Be a Grower, Not a Mower

Cutting Your Lawn Down to Size

Slow-release, organic fertilizers will nourish your grass over a longer period of time than chemical fertilizers.

Nothing sets off your home and gardens like a freshly mown lawn. But lawns now cover more than 25 million acres of America! They have crowded out native plants and wildlife habitat, and the noise and exhaust from mowers and string trimmers fills the summer air.

Why not consider reducing the size of your lawn this year? With some thoughtful plant selection and placement, you can reduce the amount of lawn that you maintain by at least 25 percent, and enjoy a lower maintenance yard that still looks neat and well cared for.

Start by taking a good look at your lawn. The most obvious lawn areas to eliminate are places where the grass doesn't thrive in the first place—shaded areas under trees, wet sections in the yard, and rocky outcroppings. And don't forget the steep bank where you risk your life mowing every weekend. These are all perfect candidates for alternative plantings.

The next question to ask yourself: How much lawn do you really need? Do you require a fairly large grassy area for recreational activities like volleyball, horseshoes, or children's games? What about the front and side yards? Are they unused spaces that simply border the house? Pay attention to the directions of the foot traffic around your house. Could you put in permanent pathways rather than turf to help move people to the utility shed or back door? Once you've determined what your yard is used for, you may find that you can dramatically decrease your lawn.

But don't do it. At least not right away. Take some time to do a little research and planning before you get started. Begin with the steep slope, shady or wet areas and develop a plan of what you'd like to see growing there. Start small and replant step by step over a period of months or even years. Here are five principles to help you create an attractive and low-maintenance yard:

• Go for a natural look (rather than a formal one)
• Plant a limited number of plant varieties and bunch them in drifts
• Use evergreen ground covers for year-round color
• Save water—install drip irrigation and use mulch!
• Incorporate paved surfaces

A formal yard has lots of open space with plants strategically placed on edges of the lawn. The "natural" yard incorporates more native plants—trees, shrubs, ornamental grasses and flowering perennials—grouped in free-flowing swaths around the property.

By incorporating native plants into your landscape, you can reestablish some of the natural ecosystems that your lawn replaced. In an Arizona yard, for example, you might consider reintroducing cactus and adding nectar-rich native flowers that will lure hummingbirds. More and more nurseries and garden centers offer a good selection of native plants. Being naturally well-suited to your area and casual rather than fussy, they make a good, low-maintenance lawn alternative.

Growing a large number of different plant varieties is tempting, but it requires constant attention to keep them in their place. As tall varieties mature, they can block out the sun for short plants, and fast-spreading perennials will encroach on slower-growing plants. For easy care, keep your plantings simple. Select two or three varieties and group the plants together, giving them enough space to grow for many years without competition. You'll find that the shrubs and perennials will merge into one large planting that helps suppress weeds and creates a safe haven for toads, birds, and other small creatures.

Although it takes some front-end attention to get ground covers well-established, they'll eventually form a ground-hugging mat that helps keep weeds and other unwanted plants at bay.

For shady areas, try planting Vinca minor under your trees or incorporate ferns, lily of the valley and pachysandra in shaded corners of the yard. For spring color, plant bulbs, Solomon's seal, and bleeding hearts between the ground covers. For homeowners with sunny dry areas, daylilies are one of the fastest-spreading perennial ground covers you can grow. The low, spreading forms of thyme, juniper, euonymus, and phlox also make a nice carpet. There are so many plant varieties to choose from!

Save water with drip irrigation and mulching: Most homeowners will save lots of water (and time) by simply reducing the size of their lawn and substituting more natural plantings. But there's more you can do. Mulch your shrub and flower beds with 3-4" of shredded leaves, bark or wood chips. Mulches retain soil moisture and will improve the quality of your soil. Water your plantings with drip irrigation or soaker hoses to get water directly to the root zone and avoid wasteful run-off and loss through evaporation. And finally, utilize free water for your plants. A rain barrel or tub that captures rainfall from your roof makes a great addition to your garden—and might serve as a bird bath too!

Incorporate paved surfaces and non-planted areas: Installing low-maintenance surfaces and edging makes it easy to define a neat line along walkways and borders between lawn and garden. If you have a worn footpath in the lawn from the deck to the tool shed, or between the back door and compost pile, consider creating a fieldstone or gravel path between the two areas. You might also install a band of edging to keep turf from invading your plantings. Gravel beds also can be a very attractive way to define a border or lead you to another section of the yard. And don't forget special features like a hammock tucked in the shade, a garden pond, or a natural rock garden. The wise use of these decorative elements can create interesting "rooms" within a larger landscape.

Here are some things you can do to save even more work and grow a better looking, more earth-friendly lawn!

Mow High:A higher cut encourages deeper, healthier roots that will be able to sustain your lawn during the hot summer months. Mowing high also helps to reduce weed problems. Most weeds need light to germinate and taller grass will help shade them out.

Mulch Your Clippings: By leaving the grass clippings where they fall, you're adding free nutrients to the soil and stimulating biological activity. If your clippings are thick, wet and smothering the lawn, by all means rake them up and compost them. But you'll save on fertilizer if you can let the clippings do the work.

Use a Slow-Release Fertilizer: Slow-release, organic fertilizers will nourish your grass over a longer period of time than chemical fertilizers. They also stimulate moderate growth that doesn't require as much mowing.

Re-seed Patchy Areas with the Right Grass Seed: The simplest, yet most common problem with lawns is that the type of grass is not suited to the site. Is your lawn in the shade or sun? Most grass varieties (fescues, Kentucky bluegrass, and perennial rye), require full sun to remain lush and green—although they'll tolerate some shade. If your yard is partially shaded all day, you should plant grass varieties that are specially suited to shade. There are also new slow-growing grass varieties (fine fescues, tall fescues, bentgrass, and perennial rye) that take fewer mowings to keep them trim. Some of them are mixed with flowering clover and other low-growing attractive blooms that can be mowed without harm.

By reducing your lawn by even 20 percent, you'll be providing a more diverse habitat for birds, salamanders, toads and butterflies, while also creating a beautiful, low-maintenance landscape for you and your friends and family to enjoy. Best of all, you'll be able to mow less and garden more!