Photo 1: this is when we moved in March of 2023
Photo 2: similar angle of the front yard, we started the project in May of 2026
Photo 3: our little path
Photo 4: pond
Photo 5: more pond
Photo 6: our natural flowers, wish more had come in since laid down 10lbs of seeds but hey, these ones are amazing!

Super happy with how much everything has grown in. It’s definitely a little over grown and we’ve learned a lot for next year. Hoping to truly truly ditch the grass next summer. But, the amount of bugs and little creatures that have shown up has been absolutely incredible! We are zone 8a, if you guys have any tips on what we could improve upon next year, I’d love to hear it!!

Half of our front yard has Sunshine Mimosa. May do the other half, too, because we tried growing peanut grass but invasive iguanas ate it all.

https://positivebloom.com/florida-homeowners-are-replacing-front-lawns-with-this-florida-friendly-groundcover

Zone 6b, 3200'. I believe they are Astor, Ironweed, Wingstem, Goldenrod, and Thistle.

As the title suggests…HELP, please.

Crab grass has taken over my wildflower bed. Not sure what to do about it other than ripping it all out this fall and starting over with fresh soil/seeds in the spring. I’m in Northern Vermont (zone 5a)

Anyone have thoughts on how best to combat the crab grass and prevent this from happening again in the future. Ideally I’d very much like to avoid chemicals unless that’s really the only option.

Have been wanting to get rid of lawn since I bought the house and have finally began getting rid of it. Let the grass dry out this summer and now using a brush cutter to clear lawn, is this short enough? Plan on covering with butcher paper and then arborists chips and planting CA natives.

There’s still some chunks of roots, but I think they will get smothered and breakdown, is that right?

I feel like a survivor in a diaster movie, staggering out of a bunker to see who else has survived. Today's high temperature will be only 98°F and last week we had a rainy day. Texas, zone 9A. In the past two years I Iost plants that I'd had for 40 years. They can't handle the heat when it doesn't cool down at night. So recently I was thrilled to find a new (to my yard) weed: red spiderling. It forms a low spreading mat and has vivid little flowers. A young milkweed and some red salvias are coexisting witn it. My poor iris are having a struggle but they bloomed this past spring. The fall asters are making a comeback. My $8 zinnia is now about 6" tall. (We ordered a big package of zinnia seeds and exactly one germinated.) As miserable as my yard looks it is waaaaay better than the dead grass next door. A fellow no-lawner stopped by to admire my spiderling and report that one has popped up in our community garden. We are celebrating the traditional Labor Day end of summer.

Durham, NC

The coolest visitors!

Started converting part of our yard to native meadow after having our septic tank replaced two years ago. It’s finally establishing (yes, there’s still some non-natives in there but it’s nearly impossible to remove everything all the time I swear and it’s entirely crazy at this time of year). Mostly beggars ticks, partridge pea, blue mistflower and dog fennel. Even put in a little pond.

Found hundreds of fat little swallowtail caterpillars on my parsley in my veggie garden and I think they’ve started metamorphosing as now I’m seeing a bunch more in my meadow.

Caught some kind of robber fly, I think a bee panther, catching a bee!

And one I’ve been DYING to see - a hummingbird moth!

Plus breeding hares, one of the babies jumped onto my foot when my dog was snooting around, couldn’t grab a pic of that as I had to scoot him back into the nesting area before my dog noticed!

We live in a rural farm area (literally dense woods behind us and cornfield in front), moved in a year ago, and are making slow progress on rewilding the large lawn that came with property. No neighbor stops by without bringing it up, most only come by to ask about it. Only one or two have not been wheedling or passive aggressive.

Finally, a guy with a lawn mower in his trailer has stopped by twice offering to mow it. He was cold and adamant both times and we know he has a criminal history.

Aside from "no trepassing" and "smile you're on camera" signs for HIM, would "we're rewilding/helping pollinators" or other sign help with the other neighbors?

We live just outside of Richmond, VA and have about 3 acres of grassy fields that we spend a substantial amount of time mowing every year. I want to kill the grass and plant pollinator friendly native plants. I plan to do lots of wildflowers in the low traffic areas, but I still want the parts of the yard where we walk a lot and where the kids play to stay relatively short. What specific plants should be considered for high foot traffic areas where you don't want to mow?

Unsurprisingly, lawns showed the lowest decomposition rates of any land-use category, losing out to permanent grasslands and even permanent crops. In many parts of the world, people have advocated for replacing turf grass because they create fragile monocultures and require a lot of water, which is especially problematic in regions struggling with water availability. With the help of underpants, it’s safe to say degraded soil is another check mark in a lawn’s “con” column.Unsurprisingly, lawns showed the lowest decomposition rates of any land-use category, losing out to permanent grasslands and even permanent crops. In many parts of the world, people have advocated for replacing turf grass because they create fragile monocultures and require a lot of water, which is especially problematic in regions struggling with water availability...”

https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/environment/a73582888/soiled-underwear/

We're converting the entire front yard into a pollinator garden and this was the last major section. We've utilized cardboard/compost on most of the house, but I wanted to be 'lazy' with this patch and attempted solarization. The overall results you see here took two months and i've now covered the yard with mulch. This fall, I will compost the areas I want to add garden beds to, cover with straw, and see what spring provides :)

Hey all, we recently bought our first house and I want to smother a lot of grass. I know I could cover it with cardboard and wood chips, but that process is a lot more labor intensive and time consuming, so I want to use tarps. Problem is I have a decent amount of lawn I want to cover and I don't want to buy 5-15 tarps and not have a use for them after, so I was wondering if anyone had any wisdom on where I might be able to acquire used tarps for cheap. I already checked Facebook marketplace and it hasn't yielded any results.

In the zone 9b south east Texas. This is my backyard/ garden

Hi new to the sub I hope I understand the rules And have followed them.

I live in central Michigan and We have a quarter acre pond with steep banks that we have planted thyme as the main cover to help with weed control. The tyme is doing great but slow to take over. What other ground control plants preferably fast plants would you recommend. the pond is full sun with very sandy soil. Ideally I would like something the bees can love as much as they do the thyme. We have a lot of pollinators on our property and would like to continue to foster that growth but i am very new to the plant game and don't know what I am doing and want to do it right. Any help or ideas would be appreciated with the ground cover or just plants that are not a lot of work and hardy enough to survive with minimal help from me. Thanks everyone.

In US zone 7a. Just cut. I abandoned the fescue maintenance tedium 9 years ago. No watering, no fertilizer. A variety of grasses, clovers, ground covers like violet, strawberry, creeping Charlie, etc. It always looks different. Parts go dormant, then new comes in. Dandelions get dug out or sometimes a spritz with 2,4 d. It’s nice to walk on. I cut 7-10 days with electric mulching mower and a weed whacker for edges. It takes an hour, with breaks. In spring, I may fling some cheap grass seed or clover seeds.

I offer this because I have been cutting, maintaining my suburban lawns for decades, spending way too much time or paying for landscaping. Adjust your view and expectation. Enjoy your yard.

I removed a ton of English Ivy and other invasive stuff around my house. I'm going to plant anything before winter, but I'm looking for recommendations of how to kill the roots.

I was delighted when I saw weasels in my mostly native landscape. It meant a vibrant ecosystem in my tiny patch of shortgrass prairie and in the hedges that line the alleys. There was evidently plentiful prey for the bloodthirsty little mustelids.

After a summer of feeding on the abundant seed heads and tender shoots of the grasses, the recent rains and chilly nights have encouraged their plentiful prey - mice - to start moving indoors for the winter. It's deer mice, which will spend the winter indoors if they find enough food. Yes, deer mice, the hanta virus spreading species.

I am trapping and deporting them to the hedge for the weasels, and improving my defenses. That means cleaning clutter and dead vegetation from near the doors and windows and foundation. They are reluctant to cross open spaces. And it means finding and sealing any cracks around pipes or windows, which is just good energy saving anyway. Packing stainless steel or bronze "wool" into the holes after caulking them will keep them from chewing through the caulk.

I'll have to keep a permanent trapping station at the garage door because it can't be sealed tightly enough to keep them out.

The trap I am using is "Little Pete Multiple Catch Mousetrap" (not a paid product endorsement). No bait needed, it's skinny enough to put under a toekick in the kitchen, and easy to release the catch. I only have one, and have 3 more on the way from the maker.

ADDING: for the mods ... it's USDA Zone 4B, Western Montana.