I’m sitting on my deck in December, watching the fading sunlight shine through the now translucent seed heads of the wildflowers and grasses that we allowed to grow all summer. There is a breeze and the grasses sway and sparkle at the same time. It is magical. 

My husband and I hate mowing our yard. 

Hot. Time-consuming. Noisy. Dirty: we found out that running our gas mower for an hour was spewing the same pollutants as eight new cars driving 55 mph for the same amount of time. 

We wondered what would happen if we turned over a portion of our lawn to nature as an oasis for birds and insects. Maybe we could support new life in our small area of influence.

So we gave our yard free reign to be grassy and flowery for the summer.  Little yellow flowers which we used to mow over every week actually stood tall and bloomed, and bees came to them. The grasses grew and we discovered that there are many different types of grasses and they bloom, also. Goldfinches came to our coneflowers to eat seeds, their bright gold mingling with the remaining purple blooms. 

The mower only came out a couple of times to cut a path to the clothes line.

It was quiet. 

It was peaceful.

It was fun to see what life was emerging from our yard.

Our manicured lawns are essentially devoid of healthy bacteria and life, but a properly planted meadow supports abundant life and builds healthier soil each year.  An established meadow can store 70 percent more carbon than our lawns, presenting a small solution to global warming.

Do you have a few square feet or more to give birds and butterflies a place to stop and refuel?

We don’t have to live off the grid to give the earth a chance to heal. 

A small step is rewilding at least a portion of our lawns.