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RealEstate Sunday, February 20, 2011 | The San Diego Union-Tribune

U Grow finds ways to solve environmental issues

By Christina ChomutSPECIAL TO THE UNION-TRIBUNE

WalkthroughanysuburbanneighborhoodinSanDiegoat6a.m.andnoticeexcesswaterfromlawnsprinklersandmisappropriatedirrigationsystemsrunningoff intothestreet.Suchurbanrunoff carriesacascadeof nitrogenrichlawncareamendments,herbicidesandpesticidesintoourdrainagesystems,groundwater,coastalwetlandsandeventuallyouroceans. Inanareawhere30to60percentof urbanfreshwaterisusedforwa-teringlawnsandmaintaininglushlandscapes,manypeoplearebeginningtorealizehowcostly,unrewardingandenvironmentallydetrimentalpoorlydesignedsub-tropicalgardensarebecoming.JakeMoss,localentrepreneurandownerof MossResearchSustainableSurfboards,recentlytookonaventuretocreateamoresustainableexistencethroughthe“waywemanageourownproperties.” “Westartedwithourowngardeningsuccessanditreallychangedourlives,”saidMoss.“Inoticedthedifferenceintasteandthenutritionalben-efit in how good I felt in eating my own food. At that point, when I started tosucceedincreatingediblegardens,etc,itwasoneof themostprofoundandgreatestskillsI’veeverlearned.” Driven by his affinity for design and interest in sustainability, Moss be-gantodevelopaplantominimizewaterusage,harmfulurbanrunoff,andhouseholdwasteandeliminatenonsensicallandscapedesign.LocalwaterconservationexpertDanBartoncontributedhisknowledge,experienceandpassiontotheprojectandthetwoproprietorsdevelopedthesustainablelandscapingbusiness,UGrow,inthesummerof 2009. “MovingbeyondBuilditGreenandLEEDcriteriaandinconjunctionwith drought regulations, we started to figure out ways to offer solutions sothesystemsinplacearethemostcosteffectiveandenduppayingforthemselves,”saidMoss.“Wedevelopedsystematicmethodsof easyorganicgardening,developedtechniquesonwaterconservation,clienttutorialsindesigningappropriatelandscapesandeducatingpeopleabouthowtomaintain their space. All of these tenets are included in what U Grow has tooffer.” GrowingupinSouthernCalifornia,Mossbasedhislivelihoodonsurf-

ing. At its core, surfing connects human beings with the raw elements of nature in a way that is becoming hard to find in an increasingly developed world.Itreliesonahealthyandvibrantenvironmentandprovidescommu-nity,ahealthylifestyleandphysicalandpsychologicalwellbeingtomanyof itsparticipants(www.mossresearch.com).Knowingcurrentpracticesinsurfing are far from Green, Moss developed a new surfboard that eliminates thesehazardsandhasthehighestdegreeof recyclability.TheMossEco-FlexTechnologyhasyieldeda100percentrecycled/recyclablecore,zeroVOC (Volatile Organic Compounds) pine epoxy and natural fiber fins and reinforcements.InaligninghiscorebeliefswithanewdirectionforMossResearch,Mossrealizedhecouldbeeffectiveinmoreareasthansolelydesigningandshapingsurfboards. “Ihaveanunderstandingof allthesedifferentcomponentsandhowtheyworktogetherandfunctioninadesignthatwillservemultiplepur-posesatonce,”saidMoss.“Iaminspiredbywhatwecandoasindividualsandasacollective,sowhynotdowhatactuallymakessense.”According to Moss, an ideal landscape for implementing a U Grow design wouldbethecommonurbanhomestead. “An urban homestead is not necessarily a large property, but can still haveacomplexsysteminplace.Ideally,(thelandscape)wouldincludeamulti-levelcompostingsystemwitharegularfoodscrap,veggiescrapandalfalfagrassscrapbin,awormbintominimizeallpaperwasteleavingthehouseholdandaseriesof 4x10footraisedgardenbedsforedibleandherbal/medicinalgardens.Landscapeherbssuchassages,rosemary,etccouldbeincludedinthelandscapewithroomforthreetofourfruittreesandediblevines.Thiswouldbeaccentedwithdroughttolerantvegeta-tion, plants and exotic succulents from Australia and New Zealand to add colorandavibranttouchtotheoveralldesign.Thewholelandscapewouldbeirrigatedwithdripandstreamrotorsandaweather-basedtimer.Thiswould be the most efficient, functional and beautiful way to create an ideal UGrowdesignfortheurbanhomestead.” Havingcompletedprojectsrangingfromanedible/medicinalgardenatthehistoricDerbyHouseinEncinitastoastudentandcommunitygardenattheDelMarHeightsElementarySchool,MossandBartonprideanimportantaspectof UGrowonspendingtimewiththeirclientstomakesuretheyhavethepropertoolsandknowledgetobesuccessfulinmaintain-ingtheirgardensandlandscaping. “A landscape is the first thing and the last thing you see every day when youcomeinandoutof yourhome,”saidMoss.“So,insteadof spendingallyourresourcesonthatfancynewbathroomyoualwayswanted,investinsomethingthatisnotonlygoodforyouandyourfamily,butfortheenvi-ronmentandtheecologyof theareawelive.”

LEFT: U Grow co-founder Jake Moss at a garden site in Leucadia harvesting greens (Swiss chard, red kale, Asian mustard greens, red romaine) for a special winter salad cooking demonstration. The snap peas in the foreground are maturing for early spring. Co-founder of U Grow, Daniel Barton, planed the garden. Photos by Cyrus Sutton.

BELOW: Swiss chard grows in a U Grow edible Leucadia garden, one of the many sustainable and progressive elements of a U Grow land-scape design. Photo by Dan Barton.

Jake Moss working on a sustainable urban homestead landscape design. Photo by Robert Lundahl.

Christina Chomut is a freelance writer in Leucadia. She can be contacted at thechic88@gmail.com.