DeCastra's garden awarded

Welcome, everyone. Recently, on Nov. 13, I had the huge enjoyment of attending the 81st Annual Meeting of the Medina County Soil and Water Conservation District dinner and awards held at Buffalo Creek Retreat.

Let’s give an enthusiastic congratulations to Thomas DeCastra of Brunswick Hills. He is the recipient of the Conservation Community Member 2025 award. This award is for community members and volunteers for the work they do to improve the communities we live in.

DeCastra and his wife, Sabrina, live on a quarter-acre lot in Brunswick Hills. Also, a special shoutout and congrats are called for because DeCastra, in last month’s general election (Nov. 4), won as newly elected Brunswick Hills Township trustee.

It seems DeCastra hates to cut his grass, so he decided to go — native. Plants, that is. That’s addition by subtraction — less grass to cut means more plants, flowers and pollinators to enjoy. How liberating!

How did he get started? Being familiar with the Medina County SWCD by buying at their annual seedling sales and following them on their Facebook page, DeCastra reached out to their office, and Conservation Educator Kellie Docherty provided her very capable guidance and assistance in planning and planting their new native plant and pollinator gardens.

The definition of native plants is: natural evolution; no human introduction; ecological role; and geographic specificity.

Docherty suggested lower-growing and easy-maintenance plants such as false sunflowers, bee balm, blazing star liatris, coneflowers, black-eyed Susans (DeCastra’s favorites), and flowering shrubs including witch hazel and the holly shrub winterberry.

Over 100 plants are planted in various areas around the DeCastra home and yard. For example, planting black-eyed Susans in the front yard and tree lawn gives Thomas and Sabrina a chance to share with neighbors their pollinator-friendly landscape designs. Also included are “pocket gardens” around their home, the vegetable garden and the ever-necessary compost pile.

The exciting part of this project is that all the native plants were grown and purchased locally — county nurseries, Medina County SWCD seedling sales and Friends of the Parks native plant sales. Another exciting feature is the “less is more” approach: the money saved not buying plants annually, less harm to the environment, less use of harmful chemicals or unnecessary fertilizers, all while being rewarded with the gorgeous blooms of the native plants. They also attract and feed monarch butterflies, hummingbirds, honeybees and bats. (Realizing that bats are nighttime pollinators, DeCastra put up a bat house.)

As I ask DeCastra about his future garden or landscape plans, he tells me unequivocally that he will continue to expand given his passion for pollinators and passion for less grass cutting. He also has a passion for a smaller carbon footprint, installing solar panels. In closing, DeCastra strongly encourages planting a native flowering ecosystem, with absolutely no regrets whatsoever about their new hobby and landscape choices, while firmly declaring, “Native is the way to go.”

Sharpen those pencils

Our resident home gnome, Gene Gnome, reminds me to tell our friends that our next get-together will be our year-end Column Quiz column. Sharpen those No. 2 pencils.

A plaque on the wall in the office of local Feeding Medina County says: “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” — Gandhi.

Until next time, Garden Nation — peace.