The very act of growing plants would be considered by most of us as doing something green. Growing plants brings the experience of nature closer to our families and local communities, provides a home for a wealth of living organisms, and each and every one acts as a filter for the air we breathe, thereby contributing to a cleaner global environment.
But gardening can be an activity that is far from green. For many people, their gardens become an arena in which they wage war against nature through the liberal use of highly toxic pesticides. Others think nothing of using products that have been created at the expense of precious natural resources, like peat from the fast-diminishing peat bogs and garden furniture made with wood plundered from tropical forests. And many gardens are grown with the help of excessive amounts of water drawn straight from the tap (faucet), despite the hundreds of gallons that fall from the sky each year and go uncollected in most areas.
The good news is that this environmentally wasteful approach to gardening is no longer in vogue. Gone are the days when a good garden was meant to be regimented in design, with uniform plants grown in weed-free, dark peaty soil surrounding a perfect sprinkler-watered lawn, without a daisy or buttercup in sight.
The new wave of gardening recognizes that a good garden is a complex ecosystem, with each element having a role to play. Native plants are now just as fashionable as exotics and are much more of a hit with the local wildlife. Unruly borders and meadows filled with wildflowers are now just as keenly cultivated as any neatly tendec bed of roses. The modern gardener accepts nature and works with it and in so doing produces naturally healthy plants in an efficient and safe way.
Whether your gardening aspirations stop with a cheese plant in the corner of your living room, or stretch as far as a vegetable patch, some fruit trees and perhaps a chicken or two roaming about, this eco-friendly method offers you the chance to get truly close to the natural world and to put something back into your environment.
With domestic gardens making up many millions of hectares of land worldwide, the combined efforts of green gardeners can produce the largest nature reserve on the planet - and you will have your very own slice of Eden on your doorstep.
Reasons to go green in the garden:
• You can grow food that you trust - free from chemical sprays and other contaminants that have been implicated in health scares worldwide.
• It gives you the chance to recycle in one of the most exciting ways, turning your food scraps and garden cuttings into compost, which, in turn, will support the growth of further food.
• You can save the environment from the polluting effects of transporting fresh produce to you by growing your own.
• You are sparing the environment from the impact of pesticides, which kill many beneficial insects, birds, plants and animals, can pollute our water supplies and harm our children.
• You can teach your children where food comes from and the wonder of nature in a safe environment.
• Your garden will become a haven for wildlife and be safer for your own pets.
• By growing rare or unusual seeds you can contribute to global biodiversity and introduce new flavours to your diet.
• Gardening is great exercise and fun for all the family.
• You will save money by not having to pay for fertilizers, pesticides, compost and so on, and by growing your own food. Recycling will also prevent you spending a fortune at the garden centre.
• You will be saving fragile areas of natural beauty from further ravaging by no longer buying peat-based composts and limestone, and by making sure that your garden furniture and other wood products are from sustainable sources.
• Green gardening puts you in touch with nature and its cycles, aiding relaxation and giving you an outlet for and sanctuary from the frustrations of your busy day.
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