You can help the Bay and improve water quality by using Bay-Friendly Techniques with your own home landscape. These techniques reduce the biggest pollutants in the Bay, sediment and nutrients, (nitrogen and phosphorous), by restoring natural filters.

Here’s how:

1. reduce or eliminate your lawn
2. create filters or habitats to slow runoff and keep sediment and nutrients out of waterways. Filters include:
• forests or woodlands
• wetlands (marsh, swamp, bog)
• meadows or no-mow areas
3. use “soft” shoreline techniques to prevent or reduce erosion and allow wildlife access

Along with using Bay-Friendly Landscape techniques, you can also:

• Increase native plant diversity
• Benefit wildlife by providing food, cover and nesting areas
• Reduce stormwater runoff in city or suburban gardens (including rain barrels and rain gardens)
• Involve and educate your community by using Bay-Friendly Landscaping on community property

>Native plant sales in Maryland