Is your land-maintenance program laced with synthetic chemicals that scientists say travel a foot a day on average through our sandy soil? Is it time to quit cold turkey and get your land off drugs?
Most synthetic fertilizers and pesticides are not fully absorbed after they are applied. They can be found thousands of feet away from the application site. People should have the right not to be exposed to pesticides from other people’s properties. Will Cape Cod homeowners and town governments cherish our natural environments here by volunteering not to use fertilizers and pesticides this year?
On Oct. 16, 2023, the citizens of Orleans approved a pesticide reduction home rule petition, asking the state legislature to let the town make its own decisions about the use of pesticides and other toxic chemicals — a right the state took away in 2014. The petition passed with 68 percent voting in favor.
At my request, both Eastham and Wellfleet have put articles with the same language on their warrants for citizens to vote on at this spring’s town meetings. The Harwich warrant has a similar article placed by citizens’ petition. I have given presentations to boards in Dennis and Brewster, asking them to allow voters a chance to weigh in on pesticide reduction. Both towns have decided to wait until fall. I hope this movement will become countywide.
You can do less and get more by not buying into conventional land-care programs, instead allowing your property to harbor worms again. They produce the “black gold” that feeds vegetation. If you have worms, you have a sustainable cycle of life. If you apply pesticides or synthetic fertilizers, you don’t have worms. Worms cost less and do more.
Feed your lawns and gardens an inch of leaf compost in the spring and fall. Nature grows leaves that decompose, becoming food for plants and grasses. We can go back to what worked before
synthetic products were introduced. Have you heard of “no-mow May”? Letting grass grow in May allows root systems to reach farther for water and nutrients. It is predicted to be a hot dry summer; let your grass grow by mowing once a month. Mowing, blowing, and weed-whacking weekly create sterile properties where no fireflies live, where butterflies may visit but not survive.
And if a home rule petition on pesticides is on your town warrant, vote for it. Our ponds, oysters, and bees will thank you.
Laura Kelley lives in North Eastham.
