Portland Fix It Fair - Naturescaping
Notes from Portland’s 22nd annual Fix It Fair class on naturescaping:
Naturscaping Protects The Watershed
Portland’s household water use pales compared to outdoor water use. We face the danger of drying up our watershed. Once it dries up, the creeks would go bare and the plants along the banks would die. When that happens, our water does not naturally filter. We’d have to do it ourselves. The water would be far less pure, far less desirable to actually drink.
Evaluate Your Lawn Needs
A lawn is a notorious water waster. It takes enormous amounts of water and chemicals to keep green. You can replace your lawn in places where you don’t really spend too much time. For example. the north side of a house can be an excellent place to replace the lawn with shrubs and native plants.
Slopes are good places to replace a lawn.
People think that kids need a lawn but they often have a great time hiding in the shrubs. They create a cover for the kids. Really.
Native plants in the parking street create an attractive border.
Rocks are expensive but they look cool.
Start slowly. Don’t do your whole property at once. Start in a corner. Replace the lawn. Use a rubber hose to picture the border. Create a trench along the border. Getting rid of the lawn is easy. Lay cardboard and newspaper on the lawn. Put some mulch over it. The grass will decompose and act as a fertilizer.
Look to nature. Inspire yourself from the light dappling through the trees. Picture that in your yard.
Our urban landscape is pretty bare. There are fewer trees, fewer bushes and fewer plants. Without trees, bushes and plants we reduce the amount of water soaking into the soil and contribute to murky streams and polluted rivers. Just look at the Willamette. It can look pretty brown.
Native plants provide habitat for birds and other living creatures. It needs little or no irrigation during the year. It helps you elimnate and reduce the amount of chemicals.
We see blackberry along the roads where creeks used to flow. Native plants disappeared, eliminating the shade. Blackberry bushes love the sun. We need native plants to create shade so invasive plants are kept at bay.
Naturescaping is a win-win. You save money. No need to pay extra for irrigation, watering and pesticides.
The city of Portland offers workshops on naturescaping. The naturescaping workshops are free. They are held throughout the Metro region.
Attendees receive a free workbook and a free native plant to help jump start process. There are three classes in the series.The first two classes are four hours. The third is a two hour class for feedback.
Visit www.emswdc.org to register and for more information.
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