There are more than forty million acres of lawn in the lower 48. That's an area eighteen times larger than Yellowstone National Park, the size of Texas or roughly two percent of US land. Lawns are the largest irrigated crop in the US* and according to one UVM professor, we use more than six hundred million gallons of gas a year maintaining it.** It's an environmentally costly food desert out there. For those of us in Vernon who have been allowing our blades to grow long or hopefully replaced some of them altogether with native plants; this is our moment! Don't laugh at me quite yet, for I have looked into the numbers and Alexa has informed me that Vermont ranks forty fifth out of our fifty states for acreage; and within that number, Vernon consists of 12,480 or two tenths of a percent of VT acres. Let's get some perspective here, Vermont's Missiquoi National Refuge comes in at 6,642 acres, and we really haven't to venture much further than the 1,401 acres that make up Vernon's Roaring Brook WMA, to clearly understand that small tracts of land can do mighty things!
We have worked hard, we may have even cringed and pretended not to notice our neighbors strolling past our waving stalks of bird and bee food. But our Autumn day of reckoning is finally here! This drought admittedly has stunted the crop; and as I wander through the town with my nose in the air trying to not walk into cars, poles, trees and buildings, I have begun to take note of what I think is a crop of nuts and seeds (with the exception of acorns), vanishing prior to hitting the ground. I remember well the critter explosion in recent years that resulted in a Turkey Vulture's paradise. There was much talk about mast years with acorns leading the discussion; but less publicly contemplated was the buffering effect that biodiversity has for survival. Now my guess is that you figured out that "buffering effect" isn't exactly the correct scientific term. That's because I couldn't put my finger on the exact word and that's okay. All I'm trying to say here is that one crop (monocrop) doesn't feed the forest. In years where acorns are low, it's up to a variety of other plants and trees to fatten the bears and fortify the deer for the winter.
My ditches look rather neglected this time of year; but something that my neighbors may not know, is that it looks unkempt intentionally. Leaving seeds on dead stalks feeds migrating and residential birds as well as small rodents, which in turn feeds larger birds and animals. I also supplement my natives with a few annuals to keep things in bloom. I planted a dozen sunflower seedlings this spring, plus I direct sowed a package of sunflower seeds and for good measure. This is an annual (pun intended) ritual on my part and for the chipmunk's part, they clip off the seedlings and dig up the seeds. I haven't a clue what it is that they have against me! Something amazing happened this year however, I had three sunflowers survive. One in a big pot and two along my front ditch. I was feeling rather flattered and accomplished when Billy Galdamez asked if he could take a picture of them. But alas, an admirer harvested one third of my sunflower crop before the birds had the chance to.
With one third of my sunflower crop lost, Wayne's Aunt Nancy from Nevada informed me that "They grow like crazy here." I think that's truly wonderful Aunt Nancy. I wonder how well Goldenrod grows in Nevada because it seems to always be a good year for it here.
Let's imagine for a moment if a mere half of all of Vernon's acres had at least one native tree or plant installed on them this Autumn. That would be an increase of 6,240 native plants in our town. Clearly one small act in one small town, in the sixth smallest state can have a cumulative impact on the environment. A question was asked of a technician at the Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge during an online presentation about the threatened Salt Marsh Sparrow, "What can people who don't live near salt marshes do to protect salt marshes?" Her answer prompted me to write today. During the discussion, it had been pointed out that the Sparrow's nesting areas were being flooded out by rising ocean levels. The technician answered, "We can all take steps to reduce Climate Change." What I think this means is that whether you live in a small town in VT or a big city in Nevada, we each play a role in the survival of wildlife in ME and even around the World. So pull on your hiking shoes this weekend, plant a plant and leave those bird and bee gardens standing a while longer - Norma Manning
Resources:
*The American Lawn Is Now The Largest Single Crop In The US, Huffington Post
**Fuel Efficient Lawns and Landscapes, Dr. Leonard Perry UVM
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