Verdant View – September 2024

Who Owns Nature?

I’ve recently started taking long walks, partly to help my body maintain its health but mostly to maintain my mental equilibrium. I find that if not watched, my days can be spent sitting in front of the computer or my mind will obsess on what I need to do, how to resolve challenges, etc. It’s at this point I need a break and am heeding my own warning by walking.

On one of these long walks, I was strolling on Camino Real in Lower La Floresta and came upon a public front garden that I’ve admired for a while. I noticed that one of the Pentas planted there was of a color I had never seen before. I stopped and was taking a close-up photograph of the plant when a white car pulled up to the curb, the driver demanding to know why I was taking a picture of her plant. Before I could respond she angrily said, “It is a Penta!” She then quickly pulled into her garage, leaving me on the sidewalk confused. The obvious message being this is ‘my’ plant.

I continued along my way feeling disturbed by the interaction. I reflected on the moment and tried to forget the incident by focusing on nature around me. Eventually my feelings of being upset dissipated. And then I asked, “Who Owns Nature?”

So, what is nature? Does some entity or corporation own nature? Are humans part of nature? If so, are we protectors or destroyers of nature?

What most of us understand to be nature are the plants, the city park, trees. But is the green meadow nature? Are lakes nature? Is the forest? So, who do the birds, opossums, bobos, and geckos belong to? They have no owners. They belong to themselves. They are a part of nature. Are the “green” surfaces that are used and planted agriculturally nature? More and more the wild animals share their habitats with us. Who determines how we live with them?

As the human population swells to more than eight and a half billion, Earth’s natural ecosystems continue to decline. Wildlife numbers have plunged by an average of 69 percent in just 50 years, while habitats from forests to wetlands to coral reefs are steadily disappearing. If we hope to slow or reverse this decline, we need to rethink our relationship with nature and deepen our understanding of our biosphere.

At the heart of this struggle is the concept of personhood of nature, or the rights of natural entities such as rivers, mountains, or forests to have a status as a legal person. As we are all interconnected to the planet, the well-being of other species is also the well-being of human beings. The opposite is no less true: the destruction of other species is a serious threat to the life and well-being of human beings. But if nature is so precious, why isn’t it protected? If the environment is essential to the well-being of human beings, why is it subjugated and destroyed?

Modern systems have lost the relationship of respect, reciprocity, and sacredness with and of nature. Indigenous views offer a radical alternative to the western legal system with great and positive impacts on the planet. Indigenous peoples do not see nature as a source of services or economic value, but as a living entity in relation to them, capable of being legally represented. According to this view, our purpose as humans in the environment is to develop a spiritual and deep relationship of respect and reciprocity not based on profit, but in exchange and caring. Many Indigenous nations believe that humans are part of nature, that the two are equal and interdependent. 

And when it comes to safeguarding nature, scientific research reveals that biodiversity is often sustained not just through cutting-edge conservation or the simple absence of humans, but rather by the Indigenous communities that have lived in harmony with these ecosystems for hundreds, sometimes thousands of years.

What these communities share is a deeply nuanced understanding of their natural environment and the ways in which impacts like climate change are affecting it. At the same time, they are often living on the frontlines of the struggle to protect the planet’s biodiversity, whether they live in tropical latitudes, or in the frozen north.

Land can be owned, managed or occupied in a traditional way. The word “traditional” refers to a knowledge that stems from centuries-old observation and interaction with nature. This knowledge is often embedded in a cosmology that reveres the oneness of life, considers nature as sacred and acknowledges humanity as a part of it. And it encompasses practical ways to ensure the balance of the environment in which beings live, so it may continue to provide services such as water, fertile soil, food, shelter and medicines.

Above  all, do not lose your desire to walk.

Every day, I walk myself into a  state of well-being

and walk away from every illness.

I have walked myself into my best thoughts,

and I know of no thought so burdensome

that one cannot walk away from it. 

But by sitting still, and the more one sits still,

the closer one comes to feeling ill.

Thus, if one just keeps on walking,

everything will be all right.

– Soren Kierkegaard

What to plant in September

The rains are tapering off. Look for Moluccella or bells of Ireland. It may be hard to find, so consider starting the plants from seed. Also, at the viveros: Ageratum (in pink, blue, and white), Kalanchoe, Chrysanthemums, the familiar annuals: Zinnias, marigolds, Cosmos, and sunflowers and all of the plants that do well all year round.

Now is the time to put members of the cabbage family into your veggie garden and also lettuce, peas, and spinach. Since our rains are at their end, you may have to begin a regular watering schedule towards the end of the month. Water deeply once or twice a week to promote deep root growth. Let the soil around established plants dry out between watering. Keep pruning, deadheading, and fertilizing, especially if you use a liquid fertilizer.

September’s mildness makes gardening tasks pleasant. The soil and air are warm but not overly hot. Fresh summer produce is still delicious, but production is slowing down. Garden tasks usually center around cleaning up the old garden and getting the new one started.

Seeds and transplants of cool-weather-hardy crops can be planted now for harvests from fall through early spring. Soil amendments can now be collected and placed into the ground to break down over the winter, enriching the soil for next year’s gardens.

Hose off plant foliage, both top and underneath leaf surfaces, to lessen insect populations. This is especially helpful to get rid of aphids, caterpillars, mealy bugs, spider mites, and whiteflies on beans, collards, kale, tomatoes, and roses.  Be sure to do this early enough in the day (preferably early morning) so that the foliage can dry completely by sunset.

Divide and replant crowded perennials such as Agapanthus, coral bells (Heuchera), Shasta daisies, Daylilies, Phloxes, and yarrow. Stake tall-growing mums before they get too top-heavy and fall over, unless you prefer a cascading or curly-stemmed display. Feed mums until the buds show color and begin to open.