EcoSavvy Gardening

The "right plant, right place" concept, popularized by gardener Beth Chatto, emphasizes choosing plants that are well-suited to the specific growing conditions of a location, leading to healthier, low-maintenance landscapes. The "right plant, right place" concept, popularized by gardener Beth Chatto, emphasizes choosing plants that are well-suited to the specific growing conditions of a location, leading to healthier, low-maintenance landscapes.

Right Plant Right Place

Flora of Virginia definesnative plants as a species that was growing in Virginia at the time of European contact. Nonnatives are those that have been introduced, on purpose or inadvertently, since then and have become naturalized here; they manage to reproduce and persist in the wild without the help of humans.

Stormwater is water that originates during precipitation events and snow/ice melt. Stormwater can soak into the soil (infiltrate), be held on the surface and evaporate, or run off into surface water bodies. Storm events are measured by their duration, depth, and intensity.

Duration (hours): Length of time over which rainfall (storm event) occurs.

Depth (inches): Total amount of rainfall occurring during the storm duration.

Intensity (inches per hour): Depth divided by the duration.

To obtain a soil test kit in the Alexandria, VA area, you can visit Green Spring Gardens on a Saturday when the Help Desk is open, visit Fairfax County libraries or the VCE Office at the Pennino Building.

Virginia Tech Soil Testing Lab Info

Traditional lawns can be attractive in the landscape but are often not environmentally friendly. They typically require regular watering, feeding, cutting and treatment for weeds. Watering should be done in the early morning so there is less evaporation. Applying fertilizers and weed treatment should be done strictly according to the instructions on the product packaging. turf grass should be allowed to grow at least three inches tall in the summer. This practice can reduce the number of cuttings required and help to keep moister in the soil reducing the amount of watering required.

Integrated pest management (IPM) is an ecosystem-based strategy that focuses on long-term prevention of pests or their damage through a combination of appropriate control tactics. These tactics can be preventative, curative, or both and are often combined to provide the best possible results.