Do some grassroots healing of Gaia this Earth Day!

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed, citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." Margaret Mead

The first Earth Day, April 22, 1970, was a peaceful environmental demonstration intended to raise ecological awareness. This year more than 1 billion people form 192 countries will celebrate by calling on all inhabitants to ‘Invest in Our Planet.’

Building environmental democracy is essential to saving Mother Earth and this year’s Earth Day theme calls on governments, business, and citizens to work together to impactfully address climate change through the ‘green revolution.’

Businesses, inventors, investors, and financial markets must engage green innovation and practices in order to create an equitable, sustainable global economic system.

Individuals are called on to push for sustainable solutions across the board as voters and consumers. Climate change mitigation, restoration, and adoption will only happen through the collective efforts of people around the world.

It’s just that for me, ‘investing in our planet’ conjures up too many negative images generally tied to colonialism, corporate fascism, and environmental racism all of which lead to:

§  Concentration of access to essential resources like water and food in the hands of the 1 per cent

§  indentured servitude of workers in jobs that aren’t part of the caring/green economy, don’t pay a living wage, don’t have paid sick days, and are precarious in order to keep workers from organizing and unionizing

§  genocide of people, plants, animals, and Gaia

And, I’m old enough to remember when the first ‘green revolution’ in Africa failed because adaptive heritage seeds were replaced with Western hybrids that needed expensive irrigation systems. that left individuals, communities and entire countries indebted to foreign banks and corporations and still with a food crisis on their hands.

But, hey, the World Bank, Dow, Monsanto and their corporate buddies made a killing!

Seems the second generation ‘green revolution’ known as the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa launched by the Bill and Melinda Gates and Rockerfeller foundations was equally disastrous.

And, all I have to do is look at the massive amounts of money that continues being invested by governments and banks in that monolithic dinosaur the fossil fuel industry instead of into renewable energy sources to realize nothing has changed.

Ontario has its own ecological nightmare to deal with — it’s called Doug Ford and the Conservative Party — who are single-handedly destroying vast swaths of farmland, Greenbelt, and Escarpment while planning to mine northern Ontario’s Ring of Fire..

But I don’t want to be all gloom and doom on the one day we all come together to celebrate this planet we call home. So, I’m going to send out into the ether suggestions for anyone wanting to take one small step and encourage them to make sure they vote for representatives at every level of government who are going to really care for the earth and its inhabitants.

We really can’t start our collective healing journey without some metrics or measure of our individual ecological footprint.

Now, let’s make our lifestyles more sustainable.

Live in the burbs? Then, rethink that front yard. If you’re not using a push mower or raking leaves by hand — even better, just leave those leaves to compost — then you’re using electricity or fossil fuels to manicure an outdated mono-crop that represents everything elitist, colonizing and biodiversity destroying.

Think of the noise pollution from gas mowers and leaf blowers. It’s harmful to anyone close by and why do you think it’s ok to blow the cuttings and leaves onto the road or down the sewer?

The air pollution caused by leaf blowers includes fine particulate matter — including dog poop — and is detrimental to everyone’s health. Mulch leaves or at least bag them and let your municipality compost them to close the circle.

Conventional grass fertilizers are usually derived from petroleum. A 40-pound bag of artificial fertilizer contains the equivalent of 2.5 gallons of gas. Do you really want that seeping into our groundwater? Do you really want your kids or your dog playing on that?

Synthetic fertilizers sterilize soils by killing off helpful organisms. That creates a toxic cycle where the lack of microorganisms creates a hunger for more chemical fertilizer and your lawn becomes an addict.

The runoff from carbon and nitrogen-based fertilizers feeds algae bloom in local waterways. When large numbers of bloom die-off they deprive plants and fish of dissolved oxygen creating dead zones.

Water is essential for all life. Vast areas around the world have been experiencing unprecedented droughts in recent years. Keep that in mind next time you water your grass.

Lawns need only 2.5 cm. (1 inch) of water a week – and that includes rain. Most people over water and I know I see my neighbours sprinkler systems faithfully watering the lawn while it’s raining.

Hey! Is any of this sounding earth-friendly or sustainable to you because it sure isn’t to me!

That’s why 20 years ago I got out a shovel, and a couple of kids, and dug up my front – and eventually, back – yard. And, here’s what I’ve learned.

The ground is going to need a little help and a little time to recover from the mistreatment it endured. So, work an inch or two of organic materials into the soils.

With that beautiful canvas of soil, the sky is the limit but encourage genetic diversity by planting heritage and native species that would normally have thrived in your area.

Remember, planting exotics or non-native species is a form of colonization and can have bad outcomes if the plant is invasive or toxic to pollinators, other plants or animals.

A good cross-section of perennials will create a strong foundation for your garden and once established, these plants will thrive on rainwater alone. Fill in spaces with vegetables and annuals. Yes, plant vegetables in the front yard — kale is as beautiful as those ornamental cabbages, squash vines are innocuous, and garlic has wonderful curly leaves and unique flower pods that add some panache.

This coming winter check out, and join, Seeds of Diversity Canada where you’ll have access to over 3,000 unique varieties of vegetables, fruits, grains, herbs, and ornamental plants.

You can also save seed from your own plants and from foods you buy at the local farmer’s market like cantaloupe, squash, peppers, and pumpkins.

Companion planting is going to become second nature to you. Certain flowers and vegetables like to cuddle up close in gardens. Let it happen because that eliminates the need for pesticides. Instead, let these plants keep away unwanted insects and limit the growth of certain plants while improving the health and happiness of their buddies.

Mulch will help retain soil moisture between rain showers, but make sure you use natural mulch and not rubber mulch. Bark chips or edible ground covers like thyme, creeping rosemary, oregano and chamomile will do the exact same thing and look much prettier doing it.

If you’ve already turned your lawn into a thriving, pollinator friendly space then how about hosting a Seed Bomb party!

Have each guest bring their favourite salad, main dish or dessert made from locally grown and sourced ingredients. It doesn’t have to be fancy or look pretty it just has to taste good.

As the host, you’re responsible for supplying lots of local tap water for toasting Gaia’s health. We don’t want to offend the guest of honour by serving bottled water and encouraging its commodification!

But your main task is supplying the ingredients for Gaia’s birthday gift — lots and lots of seed bombs made with a variety of native plant seeds.

Seed bombs are neat little packages made of soil, clay and seeds. They can be as small as a marble or as large as a golf ball. Soil and clay protect the seeds and keep them from being blown away or eaten by birds and small animals. 

When it rains, or snow melts, the soil and clay soften and seeds are released from the bomb. When the temperature is right and enough water is available then the seeds germinate and begin to grow.

Don’t worry if some seeds, mainly perennials, remain dormant until one winter has passed. Cold stratification encourages seed germination the following spring. Eventually, the seed bomb will completely dissolve and germinate but it may take weeks, months or even a couple of years. 

Create bombs that include plants that like to bed down together. Tomatoes like to cuddle up with marigolds, bee balm, nasturtiums and parsley.  Sunflowers create a natural trellis for beans while squash fills in around the base – the Three Sisters. Kale, clover, nasturtiums, and melons like to hang out together.

Create your own pollinator bombs using bee balm, milkweed, black-eyed Susan, and Echinacea (purple cone flower) — all of which are hardy perennials. Add some alyssum, a self-seeding annual that will create a fragrant ground cover for years to come. 

Use your bombs as a means of peaceful protest. Include only open pollinated, native species and non-genetically modified seeds. Think of the beauty you can create with just a few native flowers, herbs and vegetables that rely on rain showers as their only source of water.

Seed bombs are ideal for throwing into hard-to-reach areas of gardens and yards. They can also be placed in window boxes and planters. They make wonderful gifts for would-be gardeners who need a hand replacing front lawns with self-sufficient perennials and self-seeding annuals.

Guerilla gardeners take seed bombing one step further launching bombs, as well as planting seedlings and plants, in areas throughout their city that need a little pretty or offer passersby a little free food.

Make Gaia just a little happier, healthier and more beautiful on her special day, drop some bombs that are going to improve lives.

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed, citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." Margaret Mead

Happy Earth Day!