Area-wide Sustainable Backyard Tour Returns June 22nd. Join us for a homesteading, landscaping, outdoor living experience like no other. Public Meeting February 9.
by Terry Winkelmann
The 4th annual Sustainable Backyard Tour, held each year in June, is becoming a much-anticipated event heralding the outdoor season in St. Louis. That’s because the Tour is a unique opportunity to see firsthand how homeowners in St. Louis City and County are transforming their yards from energy intensive, unsustainable lawns to heavenly havens of green!
Tour sites showcase a range of green living practices, including low-impact lawn care, composting and using recycled materials creatively, organic gardening, chicken and beekeeping, gardening with native plants, mushrooms, fruit & nut trees, as well as rainwater conservation, pesticide and herbicide reduction, renewable energy production and backyard habitat creation. “This self-guided tour opens the gates to private yards and gardens so that attendees can ask and learn, pick up new ideas, and share inspiration,” says Terry Winkelmann, tour founder. “It’s about converting unproductive, high-maintenance lawn and pavement into something more useful and restorative—both to the earth itself and the human spirit.” Tour goers design their own routes, choosing the listings nearest their own home or their own interests, from the map. Map booklets will be available at local businesses beginning mid June.
To learn more, visit www.sustainablebackyardtour.com or join us on Facebook.
Photos, B-roll and speakers are available upon request.
We’re excited to invite you to our first public meeting to launch this year’s tour!
Sunday February 9th from 3 to 5 p.m. at Kirkwood Community Center, Board Room (Rm 202B) 111 Geyer Rd, Kirkwood MO 63122.
Please RSVP to me (Terry@SustainableBackyardTour.com) so we know how many to expect (and can move to a larger room if necessary!)
Since 2010, this free, grassroots tour has reached thousands of people, spreading the idea of sustainable backyards across 570 square miles, touching 16 neighborhoods in St. Louis City and 17 municipalities in St. Louis County.
Attendance ranges from 50 to 250 visitors per yard. We estimate that more than 1500 people have gone on the tour each year based on past registrations and website traffic.
We hope you’ll join us, on the tour or at the meeting, and have a wonderful 2014!
WHAT: The Fourth Annual Sustainable Backyard Tour
WHEN: Sunday, June 22 from 11 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
WHERE: Private yards and gardens throughout St. Louis City and County.
COST: Free
PARTNERS: Slow Food St. Louis, St. Louis Audubon Society,
Gateway Gardener, The Healthy Planet magazine, St. Louis Beekeepers
INFO: Terry@sustainablebackyardtour.com
www.sustainablebackyardtour.com