Growers or killers?

[Owdboggy]

The thread about getting rid of ferns made me wonder what we are. Are we growers or killers. I will try and explain what I mean. Today I have weeded a section of the garden, pulling out dozens of Hesperanthus coccinea seedlings, brambles, Euphorbia lathyrus, a creeping potentilla and a lot of other unwanted plants. I have not sown any seeds or taken any cuttings. So Grower =Nil. Killer = Hundreds. Net loss to the ecosystem because these plants were unwanted, considered weeds or were choking things I do want.
So, what are we gardeners?

 

[Brandie]

It's the circlllllleeeee of lifeeeeee! . What you perceive; is your reality. I'd call you sustainable. Especially if you are growing for food.

 

[marlingardener]

Oldboggy, when herds of deer or bison go through an area, almost every plant is eaten down to the ground. Since nature abhors a vacuum, something else will pop up on the vacant ground, or the original plants will reappear. I'm not saying that gardeners are like herds of wild animals, but we do the same thing on a smaller scale. I'd say that gardeners are part of the ecosystem and we contribute and distribute.

 

[Beverly]

I would say we are both growers and killers...even the most organic of us. I would say in the long run, as long as we are doing Mother Nature no harm (or minimal harm) we will do more growing than killing, more contributing than destroying.

 

[zigs]

Aah, but the weeds we pull out get composted to feed the plants we want to grow

 

[Beth_B]

Yeah, both, plus the whole circle of life thing.

I pull weeds out of my perennial and vegetable beds, because I don't want them there. Clover, creeping charlie, various grasses, etc. But that's maybe 2 percent of my property. Everywhere else, I let those same plants go nuts - it's not like they're endangered.

Plus I plant new things every year; some native perennials and some not.

So, both I would think, for most of us gardeners.