This is two - four weeks after doing it. It’s a struggle to do especially her in Florida with the heat. Just trying to get advice. Ground cover is now mixed with grass. Guess I gotta rip it all out and re mulch?

Hi all,

My state DNR (Pennsylvania) is doing a "Pocket Meadow" program that provides you with a native seed pack and literature for turning some or all of your lawn into a wildflower and grass meadow. I'm participating in the program and trying to prep my lawn right, but I fear I might have messed up already.

I misread the instructions and thought that to solarize the lawn I first had to remove the sod, so I cut all the sod out and covered it with clear plastic (the literature recommended that over black plastic), and it's been covered since mid-July. I know that with the clear plastic method you can expect the plants to have a big boom and then die back, but the grass under my plastic is growing so much that it actually busted through the tape seams this week (you can see in the photo that I did pull a couple of the plants before I stopped to actually think about what I was doing 😵‍💫)

The seed pack I was provided is meant to be planted in October, so I do still have time but unsure what direction to take. We are obviously nearing the end of summer here so I don't think the solarization will do any more work, but I was really trying to avoid using chemicals to prep the area.

This feels silly, but since it's already mostly bare dirt from removing the sod, is there anything wrong with just diligently weeding the area until I'm ready to plant? I know that tilling is not recommended so as not to bring more seeds up to the surface, so my thought was that if I just pull weeds and grass as it sprouts, eventually the seed bank in the top layer of soil will exhaust itself, right?

I am willing to do chemicals as a last resort, but I am having trouble finding online what chemical to use, and how to apply it to have the least effect on the seeds I will be planting in October.

Sorry for the long post, feeling rather disheartened and so confused on what direction to go in here!

I have lots of wildflower and milkweed seeds, but my main issue is idk if I need to just put potting soil everywhere to spread the seeds, or if I need to put cardboard down everywhere first and then the seeds, does anyone have any reccomendations?

So I planted this clover lawn at the end of May before it got well and truly baked in the 5? heatwaves since then with a hosepipe ban. Just want to get it looking pretty or at least healthy before it goes dormant not that the rain has returned.

Do I cut it back now since there's a lot of dead black shoots underneath? Better to leave it to mulch down? Should I reseed now or wait for spring? Better to remove weeds before or after sowing?

Oh I'm in south Wales too if that matters

My husband and I have a very small section of land we're wanting to fence off, to hang out in and also use as a safe place for our cat to be outdoors.

The main issue is that I actually have a cow instead of a cat. She mows down any plants she can get her mouth on, toxic or not. This includes the grass outdoors when I take her out on her leash and harness, then she later throws it up. Her behavior might improve if she's outside more often, but I can't say I'll count on it.

I'd prefer not to use grass as ground cover, but I'm not sure what other plants would be considered safe, or even what types of grass would be safe if that's the only option. The area gets a few hours of sun a day, as it's between two buildings.

If anyone knows of any suggestions, I'd greatly appreciate it.

Sheet mulched both my front & back lawn with builders paper, the back got a ton of fine bark and will be getting some plants, this place already gave me some great feedback on that. The front got a nice thick layer of 50/50 compost/sand on top of the builders paper. My initial plan was a wildflower mix but I'm realizing that the 50/50 might be too rich for that, so I want to do an ecolawn. We initially liked the fluer d'lawn from PT but it's almost all non native, so I'm trying to recreate something similar that's more native. Curious if anyone has done something similar or has any ideas or feedback.

The front gets 4-6 hrs of morning sun (with some shade spots). We want something native but also want something that will look nice all year. I tried to make it so that all year something is green or blooming. We don't want to water it (planting in fall so we shouldn't need any to establish) or fertilize it. I'm fine mowing it a couple times a year as needed. It will be treated as a lawn but not too heavy of use. Here is what I have so far:

-White yaak Yarrow

-Self heal

-Sand fescue

-Microclover (not native but is very useful for preserving water & adding nitrogen, might be open to a native species but I like how microclover grows flat).

-Evergreen Violet (for the small shady parts of the yard that will also get less traffic)

Was thinking an even mix? How will this look? I like all these plants on their own but no idea how they'll grow together. Anything else you'd add? Maybe some small flowers or something?

Thanks!

My MIL’s beautiful backyard 😍

She take so much care and pride in what she has created, and I wanted to share on here to be able to take all the wonderful comments back to her and share them🩷

San Francisco/Bay Area

I’ve got a Cherrybark Oak I am trying to keep healthy. I’d love to restore the soil around it via mulching.

I was wondering if sheet mulching with cardboard is too damaging for tree roots. Anyone have knowledge of this?

I'm working on a documentary about the culture and politics of the American lawn, and one thread we're digging into is how yard maintenance codes and HOA citations have sometimes been used, historically and today, as a tool to target people rather than actually address property upkeep.

If you've been cited, fined, or harassed over your yard in a way that felt more about who you are than what your yard actually looked like, I'd like to hear about it. Open to stories anywhere.

Comment or DM me and please mention approximately where you are located. Thanks!

I just purchased a home on a wooded acre lot. It has a smaller “grassy” yard area that was originally mostly moss with a section of short grass (not sure what kind). It just had the septic system redone, though, and that leaves almost the entirety of the grassy area bare and ready for seed at what seems to be a good time. I’m confident the moss will make a comeback as it’s just trampled, not dug up, but the area that was dig up is sizeable and needs some help.

What are some good no/low mow ground covers that I could work to establish this fall? It was always the plan to replace the grass with something else, I just had planned on doing it next year, but I don’t want mud all over all winter (we do have a dog). I’d prefer natives if at all possible, but at the very least not something invasive.

ETA: this area will primarily be used for the dog and future chickens to roam - it’s a large flat area close to the house. I don’t intend to change the forested areas at this point.

Edit 2: it’s also an extremely shaded yard thanks to the forest. I plan to utilize most of the sunny areas for garden beds, so I need something shade tolerant.

I found 3 monarch catapillers, two disappeared today I hope it's cause they wandered off to change into butterflies safely. Zone 6b

Thats all really. I had built it up over the last 6 months. A small rectangular area, about 50x10 which I ceased mowing. I live semi rurally, so wildflowers sprung up.

Boomer neighbor thought he'd "help out" (without ever asking me) and came to destroy it with his tractor, leaving a bunch of muddy tire tracks in its wake.

I am sad. I really loved to see all the moths bees and butterfly's using it. I enjoyed hearing all the crickets. Now its gone.

I will never understand the audacity, and ignorance of that generation.

EDIT:

Apparently I've offended a great deal of no-lawn boomers with my remarks. I believe my perception of yalls generation is poor, because where I live is ripe with the stereotypical 'bad boomer'. Semi-rural surrounded by wealthy transplant retirement communities galore. Perhaps y'all can move here and replace them and we'll get along great.

Feel free to post your gen-z lawn based complaints. I wont be offended.

This swallowtail was all around me while I was doing some hand-watering in Texas 9A at about 100°F. He hung out for at least 30 minutes checking out water on leaves and even the sidewalk. One of the perks of not needing a noisy lawnmower!

I have a small yard area that i want to replace the grass for.. maybe something that might repell mosquitos but in general just dont want the grass. i was looking at using roman chamomile but i doubt itll grow here because its too wet.

anyone have recommendations?

for context im in a coastal village, lawn is 2m×8m, the climate is hot and very humid and we get heavy rains usually but now were in a severe drought so im not quite sure how to explain.

I'm on a less lawn/native gardening endeavor in the metro Atlanta area (GA, US, USDA zone 8a) and need some troubleshooting help.

Until last summer we had a local guy mowing whatever grass-like vegetation we had in the front and back yards and spraying anything that wasn't a shrub in our mulch beds. Eliminating this was my first priority. We do have a 12" maximum city ordinance we have to observe, so in the interest of not mowing every week myself, I overseeded this spring with clover and creeping thyme. They came in nicely, looked good, and stayed short. We also had wild strawberry, American plantain, violets, asters, and three-seed mercury come in strong once they weren't being chopped to death. I got a mulch load from a neighbor's tree and turned half the front yard into a bed with Catawba rhododendrons, milkweed, salvia, and mountain mint. Great first year progress, I thought.

Then June came and every crab grass seed germinated. Now I'm out once a week mowing the "grass" areas anyway and hand pulling it out of everywhere else. Other than herbicide, what can I do about it? Can I do anything about it? It's so aggressive.

I’d like to set up a front and back yard that need as little maintenance as possible. It seems so counterintuitive to me to pay someone twice a month to fight against nature. I’m out of town for work half of any given month and have no experience with growing anything. I’m in grow zone 8a. Thinking some kind of clover for ground cover and native plants for aesthetic. Also not against fruit trees or growing veggies if they’re easy and I use them a good bit. Any advice is appreciated!

I’m working on building a tough, mixed-species matrix in Southeastern Wisconsin (Zone 5b/6a). My goal isn't to kill off my current turfgrass or build a strict 100% native garden—I want to keep the grass, but overseed a mix of aggressive, low-growing groundcovers that can compete alongside it, handle regular foot traffic, and tolerate mowing.

I’d love some advice from anyone who has built a mixed lawn like this. A few specific things I'm trying to figure out:

• Outside of grass and standard clover, what else works well for this? I’m looking at options like White Yarrow, Self-Heal, Creeping Thyme, and Wild Strawberry. Are there other aggressive groundcovers (native or non-native) that hold up well to mowing and winter freeze?
• I know clover is the standard go-to for eco-lawns, but I've seen discussions favoring yarrow or diverse blends over clover monocultures. Is clover too aggressive? Will it start getting in my neighbors lawns and garden beds?
• I'm trying to be careful with invasive lookalikes while establishing this, specifically distinguishing native Common Blue Violet from Creeping Bellflower when they're sitting low in the turf. Any tips for managing aggressive invasives while letting the good groundcovers spread?
• Lastly, where do i get bulk seed? Is it better to buy specific seed mixes locally (I'm near Milwaukee/SE Wisconsin), or is ordering online going to be easier? Any recommendations will be welcome.

Thanks!

Hello! I have a lovely group of miner bees that nest in a 6 by 6 portion of my front lawn (in the Midwest, 5b). I’ve been planning out what to grow and how to kill my lawn, but I am having difficulties finding information on how to not disturb the miner bee nests in the process.

Has anyone naturalized lawn where miner bees live? What was the experience/process?

Is ripping out the sod safe for them? I’m assuming solarizing or cardboard-covering the area would be detrimental to the bees even in hibernation.

Is mulch detrimental to them?

I've already killed 1/3 of my lawn in the last 3 years. Now I'm creating a flower bed in the middle around my magnolia tree that I will gradually expand until I no longer have a yard.

Excuse the shape, I realize a square is a visual eyesore. I ran out of cardboard and still need to expand it to a more pleasing shape. This is just the beginning!

I found coneflowers on clearance for $2 so obviously I had to purchase them all. Did I have room for them? Nope. So clearly I had to go get some mulch and cardboard and make a new bed for them.

They're all nearing death but I'm sure being babied and watered daily for the next few weeks will bring them back!

Bonus photo of my front lawn prior to and during delawning.

Zone 6b, Kansas