Well, we made the decision to buy in an older development with lots of
mature trees, etc.  Here at our property below South Mountain we have
transformed what was once a horse pasture into a beautiful meadow
which attracts a great diversity of insects, provides nesting cover
for a wide variety of birds, and doesn't need to be mowed ( at least
not every year...there are some maintenance issues with maintaining
meadows), which makes me happy.

Most of the land in this part of Maryland was once treeless, right up
and over the ridge summits, with farming being the main land use for
over 150 years.  I humbly put forth the notion that we have improved
on the "agricultural sprawl" in our neighborhood.  Most folks here
have extensive gardens with lots of native plants, also.

Frank

On Thu, Oct 14, 2010 at 5:55 PM, Andy Wilson <> wrote:
> ...has been an interesting discussion! Maryland has only slightly over one acre
> of land per resident. If you add on other development and road infrastructure
> that comes with development, it soon becomes apparent that if we all had large
> yards there would be no forest, wetland or grassland left. No room for most
> wildlife, but I suppose a few species would do well, cardinals and robins etc.
>
> I made a conscious decision to buy a house on a small (0.15 acre) lot. Surely
> sprawling development is a much bigger threat to bird life than birds striking
> windows? In that regard, there is a lot to be said for high density living.
>
> just another 2 cents.
>
> Andy Wilson,
> Frederick
>



-- 
"The most powerful weapon in the hands of the oppressor is the mind of
the oppressed" - Stephen Biko