Lowenfels has been writing this column for 40 years and never missed a week. He is the author of the best-selling, award-winning books "Teaming with Microbes" and "Teaming With Nutrients."