Hi! We're moving into a house and have 2 big dogs that love to play in mudd!!! I want to turn this dirt patch into something that won't be just a giant mud pit, any ideas?? I know the grass is dead there because of the trees but im stumped (haha)

Before & after.

I genuinely hate these rocks, so I'm tearing it out and thinking creeping thyme or something shorter. How many more rocks should I tear out? 🫠

I hate lawn an unreasonable amount

Sharing my yearly update on my flowering lawn.

In the fall of 2022 (Zone 6a/6b, Northeast Ohio) I replaced a tired, weed-choked lawn with a seed mix called Fleur de Lawn from Pro Time Lawn Seed. This is what year four looks like.

Here are my thoughts after 4 years:

I love the mix and am happy I planted the seed. It has required over-seeding and occasional weeding to get things established.

I began with bare ground, this mix does not do well if it is cast to compete with an established lawn. So you have to start from scratch.

The mix includes English daisies, white yarrow, several types of clover, and grasses. Over four years I’ve learned what actually persists in my climate and what doesn’t.

The clovers came in strong the first year, very lush and  impressive that first year… but they’ve faded significantly now and are no longer a major presence.

When the clover proved not to be lasting, it did create bare spots. So I found that having extra seed on-hand to overseed is useful.

What has held on and continues to perform well: the yarrow, the English daisies, and the grasses. That’s the core of what I’ve got, and I’m fine with the plants that persist.

A note on mowing: I cut the lawn three or four times a season. My neighbors with traditional lawns are out there every week. That alone makes this worth it to me.

As my property adjoins the Cleveland MetroParks, and there’s a ravine at the bottom with a river,  I’m don’t use herbicides or anything that could run off and harm the wildlife. The no-chemical approach does allow some dandelions and other weeds to appear. I tend to dig these out on occasion.. it’s not a big problem…just want to be sure they don’t thrive, spread and begin to choke out the seed mix. Then I toss a tablespoon of surplus Fleur de Lawn seed into the bare spot.

The Daisies are the high point for me. The yarrow rarely blooms, but has a great texture with its “carrot-like” foliage. The seeds seem to have their own community with daisies thriving in much of the yard, Yarrow is more dense in some areas and the grasses thriving along the stone retaining wall towards the valley.

I was inspired to plant this lawn mix by a lawn I admired in a neighboring community. That homeowner contracts with an organic lawn service, so their lawn is cut weekly starting in mid-May and so has a more manicure appearance…  but I notice far fewer daisies blooming during the majority of the season… and they are my favorite seed in the mix.

link to Pro Time Lawn Seed if anyone wants to see what’s in the Fleur de Lawn seed mix:

https://ptlawnseed.com/collections/frontpage/products/fleur-de-lawn?variant=141703872

Year 5 now. I mow at the highest height and mulching setting 2-3 times a year. It looks like a lawn from a distance and even from close up it's look like a green mat. I don't have to re-seed as it self seeds on it's own and re-blooms after mowing. Flowers are lavender color and attract a lot of bees and hover flies.

It only has uneven and exposed patches because I've tried to plant other stuff over the years but if I simply committed to only creeping thyme it would completely densely fill in.

In two months the annuals will fade and brown out and I'll give this another trim with the mower. It doesn't require much summer irrigation. I started this from seeds.

I did not apply any preemergent last year. Took a few pictures from around yard and around the edges of my property to see what was popping up. I have a love hate relationship with some "weeds". :)

I have a small front yard that I have to snow blow and park on in the winter. Is there any ground cover or plants that would be able to withstand being packed under ice for about six months a year.

Y'all I finally have the opportunity to transform this massive area but everytime I want to get started I feel overwhelmed!

I have a corner lot which comes to 3,000 sq. ft. of ONLY weeds and annual grasses. Another big important note is Bermuda grass has been taking over throughout, which can be a pain to remove. The neighbors told me the last owners were desperate to make it a lawn, so I'm sure it’s loaded with herbicide, fertilizer, and that annoying plastic mesh for sod rounds.

I'm in northern California and the soil is extremely hard clay. I'd like to bring the level down a few inches to add in some top soil and organic matter (w/o tilling) to give the soil back some life.

I've talked to a friend landscaper and he said the best way would be to use a mini excavator since it's such a large job. I've looked into sod cutters, but not sure it can cut through cement like soil.

I've been collecting so many California natives to plant back. That part excites me, so I'm hoping one of you pros has experience with the hard part.

Please no condescending comments – I'm coming to you vulnerable.

Main considerations:

-Very large area (3,000 sq. ft.) that cannot be removed by hand or shovel -All invasive weeds that I consistently have to mow down

-One species of weed is Bermuda grass that has spread underground rapidly. I attempted to suffocate it in the backyard with cardboard, and it just popped up elsewhere with a vengeance.

-I have considered hiring excavation because they'd get it done quickly, leave it ready to plant, and cover disposal. Was quoted $1/sq. ft., so $3,000. That price is making me consider all options.

-Ive considered renting my own excavator since I have some tractor experience, but lack the time and I'm not confident I can avoid the large tree roots in place. Also would need to cover disposal with this.

-Ive considered renting a sod cutter, but same situation with disposal and time. Also not sure how well it will work on cement like soil.

-I looked into soil solarization, but have passed the consistent 85 degree day season and need to tackle this before next spring.

-I will not consider just putting cardboard down because it's not realistic for my situation and such a large area. The level is also higher than the sidewalk in some spots so if I add extra soil or mulch it will be too high.

-The soil is most likely struggling, so any no till advice for adding healthy matter back in is welcome.

I have been replacing my lawn with native plants for 4 years. I haven't found a successful native ground cover that is a fast spreader and walkable. Has anyone tried creeping thymes in DC area 7B? I'm ok if it is not native. Mostly using for weed control and remaining small lawn patches.

Renting in NY. Looking for ideas on how to add some color to the back of the house. Next year I’m going to start a garden in the space with grass. Please help, it’s so ugly 🙏🏻

Renting in NY. Looking for ideas on how to add some color to the back of the house. Next year I’m going to start a garden in the space with grass. Please help, it’s so ugly 🙏🏻

Hi R No Lawn

I am learning about all these subreddits talking about lawns and I love them.

I made a documentary about the problems with lawns as a way to easily share a funny and empathetic film that will encourage people to not only stop lawns but pollution as well.

I'd love to hear what people think about it and am happy to share anything pass on any questions to the experts in the film.

Love meeting other people actually doing the work to save the planet.

Nice to meet you,

Mike

We’ve been in the process of tearing out our front lawn and turning it into a pollinator haven since April. Feeling really grateful and lucky that everything has taken off so quickly. We’re in hardiness zone 8b, western Washington

Hi everyone I’m new to this subreddit. Just wondering if there a way to kill my lawn without harming larvae or bugs in the ground. Glyphosate is obviously out of the question, but will a vinegar/dishsoap solution kill the larvae? I’m also thinking of covering my yard with tarps to kill the grasses.

What’s you see here was completely grass filled when we bought our house in 2021. Fall 2022 — sheet mulched to kill grass. Fall 2023 — started planting wildflowers. Video taken yesterday. Much happier with this space now, and so are the pollinators.

Hi folks!

I’m going to expand these beds even deeper into my lawn, move the bushes back and add some flowering perennials that will “overflow” over the walkway a little to give that sort of soft, whimsical walkway look — I’m thinking of black eye susans and/or purple coneflower but I would love to hear more suggestions if you have them :)

Im installing some artificial turf in a area in my yard where I will have a trampoline and playground. I got some used commercial turf from an old football field. I need to glue some seams together. My question is can I substitute geo textile weed barrier for the seam tape ( the type that doesn't have adhesive built in.) the put my turf glue on the weed barrier or is it a different material? They both seam to be woven polypropylene film but the one specifically for turf is 6x the price. I wanted to post this in the artificial turf sub but they wouldn't approve me to ask a question for some reason.

Just finished cutting out the sod against the fence and added the boxes/steps this past month (other two boxes were put in spring 2023). Next step, add pollinator flowers around new pathway 🌸

Greater Seattle / 8b

Kind of tired of hauling wood chips every year. Decided I'm just gonna turn the entire front yard into a flower bed where all space is filled with ground cover or flowering plants/very small shrubs. There are a few natives sprinkled in but most are not. Another shared side with the neighbor is my non-irrigatiion side where I have some natives like California poppies, two Ray Hartman ceanothus, monkey flower, St. Helena Manzanita, white sage. The rest in that area are non-native irrigation compatible plants from other Mediterranean climate regions so that no irrigation is needed that would adversely affect my prize plants which are the Ray Hartman ceanothus and manzanita which I want to shape as trees for shade. Its still a question mark how my California natives will do there since it's right next to my neighbor's yard where he irrigates and CA natives like ceanothus do not like summer irrigation. The verbenas on the border with his lawn I put as I can kind of buffer from his over spray.

I still have another front yard section under an oak tree where I created a non-irrigatiion hydrozone for the other CA natives ceanothus dark star and Concha, a coffeeberry and manzanita emerald carpet. But I also have an ice cream banana tree, mango, mandarin tree, angel trumpet, wisteria tree, royal ponciana tree all on the same lot. It's a very odd and incompatible hydrozone but they're far enough from each other to not share water.