You can do many things in your own garden to develop a more sustainable lifestyle. Whether you change from a petrol-fueled lawn mower to an electric model or get rid of your lawn altogether, or build yourself a compost store, every small change will help to make a difference. If you are finding the idea of going green a little daunting, here are a few ideas to help you turn your garden into a clean, green Eco machine.
Don’t use artificial fertilisers and agrochemicals.
These products use lots of energy and natural resources in their production, contaminate soil and water in your garden and can get into the food chain.
Grow your own food
Growing your own food is not only great for your garden, but also for your health. It means you know exactly where your fruit and veg have been and it will also reduce your grocery bill. If you have kids, get them involved in the process, as it can be lots of fun and can be very satisfying for a child to know they are eating the food that they grew themselves.
Create a compost heap or Wormery.
Create a compost heap or wormery for your organic waste, and you will not only be reducing the amount of food scraps in your waste, but you will also be creating a nutritional soil to place in your garden.
Grow a hedge rather then having a fence
Plant a hedgerow instead of putting up a wall or fence. It will become a great habitat for animals, and it will also absorb carbon dioxide and cost less to maintain.
Don’t use Weedkillers
Don’t use weedkillers in your garden, use a hoe instead. It does take more effort, but it means that the good animals and insects are safe in your garden and that the weeds are completely dug up from the roots.
Use natural mulches in your garden
Enrich your soil with compost, manure, seaweed, prunings, straw, hay and leaf-mould. Even things like scrap paper shredded up work great around the base of plants. Doing this helps prevent water evaporation.
Buy second hand furniture
If you are buying furniture for your garden, try looking for second hand furniture at your local recycling depot instead of buying new furniture. If you are buying new furniture, ask the seller for information about whether it comes from a sustainable source or not.
Watering your garden
Try watering your garden with the grey water from your washing machine, dish water, or even the kids bath water, but remember not to use water that has been exposed to harmful chemicals. If you have sufficient funds, consider investing in a water tank. Canberra’s dams may be full at the moment, but scientists predict the local climate will become hotter and drier in the longer term.
Water your garden in the cool of the early morning or evenings. This will reduce the amount of water lost to evaporation.
Let the wildlife in
Create your own ponds for local frogs and birds to live and bathe in.
Creating a frog friendly habitat in your backyard is easy. All a basic frog pond requires is shallow water, some logs or rocks and some thick vegetation. Then all you need to do is wait, and the frogs will come to you.
For more information on frog ponds visit www.frogsaustralia.net.au
If you have any Eco friendly gardening tips, or have any questions, please visit our forum.
