The aim of conservation gardening is to create beautiful, healthy human environments with landscape design and management that promotes and protects clean air, water and soil; diverse communities of native plants; and robust populations of wildlife.

Conservation gardening seeks to:

Reduce the area of mow-able lawn.  Smaller, eco-smart lawns are easier to maintain and require little, if any, irrigation and chemical treatments.  Reduced mowing time results in less air pollution from gas-powered lawn equipment.

Use sustainable plantings that are well-adapted to local conditions.  Preference should be given to plants that are native to the region.  Healthy wildlife populations depend on native plants for survival.  Properly located native plants require few inputs of water, fertilizer or pesticides.   Non-invasive exotic plants that are well-adapted to the region may also be appropriate for the conservation garden.

Provide food and cover for wildlife.  This can be achieved by grouping sustainable plants in patterns that mimic natural habitats including meadows, thickets, woodlands and wetlands.  Provide as many layers of vegetation as possible to increase opportunities for feeding and nesting.

Keep rainwater on site.  Incorporate berming, mulching and rain gardens to encourage stormwater run-off to soak into the ground where pollutants can be filtered and absorbed before washing into nearby lakes and streams.

Recycle organic materials on site.  Promote healthy soil by recycling all yard wastes.  Leaves, grass clippings and small limbs can be shredded and used as a source of mulch or they can be composted to be used as a valuable soil amendment in vegetable gardens and planting beds.  Larger limbs can be used to construct a wildlife brushpile in a back corner of the yard.