Changing Economics

This morning I was up early to photograph one of my favorite's client's garden on the North Shore of Chicago. We have been working together on the landscape since 2000, so I have had the opportunity to watch the neighborhood "evolve." This "evolution" seems to be a microcosm of what is happening across the U.S. During those seven years, in one block, houses have been torn down and rebuilt larger on the two adjacent lots, two directly across the street and another down the street. Most are spec houses and one is vacant as it is owned by the developer who does not live there. As is the fashion in many high-end Chicago suburbs, the styles of both house and garden, harken back to an imagined colonial past. Old Abe may be turning over in his grave.

After he saw my client's garden, one of the developers called while he was in the process of constructing the house next door. Despite his awareness with LEED housing issues, http://www.usgbc.org/DisplayPage.aspx?CategoryID=19 and his expression of wanting to implement environmentally conscious practices in the yard, he decided not to use our services. Now that the house is on the market, the house has been landscaped with much of the usual non-eco-friendly material, including vast amounts of turf grass and pear trees planted very tightly in a row a few feet from the southern property line. Why are these a problem? Well, one issue with turf grass is that it uses about twice as much water as trees & perennials. Also, especially when people plant turf grass in adverse conditions (shade & tree root competition), people tend to over-fertilize (into the ground water) and over-apply herbicides to offset weeds. As for the pear trees, I could not go on the property to see what cultivar they are. However, many problems exist with Bradford pears and I suspect there may be problems in the future. http://www.ppdl.purdue.edu/ppdl/expert/Bradford_Pear_Damaged.html Plant & economic diversity can be a more environmentally friendly path.