What Is Beautiful?
What is beautiful? I think about this a lot, and, for sure, any understanding of this concept can be very subjective. Prior to getting into the field of ecology, I had a certain understanding of what was beautiful, and it came largely from the world of literature, music, museums and art- all expressions of human beauty. Although this notion of beauty will always be a part of my understanding, the beauty of ecology is now fully ingrained in my mind, and nature certainly operates under a different set of laws. Like many things, it is perfectly ok to live, live well with multiple notions of a thing. Ecology is the study of competing and complimentary forces that live in balance with each other. Nature love nuance.
I love art. Witnessing the creativity and skill that goes into creative pursuits is astonishing. Walk through the DIA, stand in front of any work of art that touches your soul, or pop in a song that resonates deep down, and astonishment will spring forth along with joy, sadness and all the rest. These pieces are static, not in interpretation, but in composition; the problem therein is when the beauty of human created art becomes the standard for the natural world.
Nature is dynamic and very much in opposition to that sense of permanence even when there are elements of nature that can be seen as permanent from a human sense of time- take an old growth forest that contains ancient trees whose historical footprint is vastly older than any human created artifact. Even these permanent features change. Branches break or die. Storms topple them as do pathogens and pests. It becomes problematic when we apply permanence to our landscapes. Art works in many respects because it is controlled, it is planned, but it is not alive. Landscapes are alive which means they change, they evolve and they are wholly interactive. The introduction of static, unchanging permanence requires control and power. Instead of experiencing the beauty of nature, we fight for control, we push more and more to dominate the space and shape it to our liking. This understanding is why spring and fall clean-ups have become so common place. We “clean up” nature because of a misplaced notion of what is beautiful. If you must tidy up, restrict it to the pathways and the driveways. Garden clean ups are detrimental to the ecology of a landscape.
The beauty of nature is in the full experience of nature; all senses are involved and, importantly, humans are not the center of the story. There are no centers. Although we may see a hawk over-head or just hear it, the raptor does not check with us before acting. We can observe and are a part for sure, but we do not control the narrative as Picaso controls the canvass. Just as bison clear and fertilize the land which in turn brings forth new life, we do the same when we clear invasive growth and plant native gardens. We do not direct where an eagle nests, if Juncos eat the seeds of last summer’s growth or if boisterous Red Squirrels hoard all the Black Walnut, but we certainly can aid in the process and give rise to that potential. The beauty is not just the blooms of the flowers we love, it is in the good, the bur, the swamp and the not so flashy. It is in the tall and invincible plants that refuse to stay put. It is in the plants so drab as to elicit little attention from us while being a thing of joy to the creatures whose very existence depend on their presence. All elements in an eco-system build the life of a place and the beauty is in experiencing it.
Urbanized locations are clear representations of controlled spaces and work only because they are highly controlled-the same can be said for industrial agriculture. We have completely altered our landscapes, so they conform to our lifestyles. The wild spaces have been pushed to the fringes and seem to exist more out of neglect than purpose. It seems highly unlikely that these urban spaces will ever intentionally be returned to their natural state, so the next best thing is figuring out how to allow this human paradigm to exist alongside ecological beauty.
Human formed spaces incorporate so many things not found in nature: roads, bridges houses, skyscrapers, barns, garages, sidewalks, utility poles…They are human centered and conform to a human sense of beauty and structure. Sensibly, native plantings should never impinge pedestrian and vehicle sight lines, block public access or walkways, or risk homes and infrastructure. Within these parameters, it can be quite difficult to incorporate wild spaces; indeed, making it more difficult still, quite a bit of attention is paid to incorporating human elements-pathways, benches, birdbaths, decorative borders, lawn art- within these native wild landscapes. Commonly understood as “cue to care”. Done correctly they do improve the spaces, but there are certainly many cases where these added elements transform a space meant as a gift to nature into yet another space that caters more to human identity and whim. Adding these elements is unabashedly a way of showing to others that you are not coloring too far outside the lines, that you might be a bit rebellious, but not really in open rebellion. Maybe adding these elements is rather a bit of trickery like flattering the despot in order that he over-looks your contrarian creations. Regardless, ingenuity will be a quality in high demand in order to incorporate wild beauty into an urban setting.
People become very fearful of planting species that will spread and are hard to contain, as it runs afoul of the suburban value of tidiness. Everything must be curated, and a failure to do so results in scorn and possibly a label of laziness. There is unbelievable pressure to conform, and many proponents of native plants will do their utmost to create landscapes that substitute non-natives for native but keep the objective of tidiness. In some situations that is the only and best option as mentioned above, but it is certainly not a rule for all. Such tidy landscapes, do greatly limit what can be planted which in turn effects the bio-diversity of a landscape. Even when folks do plant the more cheeky species, there is a tendency to try and tame them which in effect creates not a garden but a maintenance “problem“.
Sometimes you get lucky and have the opportunity to design a space that is truly wild. There is no need for paths, artwork, cleanly cut edges or other human contrivances. These past 4 years I have been gifted with such a project, more a restoration than a planting. When I first saw the space that back-up to a vernal pond it was over-run with Garlic Mustard, Buckthorn, Canada Thistle and Burdock, so the primary objective was invasive control and removal. In such a state, the habitat offered little ecological value and supported only a minimal amount of wildlife. As the invasive species were cleared out native species began to emerge and expand, especially those thought to be too “aggressive” for suburban landscapes. Species such as Pokeweed and Witch Grass (Panicum) grew in abundance as did Box Elder. I also found woodland natives such as Jack-in-the pulpit, Trout Lily and Soloman’s Seal. Once the invasive species were controlled, a ton of native species were planted with the number one criterion being high sociability or a strong propensity to spread. With high herbivore pressures, many selected species were rabbit, deer and groundhog resistant, but, with the existence already of resistant species, some more vulnerable one were tucked in or hidden among these plants as a form of protection. I anticipate this being a vibrant habitat.
The joy of a purely ecological space is that we are giving up control after the initial planting is complete. Of course there will be maintenance requirements (invasive species control, replanting where needed), but the general goal is to minimize that. For the most part, allowing for the natural evolution of the landscape is the objective. The beauty is in seeing what happens over time: What species are inventoried at the start and what changes/increases as the landscape matures? What new plants emerge over time? What new sounds do you hear as more wildlife visit the habitat or make it their home? It can be magic when you see a new species of song bird, observe bats flying around at dusk, catch a glimpse of a snake, a fox, or a Hummingbird Moth. You will come to recognize the seasonality of wildlife activities and when certain species are present or not. It can be hard to recognize the beauty in creatures such as mosquitoes and flies, but their beauty is understanding the role they play in a functioning eco-system; without those pesky insects, the ones we cherish such as Dragonflies will be absent as well. The simple act of conserving a space for other creatures reconceptualizes the understanding of beauty. You still get those traditional elements of beauty that are easily recognizable like the flower blooms and the red leaves of fall, but you also get the vibrancy of a living, functioning eco-system.
It is not easy to navigate the challenges the modern world erects, and there is no perfect solution to creating wild spaces in increasingly urbanized locations. We are losing so much of our wild landscapes as a result of human development- even in rural areas our farming practices are devastating to the natural world, to our world. We tend to get hung up on doing it right, on not bucking the trend, and our socials only amplify our sense of failure when others disagree with what we have done. This can cause paralyses when we need movement. Outside the scope of this essay, but a lack time and resources are also huge obstacles. Once you unfold everything you need in order to wrap your head around what is required, start digging. There is a reason plants produce so many seeds. A meadow grows despite the failure of most seeds and seedlings. Nature has built failure into the design, and we need to recognize that it is ok to fail. There is certainly beauty in knowledge, and learning does not happen without failure.