Be an environmental hero without leaving home. Lands Green Waters Clean offers simple, practical solutions for transforming your own yard into a blooming oasis that supports birds and butterflies, protects local streams, and inspires a wave of action across your community. Made possible by the Muddy Branch Alliance, the Seneca Creek Watershed Partners, and YOU.
Imagine your yard as the envy of the neighborhood, or your community space (school, HOA, place of worship) as a model for all who walk or drive by. Imagine a blooming oasis for birds and butterflies right outside your back door. Imagine the rain running off your property is free of chemical pesticides and fertilizers – safer for local streams and for your family.
With Lands Green Waters Clean, you can…
Increase the beauty and appeal of your yard. You can improve the look of your garden while protecting local water quality. Whether your style is tidy rows or bunches of wildflowers, you can find a wide variety of native plants that fit your needs.
Attract birds and butterflies. Native flowers and trees add life to your garden by attracting songbirds and colorful butterflies. Native plants provide food and shelter for other watchable wildlife – plus they feed important pollinators.
Reduce the need for harmful chemicals. Native plants thrive in local conditions, so you won’t need all the harmful chemicals – including fertilizers and pesticides – required to keep grass green. This is healthier for your family, your drinking water, and local wildlife.
Reduce water pollution. Replacing a patch of grass with native flowers, shrubs, and trees slows rain runoff and filters out pollutants (such as fertilizer, car oil, road salt, and dirt) that damage local streams and larger waterways.
Reduce noise and air pollution. Less lawn area means less need for gas-powered mowing, blowing, and edging – all of which contribute to noise and air pollution and use up fuel resources.
Save time and money. Once established, native plants require less care and watering than exotic plants, which means you’ll have more time to enjoy and share your landscape with others. You can spend less time (and money!) watering your garden using a rain barrel with a drip hose attached.
Qualify for cash rebates. The benefits of native plants and rain barrels are so far-reaching that Montgomery County and the City of Gaithersburg developed reward programs to lower your costs.
Inspire others to do their part. When friends, family, and neighbors drop by, they’ll be impressed by the improvements you have made. Your example may even inspire them to do their part for the environment too!
See an example of a native plant garden in progress in this video from the Izaak Walton League, the original creators of Lands Green Waters Clean.
Our “Hometown Habitat” event in spring 2021 explored the benefits of native plant gardens, examples of native plant gardens in and around Gaithersburg, where residents of central Maryland can find genuine natives (and how they can get reimbursed for their purchases), and much more. Watch the video of the wide-ranging panel discussion.
In February 2022 we offered a webinar on how to plan and design a native garden. Lauren Hubbard, a garden designer and certified Chesapeake Bay Landscape Professional, walked us through the design process, offering tips on how to select a location for the garden, create a simple plan, select plant species, and access rebate programs. Watch the webinar.