It’s hard to keep that lush, green look through ever-drier summers. There are other options, no mower required
Do we need a lawn? That was the question on my mind back in January. The weather was exceptionally mild and I was mowing the one remaining patch of grass in a garden that had been all lawn when we bought the house nine years ago. Last summer, the same sward was brown and apparently lifeless during the heatwave. That is the problem with a monoculture – if the prevailing conditions don’t suit it, there are no backups. Except that my lawn, spared from weedkiller, was not a true monoculture. Apart from different species of grasses, there were large patches of clover, which relished the heat; unmown, they flowered freely, fuelling countless bees. It was the clover that prompted me to lose my lawn completely.
We are very attached to our lawns and can be obsessive about maintaining them as finely textured, evenly green carpets. A whole industry is built on turf insecurities – mosskillers, weedkillers, fertilisers, not to mention treatments for “diseases” such as chafer grubs, red thread and fairy rings. Drought and rain also challenge the holy grail of the perfect lawn. But there are alternatives. From a gravel garden or a massed planting scheme to an outdoor “room”, you can lose your lawn and recreate its open space without resorting to sterile decking or paving. Here are five ways to do this.
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