Many neighbors' yards,
Dotted with dandelions,
Help to "Save the Bay".
This is a salute to neighbors who allow weeds and wildflowers to take up space in their yards. "The Bay" is the Chesapeake Bay, a National Treasure that's in danger of dying from pollution and "dead zones", brought on in part by the over use of herbicides and pesticides in pursuit of lush-looking, weedless, green shag-carpet lawns. The Chesapeake Bay Foundation has tried for years to educate Marylanders about the dangers lawn chemicals pose to the health of the Bahy.
My mother unknowingly hit upon a truth about lawn care back in the seventies, when she hired a lawn service called, of all things, "Chem Lawn." Several large maples died. One hot and dry July, her lawn looked parched and withered. So did the lawns of other lawn service clients on Maple Lane. "Only one yard is still green on this street, and it''s full of weeds!" she complained.
Interesting lesson. We want ease and pretty, but at what cost?
ReplyDeleteWe love living in the country because no one complains about our weedy lawn. It is a place I can reduce my chemical load.
ReplyDeleteIt's an interesting observation.
ReplyDeleteA good lesson
ReplyDeleteIn my sub division, back in the seventies, I was regularly "busted" by neighbors for not having a lawn service. Like I could afford one, to keep their lawns beautiful.
ReplyDeleteFortunately we live in a neighborhood where the homeowner's association doesn't make that big a deal about how your yard looks, as long as the grass is mowed. Some people even have plastic flowers!
Deletethanks for the part you wrote for the isolation poem. it will publish tomorrow.. it is really quite good. we love weeds, and a good thing because the drought has killed a lot of things but the weeds still bloom. we do not like fake greened grass.. we let God water and we keep it cut
ReplyDeleteI remember Chem lawn making the rounds around here. In my neighborhood you'll see a lot of dandelions. My next door neighbor has his yard sprayed so he has none in his yard but every yard around him is loaded with them.
ReplyDeleteCynthia:
ReplyDeleteIn my neighborhood, we have been strongly on the no use side for “Chem Lawn”’type operations.... much to the chagrin of many of our neighbors..... most of them use such a service and look askance at us because we refuse.
But, we also notice that the birds and the squirrels and other wildlife seem to especially like our yard.... preferentially to our neighbors. :)
BTW.... in regards to your comment on my site.... I actually prefer “old” coffee and relish it’s much darker, more bitter flavors. When I had gone to 7-11 and saw some pots that had been sitting and ignored all day (perhaps a less preferred flavor).... and I always considered it a bonus!!!!
PipeTobacco
I like dandelion jelly taste like honey.
ReplyDelete