During these crazy times of quarantining and social distancing, it can be challenging to keep one’s sanity in check while confined to the house. Some cope through exercise, long walks, virtual Zoom happy hours, or binge-watching Tiger King on Netflix. For me, the most effective therapeutic outlet has been gardening.
A well-landscaped yard, particularly one that is low maintenance, can significantly enhance the beauty, sustainability, and value of your home, and spring is a great time to consider upgrades to your yard. As a bonus, most garden work can be done at a distance of over six feet from the nearest non-relative!
Here are some projects to consider:
Renovation at my home in Falls Church revealed areas that were practically pure red clay.
Improve Your Drainage. Our region is famous for its red clay soil, which absorbs water slower than most other soil types. Making matters worse is the high level of homebuilding, which further compacts the soil and reduces storage space for water. The result is frequent pooling of water after rainstorms, which can lead to basement flooding, mold, and yard damage, as well as flash flooding that overwhelms stormwater drains and pollutes the Chesapeake Bay. If your yard has pools after a rainstorm, or gets a lot of water from an uphill neighbor, consider having a french drain or rain garden installed.
A French drain diverts water from somewhere you don’t want it - a “mushy” spot in your yard or beside your home’s foundation - and channels it elsewhere to collect and dissipate naturally into the soil. Despite being French, they are neither fancy nor expensive, and require very little maintenance. I installed one a few weeks ago where rainwater pooled at the back of my lot, and the difference after the most recent rainstorm was amazing!
A rain garden is a small garden of shrubs, perennials, and grasses planted near places where rainwater pools or flows. It is designed to temporarily hold rainwater runoff - often from downspouts or uphill areas - and is effective in removing nutrients and chemicals from the water and increasing its absorption into the ground. Despite the name, rain gardens are usually dry, typically holding water only during and following rainfall. Because rain gardens will drain within 48 hours, they are not suitable for the breeding of mosquitoes.
A rain garden is a beautiful way of enhancing your landscape while managing stormwater. (Photo credit: raingardens.org)
Rain gardens are filled with native plants (more on those below!) that can both tolerate and utilize lots of water, and have deep roots that aid in the dissipation of water back into the soil. A large number of qualifying plants are beneficial to pollinators, thus creating “butterfly gardens” that are both beautiful and ecologically sustainable. In fact, they do such a good job of curbing stormwater runoff that many city and county governments have grant programs that help fund the construction of rain gardens, covering up to 50% of their cost.
Plant Native Plants.
One of my favorite plants growing up was our butterfly bush (Buddleja), which attracted dozens of butterflies to its beautiful purple flowers. Little did I know that this plant is actually an invasive species, and is unable to support the caterpillars of any butterfly species in North America. While its sweet nectar is addictive to many butterflies, it harms them by hampering their reproduction, which in turn harms the song bird populations that rely on those caterpillars for food. It's a “circle of life” thing. A butterfly bush can also grow to 10 feet tall if not pruned consistently, and will crowd out other plants that compete with it for nutrients and water.
On the other hand, the unfortunately-named butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa) is just as beautiful, but is native to the eastern U.S. and grows well in the aforementioned clay soil. More importantly, it is a host plant for several butterfly species, including the rare Monarch, and grows to a manageable 1-3 ft. tall, coexisting peacefully with other native plants.
Butterfly Weed is a beautiful perennial native to the eastern U.S. and host to several species of butterfly. (Photo credit: John Flannery, used through a Creative Commons license)
Filling your garden areas with native plants offers several advantages to both homeowners and local wildlife:
Native plants are comfortable here. Native plants have adapted to the region’s soil, water, and weather conditions. As a result, they are much more resilient to disease and pests, require little or no fertilizer, and use less water than non-native plants. In other words, they are much lower maintenance.
Native plants are part of the local food chain. As in the butterfly bush / butterfly weed example, native plants support the local food chain, serving as both a habitat and food source to all life stages of beneficial insects and wildlife. This is particularly true of caterpillars, native bees, and baby songbirds, the latter of which can only be fed insects until they are grown.
To learn more about native plants for our region, visit Plant NoVA Natives (www.plantnovanatives.org), a great resource on the colorful, low-maintenance flowers, trees, and shrubs native to northern Virginia and the surrounding areas.
As always, please contact your property manager if you’d like any help finding landscape contractors to help with these or any other landscaping projects.
John F. Krotzer - Property Manager (Northern Virginia) Contact:yukon@globetrotterproperties.com
John F. Krotzer is a property manager on Team Yukon, and is a Fairfax County Master Gardener volunteer.