From grass to habitat garden... our front yard 2005-2011

Our rural 1/3 acre of land in Northern California has been our home and office as well as a continual experiment in ecological land care and permaculture for over 6 years.  Our decision to relocate to the 'city' this month has us pondering just how much we've improved this particular piece of land in the short amount of time we've been here...  so I decided to take a journey back in time. 

Rope swing 2011

Unbeknown to us in 2005 we moved into a chemical dependent neighborhood; neighbors who rely on pest control companies, Round Up and weed/feed for regular property maintenance.  Within our own property we found enamel paint had been washed out on the back lawn and evidence of recent herbicide and pesticide spraying around our new house (pest company sticker in the garage with the date of application).  Gardening ecologically for a long time we have learned a lot about how to make the transition from a chemical dependent landscape to an organic and biologically based one and how to do it with little time and effort.