What’s with the long grass?

Simple answer is we want most of the land to go back to nature.

Why?

• Stop mowing 2+ acres every week in the summer
• Provide a habitat for birds, bees, insects and animals
• Capture CO2 from the environment and store it
• Stop adding fertilizer that mostly runs off into Claytor Lake

What are we loosing?

• A nice looking front yard that no-one ever walks in (<10% of the yard was ever trodden on)

What are we saving?

• Saves at least 23.7 lbs of CO2e, the same amount of CO2+HC+NOx as a car¹ driven 45 miles per week. 474 lbs CO2e or 827 miles per year.  The numbers are so high because mowers do not have catalytic converters or tight emissions controls.
• Saves 2-3hrs per week

What are we creating?

• A safe environment for bugs and small critters to hide in and over-winter.
• Greatly slows down runoff from rains and improves soaking up moisture into the soil

Our Experience

• We are learning… We don’t have the whole plan – it will evolve
• It might take 10-20 years
• We can help nature, not manage it
• Look at the old ‘Veg Plot’ – That area on your right between the garage and the burn-pile – that was a veg plot with zero bushes and trees in 2010.   This is what happens when you leave nature alone for 14 years.

What we are not trying to do

• ….make any comments on how other people manage their properties
• ….telling anyone how to do this (well, this website is more explaining what we are doing..)
•  

Learn more about the process – Back to Nature

1  Assumes Toyota Camary.  Based on CarbonFootPrint Calculator       Emissions = (Pop) x (Power) x (LF) x (A) x (EF).  Source:EPA