Re: “Letter to the editor: A backyard once full of birds is strangely silent this year” (July 10):

It is not just the songbirds that are suddenly missing from our garden symphony.

For nine years after I moved to Maine, I very much enjoyed the constant buzzing song of the bees in my garden, as well as the beauty of the winged gems that are butterflies.

Though we have increased the area of wildflowers in our gardens, last year and this we’ve heard very few bees and seen almost no butterflies.

It infuriates me to see the tags in my neighbors’ yards warning dog walkers to keep their pets away from the treated lawns. If it’s bad for dogs, how much more toxic must those lawn treatments be for smaller creatures such as insects and birds that feed on them?

Along with this poisonous war to support the utterly unnatural landscape of close-cropped lawns and the noise and air pollution that go with constantly mowing, it has become common to closely groom every square inch of land, leaving no natural accumulation of duff or humus, which is where fireflies and many moths and butterflies nest.

By our obsession with the perfectly groomed landscape, we are destroying the creatures that make it most lovely. It’s long past time to outlaw lawn care chemicals and neocorticoids and begin to respectfully nurture the grounds under our stewardship.

Jane Lauder King

Kennebunk

Copy the Story Link