Grass is Not the Only Option for Your Lawn; a book review for Bookpleasures.com

Beautiful No-Mow Yards: 50 Amazing Lawn Alternatives, Evelyn J. Hadden, Timber Press

There is a controversy about the role of the lawn in our culture. Some cannot imagine having a home or an estate without one, while others can hardly wait to replace theirs with alternative forms of landscaping. Here is a publication that adds realism and practicality to the ongoing dialogue.

On one side of the discussion are those who believe that a green lawn is a sign of refinement, elegance, and that it contributes to the quality of air we breathe. The other side is composed of three sub-groups: first are those who look upon lawn maintenance as a bother- some chore that squanders time, energy, natural resources, and money, and second are those who believe that the excessive nutrients and herbicides, associated with lawn care, harm our environment. The third group reminds us that it is unrealistic to grow green lawns in arid climates.

For homeowners considering alternative forms of landscaping, Ms. Hadden has prepared practical and beautiful options. Some of the ideas she provides are sufficiently attractive to grace the front yards of elegant homes, while others are better suited to a back yard or woodland. Readers who might shudder at the thought of replacing the grass in their front yard with messy and chaotic meadow gardens will be relieved to learn that a meadow is but one of eleven practical, urban-friendly suggestions.

Ms. Hadden’s book is divided into three main sections. In the first, she introduces and discusses in detail the eleven no-mow options. These include groundcover gardens, shade gardens, meadows, rain gardens, patios, play areas, ponds, xerix gardens, edible gardens, stroll gardens, and “smarter” lawns.

Groundcover gardens are low living carpets of plants that never… need mowing, watering, or fertilizer. Shade gardens are soothing woodlands that filter and purify the air and obscure hard walls and floors. Meadow gardens are prairie-like landscapes defined by ornamental grasses and native plants. Rain gardens are living sponges that absorb stormwater, snowmelt, and flood waters into,,, water bodies above and below ground. Patios are places where people can comfortably spend time outdoors.

Play areas refers to natural outdoor environments that supports brain and body development in children. Here, natural spaces are filled with sound, scent, textures, color and movement. A pond garden acts as a way- station for birds, encourages aquatic wildlife, and adds light and movement to the landscape. Xeric gardens are compositions for arid climates where a combination of grasses and succulents create landscapes that can surpass the drama of traditional green landscaping. Edible gardens, while not totally carefree, contain crops that stimulate our sense of taste and smell. Stroll gardens encourage exploring nature throughout the seasons; a smarter lawn, while not as elegant as a traditional one, is an alternative that requires little maintenance.

Part Two of the book is filled with practical and technical advice on how to convert a lawn into one of the above-mentioned options, and on subsequent maintenance of each option. Part Three is rich with information on the various forms of plants that - when combined together - create attractive landscaping for no-mow gardens.

This last section is divided into four classifications of plants: Mounding, Mat-forming, Fill-ins, and Minglers. Carex and Brunnera are two examples of the twenty-six suggested Mounding plants. Among the sixteen Mat-forming plants, we find Lamium and Phlox subulata. Fill-in plants that number twenty-eight include Pachysandra terminalis and Tiarella chordifolia while Callirhoe involucrate and Phlox paniculata are two of the twenty-eight suggested Minglers.

The no-grass lawn is a landscaping alternative that has arisen out of a serious and controversial dialogue. It is to the author's credit that she has graciously avoided wrapping her vision in the ideology and the dogma associated with this subject. Instead, her book makes a practical contribution to the discussion. Enhancing that achievement is an abundance of beautiful and inspiring photos that clearly illustrate all of the author’s suggestions. Readers who are intent on eliminating the traditional lawn will be delighted by the endless possibilities they will find in this timely publication.

Agriburbia: Growing Crops on Suburban Lawns

Drought has permanently parched the lawns of Highland Ranch, Colorado.What would you do with your lawn if water were to become scarce? Here is a report of some measures take by wise communities in America’s west. Clearly, they understand the dire consequences of allowing drought to become someone else’s problem. A recent article posted to the online site of The Wall Street Journal tells the story and introduces a new word into our vocabulary.

According to a US Geological Survey, lawn irrigation in the United States represents an average of 32% of a household’s water usage. In western USA, however, that average climbs to more than 60%. These numbers are vexing because repeated droughts in the west have made water scarce there. Lawn irrigation is no longer sustainable. All residential projects now on the drawing board for that part of the country ought to be accompanied by a conservation program that treats water as a precious commodity.

A new suburban community is being planned in the West where the development team plans to use grass as a “throw rug rather than a carpet”. The members of that group understand that a green lawn cannot be a realistic expectation for future home owners. A water conservation program is essential if that development is to come to fruition. The picture above is an aerial view of Highland Ranch, a Colorado community in the vicinity of the planned project. Development of that neighborhood occurred in the 1990’s when water was relatively plentiful. The image clearly demonstrates how repeated drought has turned the lawn areas from green to straw-yellow.

Water conservation techniques for the Sterling Ranch, the name of the planned community, will include the use of grass as decorative trim only. This measure will apply to private property and community land equally. The balance of the land ordinarily used for green lawns will be covered not only with drought resistant trees and shrubs but also with edible crops such as strawberries, corn and herbs. This latter treatment is a new concept called: "Agriburbia”.

Furthermore, yards will be a few inches lower than the sidewalks, allowing these lowered lawns to become receptacles for soaking up moisture. Any runoff or rain water that hits the pavement will flow into 55,000 gallon cisterns built underground. This body of tightly rationed water will be available to homeowners for their gardens. Abusers of the program will be fined and will have their irrigation privileges suspended.

Developers are also monitoring ongoing research into photovoltaic panels mounted on tall poles that might act as giant sun screens to prevent the evaporation of water from storage areas. Finally, all athletic fields will be covered with artificial turf. It is heartening to learn that some communities in Arizona and New Mexico that are experiencing drought adopted similar measures and now report a decrease in water consumption. This is a remarkable example of what happens when communities are determined to solve a problem rather than talk about it in sound bites.

The details in this posting, including the image above, were originally reported by Stephanie Simon in the Wall Street Journal online on October 13, 2009. Her article is titled “In Arid West, Thirsty Lawns Get Cut from Plans”.

Good Bye Lawn, Hello Outdoor Living Space

Image courtesy of meadowfarm.comThere has been a lot of discussion over the last few years about the declining need for a green lawn in today’s landscapes. This debate has been fueled not only by the desire to conserve water but also by the realization that changing lifestyles result in lawns that remain unused. This debate is also accompanied by the shrinkage of free time needed to care for lawns and by the toxic effect of chemicals necessary to maintain them.

Once upon a time, a lawn was a symbolic part of a private home. It included the back yard where children romped around and grew up. Today’s children don’t have the same free time to play outdoors. Many of them are enrolled in sports played on municipal properties. The result is that, for some, the back yard has become an anachronism and its maintenance a burden.

It is not uncommon to see a lawn being sliced away to create a patio or a deck or excavated to make room for a swimming pool. All of these changes, which reflect a contemporary value to live outdoors as opposed to work in the outdoors, create a need for new styles of landscaping that will soften the hard lines of wood, stone, concrete and plastic. Nature, as trees, shrubs and foliage, needs to be reintroduced into this new setting but in a more controlled and deliberate manner. In these circumstances, it’s often helpful to work with a landscape architect to create the over-all plan for one’s outdoor living space.

However, for color and passion that only flowers can evoke, it’s best to use a garden designer to add the finishing touches. The ideal balance between these two professionals is to have the landscape architect integrate the location of flowerbeds into the master plan and to allow the garden designer to fill them up. However, in determining the number of flower beds and their sizes, the needs of the client should always be elicited and never overlooked.

Many garden designers and landscape architects are so talented that when properly planned and executed, it is possible to create an outdoor living space that resembles an interactive work of art.