Fritz Haeg has been turning American lawns into life-giving, sustainable gardens from coast to coast with his project Edible Estates. We’ve been following these lawn-eating transformations for quite some time, so we are beyond excited to see the book Edible Estates: Attack on the Front Lawn go to print. This read is filled with commentary and projects from some of todays most innovative thinkers including Haeg, Diana Balmori, Rosalind Creasy, and Michael Pollan.
The Edible Estates project relies on the generous and ongoing support of art, gardening, and landscaping organizations, volunteers, and homeowners. The project is not meant to transform each lawn into a garden, but to open us up to the possibilities of self-sustenance, organic growth, and perpetual change.
Haeg’s initiative is a much needed counter activism to some frightening statistics about lawns. His own research points out that North Americans devote 40,000 square miles to lawns, more that we use for wheat, corn, or tobacco. And, also that Americans spend $750 million dollars a year on grass seed alone while only 1-2% of America’s food is locally grown – 6-12% of every dollar’s worth of food consumed at home comes from transportation costs.
You can check out all of the edible estates in-depth at Haeg’s website, including the regional prototype garden #6: Baltimore, Maryland. Commissioned by the Contemporary Museum of Baltimore this Edible Estate was set to be planted April 12-14. And, you can also check out instructions on how to build your very own Edible Estate.
Fritz Haeg is at BKLYN Designs today, reading his essay “Full Frontal Gardening”
+ Fritz Haeg Edible Estates
+ Fritz Haeg at BKLYN Designs
Great – http://www.abundantyards.com