Wednesday 23 February 2011

Climate change, Prince Charles and gardens

Prince Charles, and many others, have been called foolish for expressing environmental sympathies in the past, as with the confidence of their convictions they speak out. Are we foolish to speak out?

I believe that anyone with a social, moral or environmental conscience must stand up for what they believe in.

If we don’t speak plainly now we will be reponsible for the future. If we do speak plainly now we will also be responsible, but for a better future. If Prince Charles can stand up in front of the European parliament then I can stand up in front of groups of school children, teachers, developers, architects and contractors, local authorities, private individuals and anyone else who will listen. I will (continue to) spread the message that climate change is real, is happening already, but there are things we can do to lessen the impact and slow the rate of change.

We can do the obvious things like use less energy: (turn off the switch when you’re not using the appliance/light etc, combine car journeys to use your car more efficiently, insulate your home, design buildings for natural light and windows for natural ventilation) and the sometimes overlooked things like: recycle and reuse clothing and household items (the pulled together Vintage look is very ‘now’, for good reason!), harvest rainwater to protect against drought, plant trees (for shade and for fruit), grow fruit and vegetables at home, make our own compost, attract natural pest-eaters into our gardens so we do not use petro-chemical based fertilisers, pesticides, herbicides. Moss killers, earthworm killers and slug poisons, for example, all poison off the birds we need to spread the seeds, the bees and other insects we need to pollinate our food plants and provide honey. The only healthy soil additives are natural products like straw, compost, ‘fertiliser tea’ made from mixed food waste steeped in water. Improve your soil, plant a variety of tress, shrubs and low growing plants, attract a vibrant bird, reptile (frogs and lizards play their part in keeping plant pests under control) and insect community into your garden and watch the ‘pests’ population balance. Remember, as any healthy garden needs water, shade and some hot sun for us to enjoy, so too, we need varied habitats for the ideal mix of beneficial wildlife.

If we believe the saying “you are what you eat” then by extension we are what we put into the ground. Rule of thumb: If it says ‘poison’ on the bottle, don’t use it on your garden.

Wednesday 16 February 2011

Edible shade in sensory gardens

We use trees for shade in sensory gardens and increasingly we're choosing fruit trees for shade.

From a sustainability point of view fruit trees offer scented, beautiful, attractive blossom, food for pollinating insects, attractive-looking fruit, a source of local free fresh food for the community, add habitat-aiding biodiversity, their leaves cool the surrounding air through transpiration, and the trees filter and absorb rainwater to slow its progress into the ground water reservoir.

Coincidentally, when mature, fruit trees tend to be good for climbing, adding to both the (natural) play value of the site. Trees such as apples can be pruned or creatively trained to give a low, easy access, open structure.