What kind of landscaping embodies the love and stewardship that are expressions of a spiritual way of life? Native and edible. Native, because it honors creation and is the foundation of the food web, feeding the pollinators, birds and other creatures that deliver essential ecosystem services for people and planetary health. Edible, because it makes food for people. Native and edible landscapes are steps toward heaven on Earth, providing sustenance for people and wildlife while acknowledging the awesome complexity of life and how everything is connected.

What kind of landscaping adorns most homes and places of worship? Ornamental non-native landscaping that feeds neither people nor wildlife, landscaping that is typically water and chemical intensive, depleting fresh water supplies to little purpose, contaminating soil and water with petro-chemical fertilizers and pesticides, and contributing to oceanic dead zones. Ornamental non-native landscaping is short-sighted and, however unintentionally, models the ignorance and hubris that are killing life on our planet.

It is time to recognize the wrongdoing at the heart of ornamental non-native landscaping and to make amends. It is time for people to extend the love and respect they show for one another to the land that surrounds their homes and places of worship.

Landscaping native is integral to caring for creation. Native plants require no soil amendments, fertilizers or pesticides and, once established, use a minimal amount of supplemental water. Furthermore, native plants are habitat. Without native plants, 9 out of 10 species of leaf-eating insects die. Butterflies, for example, because caterpillars are leaf-eaters. Caterpillars are the main food of baby birds, and birds provide ecosystem services such as watershed protection, reforestation and natural pest control, which are essential for us.

It is our sacred duty to protect and support creation, not destroy it through the vanity of the superficial, misguided aesthetics of ornamental non-native landscaping.

Since 1970, bird populations in the United States have dropped 60-90% primarily due to loss of habitat. The precipitous decrease in birds is emblematic of the decline in species across the Earth. The extinction rate is now 1,000 times faster than the normal background extinction rate.

Every home and place of worship should be an ark to help save creation, an ark of native plants through which people may re-establish native habitat throughout their communities. With much of the land in the United States devoted to urban and suburban uses, imagine the support of biodiversity that could occur. Imagine the pollinators, birds and other creatures that would find refuge and benefit our edible gardens. When orchards and fruit and vegetable gardens have native plants nearby, yield increases due to the many different kinds of pollinators supported by the native plants.

Native and edible landscaping is a way to care for one’s community and the miracle of life. It is a way to counter the food desert that large parts of our urban and suburban areas have become, both for people and wildlife. It is a way to model the mindfulness, respect and right action needed to help heal our beautiful struggling biosphere. It is a way to practice the deeply spiritual understanding that all of life is connected. It’s also a way to rebel against the conceit that we can kill life on Earth while preserving our own souls.

Society has gained consciousness in so many other areas, making strides against the evils of racism, poverty and the lack of educational opportunity, but that consciousness has still, for the most part, not extended to how we landscape. We have a duty as a society to strive to create utopia on Earth, and many of our religious institutions have been at the forefront of support for civil rights and economic justice. That utopian ideal must extend to care of the Earth itself. There is no better place to start than where we live, worship and pray.

A few years ago in Pasadena, California, Throop Unitarian Universalist Church converted its lawn to a primarily native and edible garden, modeling food production for people and wildlife and support of biodiversity and ecosystem health. We should all emulate this beautiful, affirming act of reverence for life.

Sign at Throop Church: “Are you hungry?”

The views expressed are solely those of the author and not necessarily of the Theodore Payne Foundation.

Visitors accustomed to wandering around spacious estates at the Barrington Country Garden Antique Faire might hesitate this year when they pull up in front of a classic foursquare house not far from downtown Barrington.

But the garden that John Staab, a landscape architect with The Brickman Group, has created behind the home and a neighboring bungalow are worth the trip.

If you go

What: 14th Annual Barrington Country Garden Antique Faire

When: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Friday, June 13, and Saturday, June 14

Where: Buses leave from 800 Hart Road, Barrington

Tickets: $45 through Sunday, June 8, $55 later and at the door. Serious shoppers can buy tickets to enter as early as 8:30 a.m. on Friday, June 13, for $80.

Etc.: Two estates and an in-town garden are open for touring. Visitors can purchase antiques and other treasures and lunch and attend home and garden workshops and musical performances.

Information and purchase: (847) 381-7367 or URL destination=”http://www.handsofhopeonline.org/”handsofhopeonline.org

Benefits: Hands of Hope, which gives impoverished communities around the world sustainable tools to improve their lives and those of their children.

And ticket holders yearning for the wide open spaces, gracious landscaping and peacefulness that only five acres or more can bring will still be able to tour two Barrington Hills estates as part of the faire, Friday and Saturday, June 13-14. In addition, all the fun shopping is still part of the event, including treasures volunteers have collected all year and sell at bargain prices.

In the village, highlights of the formal garden behind the foursquare house include a hot tub and an elegant stone staircase. But when the family that owns it purchased the house next door to use as a guest cottage, Staab and the homeowners decided to join the two areas and make the most of the second space available for active sports — including an ice rink in winter.

“We want to show that in-town landscaping can be dramatic and strong as well as practical,” Staab said.

Savvy garden visitors will notice the circle theme in the garden. It starts with the new entrance between the two houses — a circular path under the arched pergola that is much better than before when the choice was to enter through the house or the garage. Immediately ahead the fountain crafted from a Victorian urn and the aquatic plants it waters also sit on a circle of pavers.

But the elegant stone steps from the rear of the foursquare down to the yard — Staab’s answer to the yard’s previous slope — really highlight the “round” theme.

This area, which includes a circular terrace or landing with a large planter partway down, is almost like an amphitheater and makes great seating for the youth group from the family’s church, said the homeowner.

“The circle is a strong shape that helps link the home with the landscape,” he said.

This part of the garden enjoys a hot tub where bathers can even watch movies on the screen that pulls down from the rear of the garage.

A stone wall beside the steps holds alpine plants — various sedums, lambs ear, catmint and cotoneaster shrubs.

Off to the side, three sections of concrete sewer pipe stained to resemble aged copper sit vertically to form a raised vegetable garden.

“It’s raised for interest and to keep critters out and it’s easier to reach in and garden or harvest without stepping on and compacting the soils,” Staab said.

The family of Disney World fans also points out that the large circle and two smaller ones make a “hidden Mickey Mouse.”

Behind the vegetables, espaliered pear trees stretch along the fence. The fire pit and surrounding sitting area are on the opposite side at the bottom of the steps.

Some day wisteria, hydrangea and clematis will flower from the four pergolas in the garden.

Full disclosure: It’s no secret that the winter was brutal, and at press time the gardens were still under construction. Staab and the homeowner had not made final selections for some items, such as the floral display in the main planter. But the landscape architect promised all would be ready and beautiful for the faire.

Here’s a secret Staab was delighted to discover: The older magnolia in the new part of the yard blooms yellow in the spring, a rare treat for people accustomed to pink and white blossoms. And at the rear of that yard are two impressive oaks, including one that is a naturally occurring hybrid of two varieties.

Bad news: Due to the devastation of emerald ash borer, Brickman had to remove about 15 ash trees from the two yards, including one that was a great specimen in the original garden.

Also on the tour are two Barrington Hills estates. The first is where the faire always headquarters with shops, gardens, entertainment and workshops. Regular visitors know that every year there’s something new here.

The prairie-style home on the second estate was designed by E. Fay Jones, a student of Frank Lloyd Wright. Jones is most famous for Thorncrown Chapel in Eureka Springs, Ark. Check out the massive stone chimneys for the four hearths!

The landscaping uses the same stones as the house, and the hilly terrain probably accounts for many of the charming walls throughout the site.

This gives the free-form swimming pool, hot tub and outdoor kitchen — set lower than the house — a tall stone wall complete with splashing waterfall that creates a remarkable sense of privacy and relaxation.

Up above the pool, a patio runs the whole side of the house.

The wooded gardens around the house present all kinds of perennials, shrubs and ground covers. These include roses, peonies, daisies, daffodils, astilbes, hostas, hydrangeas, pachysandras, bleeding hearts, Lenten roses and hakone grasses.

Extra features include the winding lane through the woods approaching the home, and behind the house a tall grass prairie planted with wildflowers and a small orchard.

The privacy, setting and perennial gardens attracted the homeowners to the property, and they would like to credit Abbott Tree Care Professionals of Wayne for helping to keep it up.

What better way to make a grand splash along U.S. 278 than to encourage developments to compete for the entrance with the highest visual impact from the road?

And who better to judge than the members of the Island Beautification Association, experienced gardeners all?

The association is an offshoot of the Island Beautification Committee that was formed in 1972 to beautify the then two-lane highway. Its mission is to improve the overall aesthetics of the island’s public areas.

The association’s eight members meet once a month under the chairmanship of Steve Tennant, who has been a member since 1985. Also on the committee are Doris Lindner, Helene Gruber, Tom Kurtz, Suzy Baldwin, Carol Totti, George Westerfield and me. Our meetings begin with reports from Alice Derain, contracts and service administrator, and representatives from Hilton Head Landscape, Southern Palmetto, Valley Crest and Ocean Woods.

After their reports, we hit the roads to clean up litter spilled from trash trucks. We are responsible for the newly planted medians, as well as the pruning of well-established shrubs and trees.

Two weeks ago, we piled into a large van and rated the community’s entrance plantings for our annual contest. We used a point system; points were awarded for design, plant material used, texture and harmony. Do you think for one moment that you can easily get eight men and women to agree that, say, purple and yellow look great together?

Palmetto Hall may be off the beaten track, but it’s a plantation entrance. They always have something interesting going on. Carol said the planting reminded her of an English garden, but Tom thought it didn’t jump out at us. Steve thought the marigolds, petunias and geraniums were good mixers.

Helene thought Hilton Head Plantation to be very colorful, and Suzy gave the hydrangeas high marks. There was lots to see at Indigo Run — too much for the eye to take in, according to Steve — and Helene thought the design lacked unity. Doris thought it was impressive from the road, but overall it was deemed very neat.

At Windmill Harbour, the visual impact was deemed low. Suzy thought there was good color harmony, but commented that too much red always dies. At Long Cove Club, Steve commented on how well it was maintained. They had plants in sun colors, but not enough variety, Tom thought. Mostly, everyone liked the plant choices. It was the first time many of us had seen white sunpatiens.

Sea Pines is judged by its first garden in a series of gardens. The red and white geraniums looked great in the spring, but there wasn’t much variety, and Carol thought there was no rhythm. George pointed out that they should trim the flax lily.

Shipyard Plantation featured red and purple flowers, pentas and coleus. Tom said there was not enough variety. Palmetto Dunes Resort also had red and purple, with the added texture of evergreens. It came off looking good, I thought. But there is also yellow hibiscus and pentas, and Carol thought the colors didn’t blend.

On our first look at Port Royal Plantation, we all noted there was a lot to see. George said even with one eye closed, this garden would be tremendous. The orange hibiscus is a standout, and we all liked the way the designer had layered the plants.

On our way to lunch, where we would count up the points and choose the winner, we passed Shelter Cove Harbor and its garden entrance. We all agreed it had huge impact. Too bad it wasn’t a contestant.

The spaghetti at Carpaccio’s was delicious, and ultimately we deemed Port Royal Plantation the winner.

Congratulations go to the the plantation show garden designers; they are winners all. Thanks to their expertise in making a show — their talent in using new and old plant varieties in unusual ways to show them off — getting stalled in traffic is easier on us all.

Sixty-year master gardener and environmentalist Betsy Jukofsky has spent three decades on Hilton Head Island learning the peculiarities of Coastal Lowcountry gardening.

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