Got too much lawn?
Lawns are the No. 1 user of water in the garden. There鈥檚 a big movement to tear out those thirsty, high-maintenance, gas guzzling, chemical-sucking parts of the landscape. But wait 鈥� folks love their lawns, yes, we do. So here鈥檚 a guide to know when to just say no to a lawn.
You know you got too much lawn when: The only footsteps it receives are the ones behind a mower.
Ask yourself: What does my lawn do? If it鈥檚 a play place for kids or adults 鈥� or in our case, a border collie with a Frisbee fetish聽 鈥� you need it. No other natural surface will suffice.
However, newer easy-care grasses are being developed all the time, so consider overseeding this fall with a new turf grass suitable for your part of the country. (Your local extension office has the latest info.) Or, depending on where you live,聽consider a whole new lawn grass, such as deeply-rooted native .
If your lawn simply functions as a design element, giving you that green and calming respite between the glories of your flowering borders, try an eco-lawn mix or that take some footsteps, but much less water, such as tiny-leafed thyme.
You know you got too much lawn when: Your chemical bill at the nursery is higher than your kid鈥檚 college tuition.
Let鈥檚 face it 鈥� the goal of a perfect green expanse was a triumph of advertising. According to Virginia Scott Jenkins鈥� book "," left over from World War II. You can鈥檛 make perfection without chemicals, as the聽 headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif., proved when they converted to all organic. Their Thomas Church-designed bent-grass lawn doesn鈥檛 look quite so buff.
But if a home-and-garden icon like Sunset can do it, you can, too. The secret is to lower your expectations. For broad-leaf weeds, a quick once-over with that l I鈥檝e dubbed 鈥渢he Ponker鈥� keeps the uglies at bay. Press down, rock back, and it grabs weeds (and roots). And celebrate diversity with clover 鈥� it fixes nitrogen in the soil, allowing the grass to use it.
You know you got too much lawn when: All your yard waste is grass clippings. Remove your mower's聽 grass catcher to save time and money.
When we used a mulching blade and left the clippings in place, my husband discovered that our grass stayed greener longer, with less stress 鈥� thus necessitating less water.
If you need more聽, consider low-numbered organic fertilizers. My favorite is cottonseed meal, which worked so well when I recommended it to a friend, he came back with the complaint, 鈥淵ou didn鈥檛 tell me I鈥檇 have to mow more.鈥�
You know you got too much lawn when: Your 3 a.m. insomnia is about water聽鈥� either bills or municipal restrictions.
Perhaps brown in a lawn is not a color you can live with. Consider the possibilities of substituting handsome hardscaping that will add a tremendous value in curb appeal. Keep water-wise plantings 鈥� maybe in raised beds 鈥� to frame your house.
You know you got too much lawn when: All your gardening time is spent grooming grass.
Even if you have never considered yourself 鈥渢he gardener in the family,鈥� as so many homeowners who mow have told me they鈥檙e not, there鈥檚 a whole world out there of amazing plants to grow. You can enjoy bringing your own home-grown food to the table, or the magical evening scents of flowering tobacco, lilies, and night-blooming jasmine opening on sweet late-summer evenings.
No expanse of little green stubbles can give you that.
So play on your lawn, party on your lawn, and throw Frisbees to your dog鈥檚 heart鈥檚 content. For anything else, a lawn proxy can be very rewarding.
Mary-Kate Mackey, co-author of Sunset鈥檚 Secret Gardens 鈥� 153 Design Tips from the Pros and contributor to the Sunset Western Garden Book, writes a monthly column for the Hartley Greenhouse and numerous articles for Fine Gardening, Sunset, and other magazines. She teaches at the University of Oregon鈥檚 School of Journalism & Communication. She will be writing about water in the garden for Diggin' It.
Editor鈥檚 note: To read more by Mary-Kate, check our .聽Gardening articles on a variety of topics can be found at the Monitor鈥檚 main gardening page.聽Also see聽our . You may want to visit . Take part in and get answers to your gardening questions. If you join the group (it鈥檚 free), you can upload your garden photos and enter our next contest. We鈥檒l be looking for photographs of fruits. So find your best shots of summer鈥檚 blueberries, peaches, plums, etc., and get out your camera to take some stunning shots of early fall apples. Post them before Sept. 30, 2009, and you could be the next winner.
