It has been months since I have posted anything new and I can lay almost all of the blame on a very cool damp spring. It is now July 3rd and I think we have had only one day where the temperature topped 70 degrees here in the Puget Sound area. We have also had lots of rain so our soil is nice and damp. This has created a season of unimaginable high rates of seed germination. For us in the landscape management/gardening field this has meant a lot of extra work. With unemployment running so high I try to see this as a blessing, but I will be happy when me and my knees get a bit of respite.
My strategy for reducing weeds is to mulch with an inch or two of quality compost over all beds each year. Any weeds that do show up are hand pulled before they go to seed. I encourage my clients who have lawns to keep the lawns healthy to reduce weed production in the lawn areas as well. This works really effectively in most of the gardens I manage. Where this is not as effective is in gardens that are next to properties where weeds are not managed.
I think often about how we could erradicate many of our nations noxious weeds by employing and training people who need work. There are some great programs out there such as the Veteran's Conservation Corps doing this, but I think lot more could and should be done. Himalayan Blackberry and English Ivy are two plants in the Puget Sound area that take over large areas in green belts, parks, and other unmaintained areas. These plants once established prevent native plants from thriving and reproducing.
Native plants provide food and habitat for native wildlife, pictured here a Flicker feasting on Sambucus nigra/Elderberry. I really believe we must work not to just be sustainable, but that we need to begin to work to preserve and improve much more of the natural environment upon which our survival as well as all other life on the earth depends.
