Leaves are a valuable resource that are let go to waste every fall. When blown into piles on the street they create a safety hazard for drivers, and wash into storm drains and clog storm sewers. They also release nutrients that eventually wash into and pollute our rivers. Ewing is taking a leadership role in ensuring that we are compliant with NJ State storm water rules. As per Ewing Ordinance 21-08, leaves and other yard debris must be either bagged in biodegradable paper bags or containered for pickup by the Township.
KICK THE HABIT Leave the leaves. Blow them to the back of your beds to decompose or leave them alone in the wooded areas of your proper¬ ty. Compost them in a pile or container for use as mulch next year. Option 2 Shred your leaves with a mulching mower and leave them in place on your lawn or use as mulch in your borders and flowerbeds.
From the EGT’s Sustainable Landscaping Series, “The Ecological Benefits of the Not So Perfect Yard”
The Ewing Green Team advocates for using more sustainable methods of landscape care to create what we call “The Not So Perfect Yard.” That may sound somewhat messy, and you wonder if also perhaps irritating to the neighbors. It might suggest an untended look consisting of tall weeds and overgrown lawns, as well as unsightly piles of yard waste. NOT SO. That is not the “Not So Perfect Yard” for which we advocate. However, it is also not the large, open, treeless expanses of lawn and imported, exotic plants that are prevalent across the country.
A “Not So Perfect Yard ” has its own unique beauty that comes fromplanting native plants and incorporating features that imbue each yard with a sense of place suited to its specific site and region of the country. It also attracts some of the native local fauna which have otherwise been displaced. Supply food and habitat for the insects at the bottom of the food web and you can enjoy birds and other wildlife returning to your own yard.
Your Not So Perfect Yard will offer much needed benefits to the local environment: helping you decrease your carbon footprint, save energy and money, reduce waste and labor, promote biodiversity, all while beautifying your landscape and affording you a much closer interaction with nature. And you can achieve these benefits by kicking the habit: dropping some of these common gardening habits that we have come to learn are not our best choices. These include poor tree care, improper autumn cleanup and leaf management, the great American lawn, practices detrimental to soil health, and more. Look for detailed overviews of these common gardening mistakes in the coming posts.
First Common Gardening Bad Habit
Poor Tree Care
Trees are one of the greatest gifts that we can give to future generations. Our native trees are the most valuable of keystone species for our native wildlife. They cool the earth, provide shade, absorb thousands of gallons of storm water and CO2, and beautify, and add value to the landscape. Unfortunately, improper tree care is rampant in our neighborhoods, e.g., mulch volcanoes, improper staking, tree topping and other poor pruning decisions, and not planting beneath the tree to the drip line…
KICK THE HABIT Plant a tree and learn to care for it properly. Forgo the mulch volcano and mulch carefully out to the drip line, not piling it up around the trunk. Use leaf litter for natural mulch, one that decomposes over time and builds the soil. Plant in layers under your tree from the understory tree layer, to shrubs, herbaceous perennials and finally, ground covers. This “green mulch” of living plants mimics the way trees live in nature. Hire tree PROFESSIONALS, certified arborists, to prune your tree properly.
Rutgers Master Gardeners of Mercer County’s annual Spring Plant Expo and Garden Market, one of the most celebrated events of the year, will be Saturday, May 6 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Mercer Educational Gardens, 431A Federal City Road, Hopewell Township, on the grounds of Mercer County Stables. The event is held rain or shine! Parking is on site and free.
There will be home-grown perennials, trees, and shrubs from the gardens of Rutgers Master Gardeners and a garden market with select vendors. This year’s vendors are Steven Kristoph Nursery, Millstone Township; Shannon’s Nursery, Doylestown, Pa.; Byrne Farm Market, Wrightstown; and Chickadee Creek Farm, Pennington. Additionally, the Master Gardeners are excited to announce the addition of a new vendor, Moon Shot Farm of East Windsor.
Registration for 2023 garden plots at the Ewing Community Gardens on Whitehead Road Ext. Begins Today, March 1st
Mayor Bert Steinmann invites you to get involved in Community Gardening in Ewing and to be a part of the “grow local” movement. The 2023 Registration for Garden Plots at the Ewing Community Gardens on Whitehead Road Extension Will Begin in March.
Location: Office of the Clerk, 2 Jake Garzio Drive, Ewing, NJ 08628 (upper level)
Cost: Plots are $5.00 each and you can purchase up to two plots.
REGISTRATION DATES
March 1, 2023, Registration will Open for PREVIOUS YEAR PLOT HOLDERSONLY
March 15, 2023, Registration will open for NEW APPLICANTS. Owners of plots in 2022 will have an opportunity to reserve their same plots from the prior year.
If there are still plots available on April 15th, 2023, you may purchase additional plot(s). Please call the clerk’s office at (609) 538-7608 to find out if more plots are available.
REQUIREMENTS
You must be present to buy your plot(s).
Ewing Township residents only (proof of residency is required) No Exceptions!!!
The official opening of the gardens is weather determined and announced later in the season.
Ewing Community Gardens Guidelines Please read our community gardens requirements, fill out the last page and rerturn to the Clerk when you come in to register.
EWING COMMUNITY GARDENS ASSOCIATION
The Ewing Community Gardens Association was formed in 2012 in response to the need for organizing the gardeners who participate in gardening at the site. These gardens were revitalized during the 2013 season. Amenities included site wide deer fencing, water, a porta-john during the growing season, and more. For more information and to get involved in the Ewing Community Gardens Association go to the Ewing Community Gardens Association website at http://ewingcommunitygardens.wordpress.org.
Calling all our Ewing Friends and Neighbors: Let’s work together to show the West Branch of the Shabakunk Creek some much needed TLC on Saturday, April 15th 1 -11 am. Pre-registration required.
Mayor Bert Steinman, the Ewing Green Team, and The Watershed Institute have partnered to offer a Ewing Township stream cleanup for an early celebration of Earth Day 2023. Volunteer with friends and neighbors to help remove trash, litter, and debris from the West Branch of the Shabakunk Creek. Over the past decade, 7,900 enthusiastic volunteers have removed more than 141,000 pounds of trash from local area communities. These cleanup events are a great way to get outside, work together to keep our waterways clean, and improve wildlife habitat.
This Ewing event will concentrate cleanup efforts at the West Branch of the Shabakunk Creek at the Home Depot location, 1621 North Olden Ave., Ewing.
Pre-registration is required!
This is a rain or shine event. Long pants, gloves, and closed-toed shoesare highly recommended. Please don’t forget to bring the gloves and your reusable water bottle!This is an in-person program. Masks are optional. A parent or legal guardian is required to attend with all children. To attend this event, you must agree to the terms of the waiver included during registration.
Thank You Giveaways!
Trees NOT Tees! This year The Watershed will be offering cleanup volunteers a complimentary tree sapling to say thank you for helping keep our waterways clean! We will not be offering stream cleanup t-shirts as we typically do to reduce our environmental impact and conserve limited natural resources. One cotton t-shirt takes 650 gallons of water to produce while a single oak tree can host 532 species of caterpillars, 147 species of birds, 120 species of mammals, and 60 species of reptiles and amphibians. In addition, one mature white oak can absorb over 2000 gallons stormwater per year which can reduce stormwater runoff pollution, flooding, and recharge groundwater.
Sponsors
The following generous sponsors make these cleanups possible. Bloomberg, Colgate-Palmolive, Eli Lilly & Company, American Rivers, and New Jersey Clean Communities have provided funding, volunteers, and supplies.
Event Summary
Event: Stream Cleanupat the West Branch of the Shabakunk Creek. Date: Saturday, April 15th Time: 9 – 11 am Location: Home Depot Parking Lot, 1621 North Olden Ave., Ewing. Cost: a couple of hours of your time Pre-registration required: Click Here
Sustainable Ewing Green Team 