Finding Joy in Nature and in Native Plants

Why finding the joy in nature is the key to developing interest in native plants.

A local gardener is calling for more joy in our Highlands landscapes.

Simon Payn, who owns Haliburton-based ecological landscaping company Grounded, says it’s time to ramp up the pleasure we get from our gardens and shorelines.

“For so long, the landscapes around our homes and cottages have felt like a chore,” he says. “They are something to be managed, whether it’s to keep the grass mowed or weeds off the driveway.

“It sometimes feels like a battle against an enemy with unlimited energy. It’s a war of attrition against nature.”

Payn says we’re fortunate in the Highlands – we have some leeway to let nature do its thing. But if you travel to the GTA, there are many pressures to keep lawns and gardens constrained.

“Many gardens in places like Toronto or Mississauga are beautiful, but it’s a certain kind of beauty,” he says. “It’s a formal, boxed-in beauty which serves to keep neighbours happy but it some way feels like a compromise.”

He says he’s talked with homeowners who want to let loose with their landscapes but feel that would harm house prices or they’d get in trouble with the rest of the street.

“I think that’s sad. I also think it creates a conflict in our heads because we know that lawns and non-native plants are not great for the environment but we don’t feel able to change the existing paradigm.”

A recipe for wonder

The Grounded owner says the answer lies in finding joy in landscapes and in celebrating nature and the wonders it brings us.

“What if we can allow ourselves to become a little less adult?” he says. “Can we knock our grown-upness out of ourselves for a second when we see a butterfly on a flower or notice the wind in the long grass?
“Can we be brave enough to discover the child in us that loved nature for what it is?”

Payn says he has a recipe for this: stop and look. He says that if we take the time away from our day-to-day life and just stare at nature, we remember what it’s like to be overwhelmed by the wonder of it all.
That moment is when the spark of joy ignites.

“We hear a lot about climate change and biodiversity loss, and how we’re all to blame and that we must do something about it,” he says. “We don’t hear so much about the sheer wonder that comes when we help and appreciate nature It’s that wonder that creates action because we want more of it.”

Payn’s company works with homeowners and cottagers to bring joy back to their gardens and shorelines by using native plants in a natural-looking way.

“When you use the plants that nature needs and you use them in a way that nature needs, nature responds,” he says.

“One native plant leads to one bee, which leads to us noticing the bee and wanting more bees.
“That leads us to wanting more native plants.”

A patchwork of joy

The Haliburton landscaper is a fan of the Homegrown National Park, which was started by native plant expert Doug Tallamy and now has thousands of homeowners in the U.S. and Canada who have joined up.

“Each of these landscapes helps bring nature back – and they all add up,” says Payn. “Think of these little pieces of wonder that form a patchwork of joy!”

He says Haliburton County deserves its own patchwork.

“We’re lucky here in that we have a lot of nature. But when you replace traditional landscapes with more nature, it brings it much closer to you and allows you to appreciate it more.” he says.

“And perhaps when people return to the GTA or visit friends to the south, they’ll spread the joy and make Ontario a more wonderful place to be.”

This advertorial first appeared in the August 15, 2024 edition of The Highlander.