Holistic approach to landscaping

FALLS VILLAGE — Beth Romaker described how to use sound ecological practices and a certain amount of common sense when landscaping your property at the David M. Hunt Library Saturday, March 29.

Romaker works for Matt’s Landscaping in Falls Village and studied forest ecology at the University of Vermont.

Using a project she is currently working on in Hudson, New York, as a template, she outlined how to go about landscaping with a “holistic perspective.”

She discouraged tearing discrete elements, such as a garden, separately from the property and ecosystem as a whole.

The Hudson property has been in use since the mid-18th century, It includes a manmade pond, dug in the 1970s or 1980s, which is completely choked with algae.

The property as a whole is very wet. It has secondary growth first, some serious inclines, and a lot of lawn.

“It’s a lawn and it’s a mess.”

Romaker said the approach starts with extensive site analysis, including the “disturbance history.”

This will tell the landscape team about soil quality, which in turn leads to choices for plants.

Native plants are generally preferred, although Romaker is willing to use plants that are native to adjacent areas such as warmer parts of New York or Pennsylvania, in recognition of climate change.

Site analysis also includes water and how it moves within the system. Questions such as where does the run-off go, or how much erosion is present need to be answered before remedies can be designed and deployed.

Romaker discussed invasive plants and their treatment. She said some invasives can be removed by hand effectively. Others require herbicides, which she said can be used responsibly.

What property owners should avoid is leaving areas cleared without a plan to replace the vegetation.

“Nature abhors a vacuum,” she said. “Something will replace it.”