THE TALK WAS OF LIVING MULCH, meaning groundcovers, on this week’s Robin Hood Radio podcast, because it’s the perfect time to divide your best ones up (or buy some!) and get some needy areas of the garden covered in weed-thwarting beauty. Speaking of which, I’m going outside to do that right now, but not before giving you the link to the latest episode (or any of the archives, if you’ve missed a week).
THE LECTURE that he’s been giving for a number of years is not-so-subtly called “Kill Your Lawn.” Ecological horticulturist Dan Jaffe Wilder knows that starting over and creating an entire native habitat instead of a lawn isn’t for everyone. But Dan just wants to grab our attention and get us to start to make some changes at least in the way we care for the turfgrass we do want in our landscapes. And maybe give up a little square footage of it to some other kind of more diverse planting, too, like the wild strawberries (Fragaria virginiana, inset). Alternative, more eco-focused styles of lawn care, along with some lawn alternatives is what he and I talked about on the podcast. Dan is Director of Applied Ecology at Norcross Wildlife Foundation in Wales, Massachusetts, and its 8,000-acre sanctuary. He’s also co-author with Mark Richardson of the book “Native Plants for New England Gardens.”
(Stream it below, read the illustrated transcript or subscribe free.)
Very nice. It’s the first of your podcasts that I’ve listened to. Lovely to hear your voice. I’m going to get out and move/divide ground covers tomorrow, now that we finally got a bit of rain. Great advice – I’ve lived with mulch patches in my shrub border for too long. Geranium mac will be great there, and I have tons of it in my shade garden, where it thrives under spruces.
Is this still accessible anywhere?
Try this newer one instead, Jessica.