Years ago, when my wife and I moved into our house in Salem, Oregon, one of our first projects was to rip out the front lawn in order to replace it with native species. Years later, when we moved into our house here in South Bend, we began the process to replicate that plan.
Because we try to lead earth-friendly lives, we have chosen not to kill off our grass through the use of pesticides. Our strategy has been to tarp a few sections of the yard per year, cover the tarps with bark dust and then pull up the tarps 6 - 9 months later. Before raking the bark dust over the mainly barren ground, I slowly and laboriously dig out as my roots as possible.
Once these tasks are completed, I begin the process of planting native species in each newly reclaimed section. Thus far, we have reclaimed about 65% of what use to be the front lawn. We still have a long ways to go to reclaim the totality of the front of our house plus the side yard.
The first year of the current project I became a bit miffed around June as dandelions started popping up all over the place. (Dandelions are resource hogs and, during our 2 - 3 month dry season, they can appropriate the moisture that other plants desperately need to survive.) I had worked so hard to find and dig up as many root systems as possible that I was irritated that these weeds had somehow hung on. I spent several days pulling the dandelions and digging out their roots. That should take care of the problem, I thought to myself.
About one month later, dandelions started popping up all over the place again! A neighbor suggested a certain pesticide to help rid our garden of these pests. No, no, I said. It will probably take the whole summer for me to rid the garden of these weeds. And I did work all summer at digging them up each time they started to proliferate.
The next year I was supremely confident that dandelions were a thing of the past. However, come May or June, they started popping up all over again. Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!
This time around though, something dawned on me. The presence of dandelions is what keeps me working in the garden all spring and summer long. If not for them and a few other persistent weeds, I could basically work on my garden in the spring and pretty much let it go of its own accord for the rest of the growing season.
In other words, what I originally viewed as a negative was really a positive for me. The dandelions allow me to work at something I enjoy far more than if they disappeared completely!
This notion is similar to many of the tales and stories of Chuang Tzu. In several chapters, this Taoist sage urges us to be open to different perspectives and not to allow ourselves to be boxed in by preconceived ideas. What at one moment may look like a negative could just as easily be viewed as a positive...in a different light.
This post is part of a series. For an introduction, go here.
Because we try to lead earth-friendly lives, we have chosen not to kill off our grass through the use of pesticides. Our strategy has been to tarp a few sections of the yard per year, cover the tarps with bark dust and then pull up the tarps 6 - 9 months later. Before raking the bark dust over the mainly barren ground, I slowly and laboriously dig out as my roots as possible.
Once these tasks are completed, I begin the process of planting native species in each newly reclaimed section. Thus far, we have reclaimed about 65% of what use to be the front lawn. We still have a long ways to go to reclaim the totality of the front of our house plus the side yard.
The first year of the current project I became a bit miffed around June as dandelions started popping up all over the place. (Dandelions are resource hogs and, during our 2 - 3 month dry season, they can appropriate the moisture that other plants desperately need to survive.) I had worked so hard to find and dig up as many root systems as possible that I was irritated that these weeds had somehow hung on. I spent several days pulling the dandelions and digging out their roots. That should take care of the problem, I thought to myself.
About one month later, dandelions started popping up all over the place again! A neighbor suggested a certain pesticide to help rid our garden of these pests. No, no, I said. It will probably take the whole summer for me to rid the garden of these weeds. And I did work all summer at digging them up each time they started to proliferate.
The next year I was supremely confident that dandelions were a thing of the past. However, come May or June, they started popping up all over again. Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!
This time around though, something dawned on me. The presence of dandelions is what keeps me working in the garden all spring and summer long. If not for them and a few other persistent weeds, I could basically work on my garden in the spring and pretty much let it go of its own accord for the rest of the growing season.
In other words, what I originally viewed as a negative was really a positive for me. The dandelions allow me to work at something I enjoy far more than if they disappeared completely!
This notion is similar to many of the tales and stories of Chuang Tzu. In several chapters, this Taoist sage urges us to be open to different perspectives and not to allow ourselves to be boxed in by preconceived ideas. What at one moment may look like a negative could just as easily be viewed as a positive...in a different light.
This post is part of a series. For an introduction, go here.
And you can make wine and eat the young leaves....
ReplyDeleteA great post. Thank you.
ReplyDeletethe flowers taste pretty good too, rather sweet. Eat them raw or make fritters. Dandelions are medicinal and very nutritious.
ReplyDelete