How To Get Started at Home and in your Community

How to Get Started AT HOME

Even before you begin to think of changing your landscape design, change your management practices for your existing landscape:

Then, before you go out and purchase new plants for your garden, assess your property and list your needs.

Assess your property

Note such site conditions as the amount of sun or shade each area gets and when, your soil type(s)and drainage. For example: dry, sunny, south-facing slope with rocky alkaline soil, or heavily-shaded damp site, where water often accumulates for short periods and soil is acidic and a heavy clay.

It is also advisable to get your soil tested, especially if you plan to create a vegetable garden or if young children will be playing in the dirt, possibly exposing them to lead. Check the U.S. EPA lead site or call the National Lead Information Center at 1-800-424-LEAD. The test can also tell you how acidic or alkaline your soil is.

Take some measurements and make a rough map or plot plan:

Show the shape and location of your house, including windows and doors, patios and walks, existing trees and shrubs, fences, utility lines, garages, sheds, and any other features already on your property.
Note neighboring concerns that you might want to address such as views of unsightly structures nearby, lack of privacy from neighbors, nearby sources of noise pollution, etc., and attractive views you might want to preserve or highlight.
Mark the location of underground utilities and overhead power lines.
Show existing plants on your property, try to identify them by name (common or Latin) so that you can find out more about their eventual size, degree of invasiveness, and other characteristics.
Mark north-south-east-west and the degree and direction of any slopes.

List your needs and wishes

This is the brainstorming step. Examples include:

places for play, sitting and outdoor dining
storage for cars, boats, firewood, garbage cans, compost piles or other items
screening for privacy
types of gardens (vegetable, herb, wildflower, water)
shade for buildings
buffers from noisy streets or strong winter winds

Where appropriate, make note of size and other requirements (such as a flat 20'X20' plot in full sun for a vegetable garden). Once you have your list, prioritize the items in terms of importance, taking into account their practicality given your property and your budget.

Research

Before making a new landscape plan for your property, do some homework using libraries, the Internet, lectures, arboreta, garden clubs, horticultural societies, etc.

complete identifying existing plants and soil types
list native plants that will thrive in your site's conditions
take walks through natural areas and gardens (public and private), be observant and note your likes and dislikes
learn what plants usually are found growing together in the wild
learn what plants are problems in your area and should be removed or not planted in the first place
if you want to attract specific wildlife, like specific birds or butterflies, learn what habitat they require, plants they favor
note the requirements of specific plants you want to add including eventual size so that they can be placed in the correct location

Develop a plan

Put tracing paper over your plot plan. Rough in existing features that you want to keep, then add other features, starting at the top of your prioritized wish list. Most likely it will take several drafts before you successfully incorporate your needs in an attractive and well-integrated plan. Classes given by arboreta and educational institutions may help you with this process. Many books and other publications also have sample plans.

Start small

Break down the master plan into manageable phases, such as the need to create some privacy from a neighbor or to provide shade to the house. As trees are usually purchased small and require many years to reach mature height, it's often recommended to include them early in garden installation. Also, they create shade and affect other conditions which might be critical for the success of smaller plants nearby.

Start with efforts that provide the most environmental benefits: reduce flooding and erosion, reduce energy needs, reduce air and noise pollution, remove invasives, provide habitat for wildlife, etc. As you gain confidence and experience, you can reduce the lawn and enlarge planting beds during succeeding phases.

Gain Acceptance

Sometimes green landscaping runs afoul of local weed ordinances or neighborhood acceptance. This most often occurs in neighborhoods that are highly manicured and where the owner makes a sudden and drastic change such as removing the entire front lawn overnight and planting a wildflower meadow. Before you begin such ambitious projects check local ordinances. You can avoid problems with neighbors and others if you take some of the following measures, particularly for areas in public view.

Alert neighbors beforehand, including the reasons why you feel green landscaping is important.
Start small so that others can get used to the change.
Maintain the edges of natural areas. Leave a buffer of turf or plant a neat groundcover to make an aesthetic transition. Showing that your garden hasn't been created out of willful neglect will help gain acceptance.
Use large swatches of fewer, mostly-flowering plants along public edges. For example, a large drift of Black-eyed Susan will usually be more acceptable in a suburban front yard than a more diverse wildflower meadow.
Erect a sign that educates the passerby or in some way legitimizes the effort, like from the National Wildlife Federation's habitat certification program.

Additional Sources of Information

BayScaping Guides for Homeowners

How to Get Started IN YOUR COMMUNITY

Green landscaping isn't just for the home and, in fact, you can have more of an impact if you think larger. Public areas, including parks, roadsides and school grounds, as well as industrial establishments, commercial areas, and government managed lands are ideal places to apply green landscaping. volunteers

Join local committees that plant trees and maintain grounds. Encourage greater use and diversity of native plants. Share information learned.
Examine local weed ordinances and development regulations to ensure they don't deter green landscaping; if they do, push to amend them or get a variance for native plant gardening.
Identify public areas in your community maintained in lawn that might be converted to green landscaping. Galvanize public and local government support for the effort.
Identify natural areas in your community and help to preserve or restore them. Organize removal of invasive plants and replanting with native trees and shrubs.
Create demonstration gardens of green landscaping. Recognize and reward efforts of others. Signs can help to gain public acceptance and support. Consider obtaining wildlife habitat certification for your site or community from such organizations as the National Wildlife Federation
Start or work within an existing garden club to share expertise, knowledge and interest in green landscaping.
Help to educate others in your community about green landscaping. Feel free to use this Power Point presentation.
Document green landscaping efforts by taking photos and recording installation and maintenance costs. Having information on projects that worked well can make it easier to gain approval for additional projects.

Additional Sources of Information

U. S. EPA Green Communities
U.S. EPA Sourcebook on Landscaping for Public Officials
Wildlife Habitat Council

Mid-Atlantic Region Home Page | EAID Home Page

How To Get Started at Home and in your Community