A tapestry lawn (also referred to as a grass-free lawn) [1] is a lawn format that has no grass component.
It uses a variety of different mowing-tolerant perennial forb species in combination. The overall visual effect of the many species of plants grown together is referred to as a tapestry. The format is based on research carried out at the University of Reading by Lionel Smith. Developed with a temperate humid oceanic climate in mind, it applies ecological principles and horticultural practices to address some of the ecological and environmental issues associated with traditional grass lawns. [2] [3] [4]
The traditional practice of mowing is the key management tool for tapestry lawns. The need for a tapestry lawn to be mowed is reduced by up to two-thirds compared to traditional mowing regimes [5] because of the absence of grasses and the growth patterns of forbs. A consequence of this is that greater numbers of both plant and insect species are able to inhabit the lawn. [6]
In tapestry lawns, mowing not only operates to maintain a low, lawn-like aesthetic and indicate ongoing care and management; it repeatedly modulates the light environment and intentionally creates physiological stress to the lawn plants. The relatively taller plant species used in a tapestry lawn, such as creeping buttercups ( Ranunculus repens ), gradually take up more of the available light as they grow, creating internal shade within the lawn and stressing the lower-growing plants e.g. Bellis perennis (daisy). When mowing is applied it removes the taller growth. This allows light to reach the light-starved low-growing plants and substantially stresses the tall plants by reducing their size and photosynthetic area. The plants cut by the mower stop growing and use reserves of carbohydrates to repair the damage. Once the damage has been repaired, they begin to regrow from a reduced-size plant. Meanwhile, the lower-growing and prostrate plants take advantage of the after-mowing window of opportunity to access light previously blocked. In this way both low-growing prostrate plants and the somewhat taller plants can be grown together. Repeatedly changing conditions mean advantage moves from tall plant to prostrate plant and back again in a cycle linked to the frequency of mowing. With no vertical-growing grasses, the need for mowing is substantially reduced. [7] Tapestry lawns do not benefit from added fertilisers or traditional lawn interventions such as raking; these damage the plant community and the lawn and are best avoided.
An increase in plant diversity and decrease in mowing can increase the overall biodiversity of a green space. Mowing can cause insect mortality through both the action of mowing and the resulting reduced habitat for insects in the lawn. Reduced mowing regimes enabled by the tapestry lawn format offer protection and more abundant food resources for arthropods than a traditional grass lawn. The combination of multiple forb (non-grass) species extends the availability of pollen and nectar for pollinating insects. A study of pollinator interactions with Tapestry Lawns at Reading University (UK) suggests that they can be visited extensively by pollinating insects with around 80 times more pollinators visiting trial tapestry lawns than conventional lawns.
Access to blooms and long stems gives arthropods safe hiding places to hibernate. [8] [9] Growing a mix of both native and non-native plant species in tapestry lawns has been shown to increase insect abundance and diversity. [6]
Suitable plant species for the tapestry lawn tend to have origins in northwestern Europe, but can include species from other temperate regions: [7]
The primary component species of tapestry lawns all show the capacity for clonal reproduction, usually via runners, rhizomes and stolons. Other component species include those that are able to successfully set seed in a mown environment e.g. daisies (Bellis perennis). Non-clonal species and those that do not manage to set seed in a mown environment can also be used, although these may require replacement at the end of their natural lifespan.
Some of the plants used have a role in providing simple ground cover (Leptinella sp) and evergreen cover in winter (Ranunculus repens). Some species can be herbaceous and give autumn foliage colour (Argentina anserina); some produce flowers and extend the floral season from spring to autumn (Veronica chamaedrys, Parochetus communis). The use of cultivars brings foliage effects (Ajuga reptans 'Burgundy Glow'), and allows for lawn gardening – where plants are added and subtracted according to requirements.
A wide variety of plant species is used, with a minimum of twelve different species and no upper limit, since environmentally unsuitable species will soon die out. [10] When more species are used there is greater scope for aesthetic choices, extending floral period and resource opportunities for pollinating insects and less chance of any one species becoming dominant in the lawn.
Tapestry lawns can be established using seeds or plugs from a mixture of native and non-native forb species. Starting with plugs gives the immature forbs a higher probability of establishment and decreases the competition with germinating grass seeds in the soil seed bank. [11] Plants should be selected for their ability to spread vegetatively, or have high rates of seed survival and germination in order to cover any bare soil and decrease maintenance and replanting. [5] Plants can be arranged in a random pattern or with a purposeful design. A mixture of colours, heights, textures, and flowering times is used to maximize the aesthetic appeal of the lawn throughout the year. [10]
A wildlife garden is an environment created with the purpose to serve as a sustainable haven for surrounding wildlife. Wildlife gardens contain a variety of habitats that cater to native and local plants, birds, amphibians, reptiles, insects, mammals and so on, and are meant to sustain locally native flora and fauna. Other names this type of gardening goes by can vary, prominent ones being habitat, ecology, and conservation gardening.
A lawn is an area of soil-covered land planted with grasses and other durable plants such as clover which are maintained at a short height with a lawn mower and used for aesthetic and recreational purposes—it is also commonly referred to as part of a garden. Lawns are usually composed only of grass species, subject to weed and pest control, maintained in a green color, and are regularly mowed to ensure an acceptable length. Lawns are used around houses, apartments, commercial buildings and offices. Many city parks also have large lawn areas. In recreational contexts, the specialised names turf, pitch, field or green may be used, depending on the sport and the continent.
Organic lawn management or organic turf management or organic land care or organic landscaping is the practice of establishing and caring for an athletic turf field or garden lawn and landscape using organic horticulture, without the use of manufactured inputs such as synthetic pesticides or artificial fertilizers. It is a component of organic land care and organic sustainable landscaping which adapt the principles and methods of sustainable gardening and organic farming to the care of lawns and gardens.
A meadow is an open habitat or field, vegetated by grasses, herbs, and other non-woody plants. Trees or shrubs may sparsely populate meadows, as long as these areas maintain an open character. Meadows can occur naturally under favourable conditions, but are often artificially created from cleared shrub or woodland for the production of hay, fodder, or livestock. Meadow habitats, as a group, are characterized as "semi-natural grasslands", meaning that they are largely composed of species native to the region, with only limited human intervention.
Ranunculus is a large genus of about 1700 to more than 1800 species of flowering plants in the family Ranunculaceae. Members of the genus are known as buttercups, spearworts and water crowfoots.
Trifolium repens, the white clover, is a herbaceous perennial plant in the bean family Fabaceae. It is native to Europe, including the British Isles, and central Asia and is one of the most widely cultivated types of clover. It has been widely introduced worldwide as a forage crop, and is now also common in most grassy areas of North America, Australia and New Zealand. The species includes varieties often classed as small, intermediate and large, according to height, which reflects petiole length. The term 'white clover' is applied to the species in general, 'Dutch clover' is often applied to intermediate varieties, and 'ladino clover' is applied to large varieties.
Ranunculus repens, the creeping buttercup, is a flowering plant in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae, native to Europe, Asia and northwestern Africa. It is also called creeping crowfoot and sitfast.
Sod, also known as turf, is the upper layer of soil with the grass growing on it that is often harvested into rolls.
Bellis perennis, the daisy, is a European species of the family Asteraceae, often considered the archetypal species of the name daisy. To distinguish this species from other plants known as daisies, it is sometimes qualified as common daisy, lawn daisy or English daisy.
Asclepias syriaca, commonly called common milkweed, butterfly flower, silkweed, silky swallow-wort, and Virginia silkweed, is a species of flowering plant. It is native to southern Canada and much of the United States east of the Rocky Mountains, excluding the drier parts of the prairies. It is in the genus Asclepias, the milkweeds. It grows in sandy soils as well as other kinds of soils in sunny areas.
Ranunculus bulbosus, commonly known as bulbous buttercup or St. Anthony's turnip, is a perennial flowering plant in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae. It has bright yellow flowers, and deeply divided, three-lobed long-petioled basal leaves.
Prairie restoration is a conservation effort to restore prairie lands that were destroyed due to industrial, agricultural, commercial, or residential development. The primary aim is to return areas and ecosystems to their previous state before their depletion.
Ranunculus acris is a species of flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae, and is one of the more common buttercups across Europe and temperate Eurasia. Common names include meadow buttercup, tall buttercup, common buttercup and giant buttercup.
Natural landscaping, also called native gardening, is the use of native plants including trees, shrubs, groundcover, and grasses which are local to the geographic area of the garden.
Plant reproduction is the production of new offspring in plants, which can be accomplished by sexual or asexual reproduction. Sexual reproduction produces offspring by the fusion of gametes, resulting in offspring genetically different from either parent. Asexual reproduction produces new individuals without the fusion of gametes, resulting in clonal plants that are genetically identical to the parent plant and each other, unless mutations occur.
Lupinus perennis is a flowering plant in the family Fabaceae.
Salt pannes and pools are water retaining depressions located within salt and brackish marshes. Pools tend to retain water during the summer months between high tides, whereas pannes generally do not. Salt pannes generally start when a mat of organic debris is deposited upon existing vegetation, killing it. This creates a slight depression in the surrounding vegetation which retains water for varying periods of time. Upon successive cycles of inundation and evaporation the panne develops an increased salinity greater than that of the larger body of water. This increased salinity dictates the type of flora and fauna able to grow within the panne. Salt pools are also secondary formations, though the exact mechanism(s) of formation are not well understood; some have predicted they will increase in size and abundance in the future due to rising sea levels.
Asclepias meadii is a rare species of milkweed known by the common name Mead's milkweed. It is native to the American Midwest, where it was probably once quite widespread in the tallgrass prairie. Today much of the Midwest has been fragmented and claimed for agriculture, and the remaining prairie habitat is degraded.
Spiranthes diluvialis is a rare species of orchid known as Ute lady's tresses. The species name diluvialis means "of the flood". It is native to the western United States, where there are scattered, mostly small occurrences in the states of Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. An occurrence was recently discovered in southern British Columbia. The plant faces a number of threats to its existence. It is a federally listed threatened species of the United States.
A clover lawn is composed of clover and can be used as an alternative to grass lawns. It requires less maintenance than a traditional lawn and utilizes less water. White clover is the plant most frequently used. Red clover may also be used.