Practicing what they teach

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This article was published 04/02/2023 (1351 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

When landscape design professionals meet with their potential clients, they pay close attention to what their clients need and want.

Demand by customers for pollinator-friendly plants that support nature and biodiversity has gone from niche to mainstream. Biodiversity-saving solutions and initiatives, though, go beyond plants that provide wildlife habitat.

A growing number of landscape professionals are adopting ecological practices that are changing the face of landscape design.

“The traditional landscape is going out the window,” says Sean James who will be one of the speakers at Grow23, hosted by Manitoba Nursery Landscape Association, February 8, at Canad Inns Destination Centre Polo Park.

The owner of Sean James Consulting & Design which is based in Milton, Ontario, James is a graduate of Niagara Parks School of Horticulture. His focus is on eco-gardening techniques, and he has built an international reputation for his award-winning designs.

A horticultural instructor at Mohawk College for several years, James recently created an eco-friendly landscape design course, Landscape Design Foundations I.

“The course offers all the basics a landscape designer needs to know,” says James.

“What sets this continuing education course apart from others is its focus on the newest eco-friendly concepts from soil stewardship and water stewardship to biodiversity enhancement, plus ideas such as nutrient recycling and biodiversity support.”

The course is asynchronous which means that registrants are allowed to learn on their own schedule, within a certain timeframe.

Eco-design has always been at the core of projects designed by James but the catalyst for creating the new course, he says, came from his students who are choosing a career in horticulture and landscape trades because they want to change the world in a positive way.

“Both my students and clients are realizing there are many great things they can do to make a difference in the world,” says James. “The landscape industry also recognizes the importance of eco-friendly landscape practices. The passion is remarkable. The last time that I attended MBLNA’s Grow conference in 2020, there was standing room only for presentations on eco-friendly techniques.”

“Any garden can and should be beautiful,” says James, “but it doesn’t have to just be pretty, it can also be functional.”

James designs several landscapes which are installed by a colleague, Mark Van Ginkel, Fern Ridge Eco Landscapes. James believes in doing a little bit of everything.

One technique that makes a big difference for biodiversity, he says, is to create layers in the landscape. Layering trees, understory trees, shrubs, perennials, and groundcovers provides seasonal structure along with a variety of different foods and habitat for a diversity of wildlife especially if you choose plants that produce flowers or berries.

An oak tree, for example, is a biodiversity engine, says James. Oaks support many different insect species including caterpillars which provide food for birds.

Underplanting with a crab-apple tree produces flowers which support bees.

“Flowering shrubs such as Diervilla bush honeysuckle and a mix of perennials that have a long bloom period will do a lot to support a broad range of species,” says James.

It’s important to also include host plants for obligate feeders such as the caterpillars of Monarch butterflies that use only one plant – Asclepias milkweed – for food.

Asclepias is James’ favourite native perennial. Last year he planted Asclepias exaltata (Poke milkweed), a shade-tolerant variety hardy to Zone 3 that has weeping white to pink flowers.

Other native plant favourites include Solidago flexicaulis Zigzag Goldenrod, and Eryngium yuccifolium Rattlesnake Master which is a hardy Zone 3 perennial with stiff-branched stems and distinctive, egg-shaped flowerheads.

The more native plants we choose, the better for diversity. But James, who is also a Master Gardener, does not subscribe to a native plant palette exclusively.

“I like plants too much to just plant native plants,” he says.

“Native species are typically more drought tolerant because they are more adapted to the local conditions. But keep in mind that drought tolerant plants need more water and consistent care during their first year in the landscape than a non-native plant.”

In fall, James does not cut back any garden plants and instead leaves them standing for the winter to increase biodiversity by providing habitat for overwintering creatures. In addition to providing shelter, plant stems act like a miniature snow fence by trapping snow that insulates the crowns of plants.

But how we steward water and most importantly, how we steward soil, says James, are also huge ways that we can make a positive difference.

“Organic matter in the soil breaks down so we need to add organic matter regularly.”

James is a fan of composted mulch which is a blend of compost and shredded bark. It feeds the soil and inhibits weeds.

He is also a proponent of the “let it lay” principle which involves on-site nutrient recycling.

“Anything that falls on my property stays there,” he says.

“I rake leaves, mulch them, and spread them back onto turf areas or into garden beds. That is an easy, great way to make a big difference for carbon sequestration and at the same time, make our gardens better. It helps to hold moisture in the soil as well as feed the soil microbiome which includes beneficial fungi.”

The result is that beneficial nutrients are released for healthier plants.

Converting lawn to meadow, says James, is another great way to sequester carbon and reduce the carbon footprint while lowering maintenance and increasing wildlife habitat.

Replacing Kentucky Bluegrass with native grasses and pollinator-friendly perennials that need much less water is more eco-friendly.

Don’t fight your soil type, though, says James. “Matching plants to your soil type means less work in the long run.”

For a client with a landscape of heavy clay soil, James substituted turf with a sweep of Echinacea purpurea coneflower.

In addition to the techniques mentioned, all of which enhance stewardship of soil and water, James also recommends harvesting rainwater.

The use of rain barrels as well as design solutions such as rain gardens help to minimize the amount of stormwater runoff in a landscape.

Permeable paving surfaces such as flagstone pavers separated by a narrow strip filled with small stones allow excess water to slowly soak into the ground, he says. Many of his designs include permeable pathways that use 3/8-inch chip black granite. The material is clear and washed to make it more permeable.

When James designs ponds, he runs all the downspouts into the pond to create what is known as an evaporation pond.

“This technique harvests the water then evaporates it away which is part of the hydrological cycle.”

James says that a small garden space can make as much of a positive difference per square foot as a larger garden space. (Think container gardening.)

“Gardening is a wonderful thing because if you are not learning then you are doing it wrong. Every day there are new things to learn no matter where you are and no matter how much experience you have.”

On February 4, James will be presenting on fusion gardening and how to create a layered native garden for biodiversity. To learn more, visit mbnla.com.

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