The green, green grass of home

Here is a copy of the commentary I read to kick off tonight's show:

Good evening. I’m Mark Leger. Welcome to ‘Serf City’ on CFMH 107.3 FM.

Montreal Canadiens goalie Ken Dryden was a hero of mine when I was a kid. One day, I read a story about how he made money on his own for the first time. He told his dad that he’d rid the lawn of dandelions, plucking them one by one out of the grass. His dad said yes, and agreed to pay one or two cents for every one he picked.

I can’t remember the amount exactly, but I do remember that he picked enough to buy a set of encyclopedias and a globe. The story was meant to inspire kids about the value of hard work and spending your money wisely.

I made the same proposal to my dad, but he turned me down flat, saying the dandelions would be dead in a few weeks anyway. He was right, especially with us kids tromping all over them playing baseball in the back yard.

Some years later, dad would start paying to have them removed by lawn companies that sprayed herbicides and pesticides.

He’s since grown wary of the health risks and now uses more environmentally friendly ways of attacking bugs and weeds.

But that’s not true of everyone, including the church across the street from my parent’s house. My nephew and I played hockey in the churchyard one day last fall, much like I did when I was a kid.

At that age, though, I don’t remember having to stay off the grass to avoid chemical residue.

These days, there are signs posted on many lawns, warning people to keep kids and pets off grass that has just been sprayed. Playing hockey that day with my nephew, we had to be so careful not to shoot the ball onto the lawn. But of course it happened many times by accident. The poor little guy was terrified of touching the grass and getting it in his mouth, and so was I.

So why do we still spray lawns with potentially dangerous chemicals just to keep our lawns bug and weed free?

On Earth Day, Ontario announced a ban on the practice. Will New Brunswick follow Ontario’s lead? On tonight’s show, we’ll talk with two people about this subject. They have both tried to have chemical spraying banned here.

We’ll also talk to Cory Richardson about his recent trip to Uganda, where he taught people how to make hammocks, for their own use and to sell them to buy essentials like food and clothing.

But first up, we’re talking with artist Glenn Hall about his upcoming show of new work, 'Paintings off the Grid'.