Clover: Weed or Flower?

Because of the dry summer we have been having (save the last two days of non-stop rain), our backyard and frontyard lawns have been taking a hit. In fact, parts of our backyard lawn—a small 12X20 ft. section—is now dead. Last week while surveying the damage, I had an idea: why not seed some clover? In addition to producing beautiful spring flowers, clover is an excellent nitrogen fixer, and above all, a top choice for honeybee pollinators. Sounds like a great grass alternative right? Apparently the City of Regina doesn't think so, or at least this is what Morgan was told while trying to buy some the other day.

After all of the stuff that I've heard about declines in worldwide honeybee populations and their importance to our food system, I find it really puzzling that the City would ban such a plant. Morgan said that the reason it was banned was because it's invasive... What is meant by invasive? Oxford says it is "to spread very quickly, undesirably and harmfully." If this is the definition of invasive then I would say that grass is invasive, not clover. When you think about all the water that is wasted and chemicals applied to lawns used throughout our city, should not grass be outlawed?

A couple of years ago someone told me that at the turn of the 20th century, one would be hard pressed to find a lot of grass growing in peoples yards. Reason? People needed that land to grow food. Then, as society "progressed"—another term that will deserve a future blog to unpack—the presence of grass was a sign of status. If you had a grass that meant you didn't need to grow your own food. Now everyone grows grass, even though its status symbol has faded.

Another example of how language can spin meaning are the words weed and flower. Why is it, that certain plants are called weeds and others aren't? If I came from a background that saw dandelions as a beautiful flowers with many uses, would the weed word association even occur to me? Just something to think about.

Anyways, I ended up planting the forbidden clover. I will keep you updated.

The little things....

Even though I feel climate change is a serious concern, I am hesitant to talk about it.  It is still such a touchy subject.  Social media is a great way to spread the word about something and I feel like the environment is an important topic for discussion.  Still, the limitations of facebook and twitter leave a lot of room for misunderstanding, judgment, and a lack of empathy.  That makes me nervous.

Even though I have opinions and I try my best to do better for my kids environmentally speaking, I am certainly no expert.  I still go through drive thru at McDonalds sometimes, and turn on the air conditioning.  I don't do research before every clothing or food purchase and I realize that makes me a hypocrite when I try and speak up about how we can all do better.

I guess I still think the point is to try.  Finger pointing is easy.  I am not trying to criticize anyone for their choices, but I am worried about where we might be headed.  We should at least talk about how to be friendlier to our planet right?

If anyone has any suggestions about things they are doing I'm all ears.  In the meantime, I like sharing my struggles and successes if anyone cares to listen.

In terms of action, it has been a slow start for me.  I do little things like using reusable bags at the grocery store, turning off my car as soon as I'm not driving to avoid idling, and testing myself to see how quickly I can turn off the tap when I'm brushing my teeth or how quickly I can shower.

Grocery shopping is always interesting.... If you can't find something that fits both categories, is it better to buy local or buy organic?

Josh and I have recently gotten involved with the Blue Dot movement through the David Suzuki Foundation.  That feels like a step in the right direction.  Look into it if you have time.  I'm sure the website explains it more clearly that I can.

Starting out

Greetings all...

This entry marks the beginning of Morgan and Josh's (MoJo) eco-journey. The idea came to us because we are such a perfect green couple that wants to change the world... Ah... Not really. The truth is that a couple of nights ago we had a huge fight—I lamented about how our planet is going down the drain and Morgan kept citing examples of hope. This is how most of our fights go: If one person takes one side of an issue the other person will take and defend the other side, even if they disagree. Probably not the best marriage strategy, but this is to be expected when you marry two journalists.

The source of my laments came after listening to an audio book by Al Gore entitled The Future. A great book with lots of credible stats and information, there was one section in which Gore expounds all of the science behind climate change. The one stat that hit me was that since the first recorded temperatures in the late 1800s we have had 9 of the 10 hottest years on records in the world. This isn't that hard to believe after the heat that we have experienced in western Canada this summer, and the horrendous forest fires that have come with it.

Earlier this year we watched a documentary called The Age of Stupid which presents a clear message on the possible devastating effects of climate change if we don't get our act together. As a result of intense and heated discussions about what we can do to create a better future for our children (Clare 20 months and new baby to come in September), we decided to start a blog in which we would share the struggles and challenges that we encounter in both mitigating and adapting to climate change.

We are by no means neo-hippies who have things like fermentation and canning all figured out, but we are definitely wanting to decrease our carbon footprint and hope that you will join us on this journey and share your struggles as well.

 Peace,

 Morgan, Josh, Clare and Baby Campbell