Let's Grow Stuff

– Ben Futa: Welcome back to Let's Grow Stuff!

My name is Ben, and today we are converting a lawn into a meadow.

Let's get to it!

Before we dive in, let's meet our homeowners and gardeners, Julie and Tony.

– Julie: We're really big on pollinators and taking care of pollinators.

- Now, we're going to be planting a design meadow in their front lawn behind me here.

And you can see it's already brown and crispy.

This is because we treated it with an herbicide several weeks ago.

We found that this is the quickest process to making this transition, and we also like to think of it as the first, last, and only time we're going to be using chemicals on this space ever again.

We wrote about this and other options for getting rid of your lawn on the Le t's Grow Stuff!

blog.

Before we plant, we're going to spread a 3-inch layer of bark mulch across our entire planting area.

This will help to suppress weeds, moderate soil moisture, and help our new plants get established.

We're using mulch as an establishment tool only and not as a long-term management practice.

Now, it's time to lay out our design.

And we're going to do this in two layers, beginning with our statement-making flowering plants.

They're all perennials, and many are native plants.

You'll notice we're using many smaller plants here, and these are called plugs.

Plugs are far quicker, easier, and cheaper to use when you're trying to cover this much space compared with gallon-sized plants.

Most retail nurseries don't sell plugs.

However, you can order them online.

When creating patterns, think of it like quilting.

We want our entire canvas to be cohesive and feel connected.

I like to lay out one variety at a time and work from one side of the yard to another.

Designed plant communities like this one are most successful when they look intentional and designed because this helps to avoid the negative perception of neglect.

Depending on your situation, you might want to leave a path for your mail carrier as we did here.

Well, we have our first layer of plants down.

We're going to plant these right away because they have delicate roots, and so we want to make sure these plants get into the ground before the sun hits them.

You have a couple of options when it comes to planting tools.

We prefer this 3" auger bit attached to a battery drill.

It makes the process go much faster compared to planting each by hand with something like a soil knife.

You can likely snag an auger like this for under $20, and it's a worthwhile investment for this part of the process.

Well, our first layer of plugs are in the ground.

And at this point, if you need to stop and take a break before you get to planting your grasses, that's totally fine.

Just make sure to give your plugs a good water first.

When it comes to laying out grasses, think of them as the glue and mortar between the gaps of these anchor flowering plants, aiming for 12- to 18-inch spacing between all of our plants when we're done.

Well, all of our plants are in the ground.

So now, the only thing left to do is give them a good soak.

[water flowing, spraying] This first soak will help to get plants established.

And going forward, Julie and Tony will need to water every three to four days unless we get a significant rain.

The focus should be to water infrequently and deeply rather than shallow and every day.

This will help to promote deep root growth as plants search out sources of water.

Well, there you have it.

This former lawn is well on its way to becoming a robust and vibrant meadow.

If you're looking for more resources on how you can make this transition in your own landscape, don't forget to check out our website, letsgrowstuff.org, for more videos, tips, tricks, and a blog to help you grow a better garden.

So until next time, happy gardening!

Funding for Let's Grow Stuff!

is provided by the Focus Fund for Wisconsin Programs and Friends of PBS Wisconsin.