3 Benefits of sustainable gardening

Creating a sustainable garden is an incredibly powerful way to reduce your impact on the environment. Here are 3 benefits of sustainable gardening:

1. A sustainable garden preserves the biological variety of native plants and wildlife. 

In a sustainable garden you retain some wild spots such as wildflower meadows, old logs, and leaf mounds. This way you attract wildlife to your garden. A garden rich in wildlife increases the amount of different species in your area. It can even help your gardening efforts and yields. 

Growing sustainably means growing natives. Native Scottish plants are well-adjusted to the local climate, common pests and diseases, and properties of the soils found here.

Native Scottish flowers attract a wide range of pollinators and beneficiary insects. Planting local heritage vegetables helps to preserve their genetic diversity. There is some debate as to what constitutes a native plant. However, when considering plants for your garden always ensure you can answer the following questions with yes: 

• Is this plant used by a wide range of beneficial species? (Look out for the RHS Plants For Pollinators label.)  

• Is this plant considered non-invasive?

• Is this plant unlikely to attract a host of new pests or diseases your other plants are unaccustomed to?

2. A sustainable garden captures atmospheric carbon.

If we burn plant-based waste, we release the carbon back into the atmosphere causing air pollution. In the sustainable garden, we turn it into compost or mulch. In this way, we capture atmospheric carbon and lock it in the form of stable humus, securing it in the ground.

3. Sustainable gardening has future generations in mind.

We provide the next generations with practical examples, skills, and spaces to grow their own healthy food.