New "Nature"

When we stop and observe what is actually happening on our planet, specifically, what is occurring at the intersection of man and "wilderness", we realize that the future holds new opportunities and unimaginable diversity.

You might be asking, "Aren't humans directly responsible for our planet's destruction and countless extinctions??" Yes, we are, and in no way do I want to sugarcoat the damage we are causing. But the focus of this short essay is to point out that despite our devastating impacts, we are also entering into a new golden age of diversification and evolution. Our presence here is a double edge sword, for we are both destroyer and life-giver!

We all know the negative effects humanity is unleashing on our planet: deforestation, pollution, climate change. One that I'm acutely aware of is the introduction of invasive non-native species. One only has to walk to the nearest urban lot to see an overgrowth of privet, Japanese honeysuckle, and Eleagnus. And this invasion isn't restricted to Georgia, it is happening all across our planet. Some have likened this phenomenon to a "New Pangea", the large supercontinent that existed 100 million years ago. But what we've accelerated through international trade, goes far beyond the interconnectedness of a single supercontinent. In a geologic "blink of an eye", we've flooded the US with hundreds, or perhaps, thousands of exotic species that would have taken millennia to "naturally" reach us. This is an unparalleled time of biological mixing and will, in my opinion, ultimately increase biodiversity. The British Isles offers a great case study. Because of centuries of human introduction, there is exponentially more biodiversity than would have existed otherwise.

And this "mixing" is happening on so many fronts, both in nature and at the hands of humans. Plant breeders are intentionally mixing life in the creation of novel hybrids that would never have occurred in nature. For example, consider the horticultural diversity of the iconic Camellia. Over the last few hundred years, our species is responsible for not only introducing the genus to North America, but we've also created innumerable hybrids with species that never coexisted. Camellias today come in all shapes, colors, and sizes. The diversity of this genus has exploded because of humans. And this is happening to so many of our ornamental plants: Japanese maples, daylilies, roses, peonies, the list goes on and on...

Humans have enhanced the natural beauty of this precious planet. It was amazing before us, yet we have amplified its inherent beauty.

We are also entering the age of "biotechnology". This revolution is perhaps the biggest game-changer in all of human history, for it has the ability to unlock fantastical "arrangements" and innovations in life we could have never imagined. We exist at the precipice of an uncharted world in which we will accelerate our own evolution as well as that of all plants, animals, and microbes. I'm not going to say whether this revolution is either good or bad, for as with anything, it is both. And whether it enhances our lives or not, it is unstoppable and happening right now!

Do you realize that we now resurrecting near-extinct species through the power of genetic engineering? The American chestnut is one such example. We have created blight-resistant chestnuts by inserting a gene from wheat into chestnut. So we are potentially leaving the age of human-induced extinction, and entering a time of resurrection. This is exciting, yet it may unleash all kinds of unintended consequences, think Jurassic Park!

It is almost considered blasphemy to speak about this future in anything but a doom-and-gloom perspective, but I refuse to accept the consensus when I see life exploding in new ways all around me. I see life inhabiting our buildings, living in our homes, using our trash, the list goes on and on. And in all these cases, there are opportunities for life to flourish in new ways.

What concerns me most is not the proliferation of invasive plant species, it is rather, our continual addiction to lumber and paper, which is driving a boom in logging. I'm also disturbed by our lack of foresight regarding "car" culture. We flat-out refuse to acknowledge the looming traffic apocalypse that is directly linked to the way we continue to build.

It likely that going forward we will have to make some big sacrifices. More and more of us should choose to live in high-density housing. As much as it pains me to say this, especially as a gardener, I'm probably going to have to carve out a future as a renter in a city, rather than owning my own house and garden.

But, even as an urban city dweller, there is a future for me as a gardener. I can adopt a neglected area as my garden. Or I could volunteer at a community or public garden. There are also a growing number of "rogue" gardeners who plant fruit trees on public or abandoned properties. As a side note, we should seriously re-think the idea of private property, or at least put some limits on the sizes of private "estates". I understand wealthy individuals can be great conservationists, but more and more of our lands should be protected from exploitation and development and open to all of us!

Enough with this rant! Even though I deviated from my main point, I hope that I present a convincing argument in favor of appreciating the whole of nature, including humanity's contribution. I want us to not only see all the negative impacts but also for us to awaken to the beauty we've unleashed on our planet. Even if we were to suddenly disappear, we've permanently altered the trajectory of life and evolution. We are just as much a part of nature as the singing cicada. Yet with our increasing presence and power comes responsibility, for we now have the capability to undo some of the harm we've caused. We can choose to enhance the diversity and beauty of our planet or we can pull away and allow nature's course to flow freely, yet regardless of what we do, life will keep moving forward. There is hope and endless beauty despite us and because of us!