Hi All,
I'm getting tired of watering my lawn constantly, trying to keep it half ass green in the heat and drought conditions we've been having for the past three years or so. I was wonder what plant I could use as a ground cover other than grass that looks good, is low growing, needs little care, takes a bit of punishment (light foot traffic), and comes back year after year. Living in zone 6b in beautiful Southwestern Ontario!
Thanks!
Buzzy :)
How about a different grass? You might consider buffalo grass, Buchloe dactyloides. It'll grow well in Ontario, though it's not a native species, prefers medium to dry soil. Also requires little mowing. The main hitch for most people is that it's a warm season grass, which means it looks kinda ratty in cooler temperatures. The other hitch is that it's sensitive to a number of the broadleaf weed herbicides, especially when first planted or if temps are over about 90oF, so if you're enamoured of the fertilizer+herbicide solution proposed for most lawns, this might not be for you. Oh yes, it really doesn't need much fertilizer, and it doesn't really enjoy sandy soil.
And did I mention that you can get away without mowing it in informal lawns?
I believe it's being used on some roadsides in Ontario, specifically those that get salted in the winter, so a call to the local transportation department would probably give you some "lawns" to inspect.
Is your mowest set to its highest possible level?
Also, are you allowing the grass clippings to remain in place to act as mulch, rather than removing them?
How big is your lawn area? If you happen to have "tender" grass, would it be economically feasible to replace it with a tough, resistant grass?
Just my .02 from beautiful (and dry) Southern California. Watching my water bill go up, up, up, not from lawn but from plantings .
-- Aspasia
Yes, The mower is set at the highest level and yes, I do mulch everything back into the grass. I was prefering to stay completely away from grass itself, and low and behold, if my local newspaper didn't have an article on 'chintz thyme' as a ground cover. They mention a few others also. Thanks to all for the replies.
Buzzy :)
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