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Event Participation

We are always looking for pioneering residents who have made small to large ecological improvements in their yards. If you would you like to inspire others with your ideas and resourcefulness, the Backyard Abundance Campaign strives to make it easy to share your yard with the community.

What qualifies as an "abundant yard"?
Any yard that has been consciously designed to provide habitat for both you and wildlife is an abundant yard. Classic examples include the installation of a backyard pond, a native prairie garden, a butterfly garden, or bird-attracting shrubs and trees.

A yard that reduces the amount of energy used for care and maintenance is also a model abundant yard. Creating and using compost as fertilizer, collecting and using rain water for irrigation, and replacing high-maintenance turfgrass with other alternatives are all good examples.

Look at past events and view the ideas for your yard to see what others have done. If you have made the effort to help the environment through your yard, then your yard is likely a good candidate for an event.

Can yards that use chemical fertilizers and herbicides host an event?
Yes, yards that use chemicals can host an event.

There is no doubt that chemicals have contributed to the unhealthy state of our water and wildlife habitat. As a society, however, we have been indoctrinated to believe that vast expanses of turfgrass represent a healthy and thriving community. We are now beginning to recognize that these conventional urban landscapes have many environmental downsides. Even though this cultural phenomenon began only 150 years ago, a change in perception of what is beautiful and healthy will take a long time to emerge, both in ourselves and in our society. The Backyard Abundance Campaign strives to hasten this shift in perception by hosting yard tours which show alternative landscapes that help us redefine our perception of beauty.

While our "big lawn" perception persists we must appease our neighbors and ourselves by keeping our turfgrass somewhat green and free of weeds. The judicious use of chemicals --while experimenting with alternatives--can help in this transition.

What are the next steps?
If you are interested in hosting a yard tour, contact us and we will arrange a time to stop by and chat with you about how you want your event to proceed. A date and time will be set that is convenient for you. With your direction, we will take pictures of the environmentally-friendly features in your yard for the web site and pamphlets. For each picture we will describe your motivation for implementing the feature and explain how it helps the environment.

What is the day of the tour like?
Our goal is to make the event as easy for you as possible. Below is a description of how things went at past events. All or just a few of these procedures can be replicated for your event—just let us know how you would like your event to be tailored.

• The campaign provides cups and napkins along with cold lemonade and water in large coolers.
• You provide whatever snacks you like; e.g., cookies, veggies, crackers, etc. At past events New Pioneer Food Co-Op has provided gift cards for event hosts to help with the cost of refreshments.
• We arrive a half hour before the start of the event to help set up.
• We provide a name badge for you so folks with questions can easily find you.
• A Backyard Abundance yard sign is placed in the front yard to help folks find your house.
• A table with a sign-in sheet and information related to the event is set up in the front yard.
• We greet folks, give them a quick description of the event, and point them to your yard.
• Master Gardeners and/or other knowledgeable individuals may be available to help answer questions.