by David Ropes What more can be said about the benefits of mulch in the developed landscape? In her wonderful 2007 article “Impacts of Mulches on Landscape Plants and the…
Installing and Maintaining Landscapes
Proper installation and maintenance of the ecologically designed landscape begins a pattern in which each component in the landscape supports the others. Ecological methods can save you time, resources, and money by keeping water and organic material on site and by utilizing organic soil amendments and chemical interventions only when testing shows they are necessary.
Five Reasons the Use of Synthetics Is No Longer a Best Practice
by Chip Osborne All industries eventually arrive at best practices that represent the most productive and efficient method to deliver desired results while at the same time minimizing negative impact….
Mulch Matters
I recently read an article, “The Mulch Matters,” and want to understand more. I would like to plant several Japanese maples and at present have only pine straw. What more can…
Book Review: The Wild Wisdom of Weeds
13 Essential Plants for Human Survival Written by Katrina Blair Published by Chelsea Green Books, September 2014 Reviewed by Russ Cohen The Wild Wisdom of Weeds is a deeply personal…
A Critique: The Wild Wisdom of Weeds
13 Essential Plants for Human Survival Written by Katrina Blair Published by Chelsea Green Books, September 2014 Critiqued by Russ Cohen Allow me to preface this critique by revealing that some of…
Reawakening a Natural Pool
by Trevor Smith Natural pools offer year-round outdoor enjoyment with surprisingly little upkeep. After its third, and very tough, winter, I recently opened a large natural pool and its associated…
Plant Material Issues in This Kind of Winter
by John Rice I think early January of 2015 was one of the harshest periods for plant material in our part of Massachusetts. The January 5-11 period is a perfect…
Keep Winter Gardens Working with Permaculture Strategies
by Lauren Chase Rowell I was asked to come up with five permaculture suggestions as to what could be done with the spaces in our gardens that remain empty after…
Taking it to the Extremes
by Sandy Vorce “How do you plan for Climate Change and all the wild weather?” This was a question recently posed by several college students who came to help out…
Drip It!
by John Swaringen We’ve heard it all before, haven’t we? Drip lines clog and stop working. They take too much time and labor to install. It’s harder to complete bed…
Organic Turf Maintenance on a Large Scale at the Rose Kennedy Greenway
by Anthony Ruggiero Anthony is a panelist at ELA’s Large-Scale Landscapes Symposium at Wellesley College on January 18th, 2014. The Greenway is a mile-and-a-half-long public park that stretches from Chinatown…
Utilizing Natural Systems and Bringing Groups Together to Clean Up Lake George
by Randy Rath One of the biggest threats to the water quality of many lakes – including Lake George in upstate New York – is stormwater runoff. After a storm,…
