10 Tips for Sustainable Gardening

1. Go Organic: Fewer chemicals, better ecology, cost-effective. Build nutrient-rich soil with compost. Treat pests/diseases organically.
2. Mulch Your Landscape: Suppresses weeds, conserves moisture (critical in restricted areas). 2–3 inches of shredded bark, cocoa hulls, pine needles, grass clippings, or coir.
3. Plant Natives: Adapted to your climate, rainfall, soil—less work, less water. Support native insects and birds.
4. Lose Your Lawn (or part): Lawns demand water and fertilizer. Replace with ornamental grasses, low shrubs, or groundcovers.
5. Water Less: Xeriscaping with drought-tolerant plants. Install rain barrels on downspouts.
6. Grow Your Own Food: Satisfying, easy, delicious. Plant intensively by season: spring greens, summer tomatoes/peppers, fall cool crops—three seasons from one bed.
7. Plant Perennials: Long-lived, better yearly. Buy small, divide every few years for more plants.
8. Save Seeds: Collect dried seed heads (marigold, sunflower, morning glory) for next spring.
9. Compost: Turn green waste into nutrient-rich amendment.
10. Mow with Electric/Manual Mower: Gas mower for 1 hour = 45 miles car pollution (EPA). Reduce carbon footprint.

Learn companion planting for better yields.