Climate Friendly Yard Makeover
The Climate-Friendly Yard Makeover (CFYM) is a demonstration project of Missouri Organic Recycling, LLC (MOR). Its purpose is to demonstrate many of the ways homeowners and citizens can enjoy the benefits of transforming a standard American yard into one that…
Pulls carbon from the air and sequesters in the soil.
Is beneficial to birds and insects
Holds more water and needs less watering
Uses fewer or no artificial inputs like fertilizer, or biocides
Costs less to maintain with lower environmental footprint
These objectives can be accomplished through techniques such as…
Installing swales and berms
Creating native plantings, prairie patches and pollinator gardens
Amending, aerating, and using bio-stimulants on existing or new grass plantings
Installing mulch around trees, under existing shrubs or plants.
Planting a food forest
Building a vegetable garden
A combination of any of the above.
View the progress that CFYM has made on the three properties HERE
Helpful Resources – A Regional Collection
Kansas City has a homegrown world-class native plant organization, Deep roots with great resources including ongoing webinars with national leaders.
Deep Roots KC
Finding Plants
Native Plant Sales
deeproots.org/plantsale
Native Plant Vendors
deeproots.org/find-plants
Seasonal Color & Maintenance Expectations
Native Plants at Noon Webinars cover plants, maintenance, and wildlife by season.
deeproots.org/native-plants-at-noon
Managing Your Plantings
Managing Your Plantings
deeproots.org/plant-a-garden/#managing-planting
Large-Scale Landscapes
Large Landscape Webinars
deeproots.org/large-landscapes
Climate-friendly Design, Nursery, Installation Services
City Roots Nursery
3037 Woodland
Kansas City, MO 64110
cityrootsnursery@gmail.com
573-619-1920
Down to Earth Services
16010 E. 85th St.
Kansas City, MO 64139
admin@dtekc.com
816-207-7960
Native Lands LLC
Courtney Masterson
for.the.prairie@gmail.com
913-207-8034
Happy Earth Day!
To all the Entrants to the Climate Friendly Yard Makeover!
As you know CFYM is a new-to-the-world idea. As Missouri Organic planned out the events for the year (plus the ensuing years) and realized the size of the commitment we will make to each winner, we decided to move to two winners instead of three. We want you to know that we received 70 outstanding and inspiring entries. Your desire and passion both to improve your yard and to help with the climate crisis were inspiring to read. We had a tough job to get down to just two winners.
Today Missouri Organic Recycling is announcing the Climate Friendly Yard Makeover Winners: Krystle and her family from South Kansas City, and Jennifer and Joel from the Northland!
Krystle and her family
But Wait! If your name is not on this list. You’re still a winner. First, you are a leader on the cutting edge of this aspect of Climate Change Remediation.
Second, a surprise bonus project is built into the Climate Friendly Yard Makeover. Missouri Organic has joined Linda Chubbuck and Stan Slaughter, who recently acquired two vacant lots in Lee’s Summit, Missouri, for the purpose of building a large demonstration of the CFYM ideas. Work has already started. The design and progress on this project will be shared with you. Plus you can actually come and tour this project in progress.
Third,
You will be invited to Zoom sessions with the finalists and the Lee’s Summit project to watch as the design process and build unfolds.
Obviously, we want each of you to succeed in getting your project started. Watching the process unfold should be helpful. There will also be volunteer opportunities for you to come and learn by doing. Stay tuned for more as the design and installation process unfolds. We know that this will be a multi-year project, and we look forward to working with the community to further the concept of Climate Friendly Yar
Thank you all so much
Jennifer and Joel
Rationale
Modern yards and lawns are a huge negative change from the rich and diverse landscapes they replaced. We don’t have to replace all the lawns, but we can make a big change “in the aggregate” by devoting lots of small areas to the suggestions above. Experts say that 40% of all weather is based on local patterns. What if our region could reverse the “heat island” effect with mini-forests and prairie plantings? Climate change is such a giant issue that people can feel overwhelmed and disempowered.
CFYM empowers citizens to “do something” about climate change at home. By publicizing the need for these changes, showing how they are accomplished and introducing practitioners and resources, Missouri Organic aims to make a climate-friendly yard makeover a familiar and accessible option for homeowners and turf managers region-wide.
Publicizing the Process
Sharing the results of our work broadly is a major goal of the CFYM. Our goal is to make these climate interventions familiar and in demand by homeowners regionally and nationally. To this end, MOR will create videos of this process on several (3-4) properties during 2022. The videos will include (but not be limited to) initial interviews, planning process, installation day and Year-End Wrap UP segments. The resulting videos will be posted on MOR’s YouTube page and shared with all interested parties. If your yard is selected for a Makeover, we will ask that you allow our film crew to film the process of planning, installation, and at least one progress report.
Sharing the Costs
The Plants: Homeowner responsibility
Homeowners are required to participate by purchasing the recommended plants. Acquiring the plants through donations or informal sharing is a real possibility. Demand for these native plants is very high in prime planting season and might change the schedule of installation. MOR believes that homeowner buy-in is an important part of the project. MOR will help by providing information and plant resources to the homeowner.
Providing Mulch and Compost:
Missouri Organic Recycling
MOR will donate and, in the case of larger volumes, provide the blown-in placement of materials.
Project Design:
Regions Top Consultants
MOR has recruited several experienced native plant consultants to create the designs and supervise the installation. By working with the homeowner and setting up an installation plan, these consultants help insure a successful project.
MOR’s existing service, Sudden Gardens, can provide help on the vegetable gardening aspect of the project as well as our Raised Bed Garden Mix that has a great record of performance in residential gardens.
MOR and our associates can offer several methods of increasing the vitality and climate-friendly behavior of lawns using organic materials and methods.
Project Installation:
A Team Approach
MOR and our consultants will help find volunteer labor to install your new planting, if necessary, but we encourage you to invite your friends and neighbors to help as well. Build your own community of “pollinators.”