Low Impact Gardening

Composting basically consists of placing layers of "green" (materials contaning nitrogen)and "brown" (carbon) materials in some sort of container. It does get a lot more in depth but for this web page I'll keep it to the basics. Green materials are lawn clipping, kitchen vegetable/fruit wastes (NO MEAT SCRAPS, it will attract raccoons, rats, etc.), and pruned plant materials as long as they are not diseased. Also your grass clippings should be herbicide and pesticide free. Brown materials can include, leaves, hay, sawdust, or woodchips.

There are various types of composting containers. They can be as simple as an inclosed/fenced in circle to keep leaves from blowing away, you can make a container out of pallets, scrap wood and chicken wire or you can buy your bin from a store. The type of bin you have will determine how fast you make your compost. For example, the fenced in leaves will take a long time to break down if there is no green materials mixed in with the leaves. You also want your compost bin to get hot. Fencing will alow too much air circulation. The best bin to get or make is one that is 3'wide x 3'high x 3 deep, that has a top to keep heat in. The bins that you buy are usually made from black or dark plastic so it will heat up faster. All bins should have some kind of ventilation and easy access so you can turn your pile of compost. Place your bin where it will get plenty of sunlight, turn it as often as possible and soon you'll have some 'black gold' for your garden.

Native Landscaping is also called Xerascaping. Xerascaping is just another fancy way of saying, 'plant what grows well in your area', if you do, it will mean much less work for you in terms of watering, weeding, and pruning, it will also be better for the environment around you. Native plants usually have longer roots to help control erosion. Native plants are also utilized by wildlife and are usually more resistant to disease. I've placed a link below where you can learn more about native plants for the Minnesota area. If you check out my Minnesota natives page I've also included links to a couple of local garden centers where you can buy native plants.