by Christine Maccabee
What is Delawnification?
First of all, delawnification is not a word. However, its meaning should be pretty clear. At the People’s Climate March in Washington, D.C., this April, one of the speakers talked about the importance of creating and allowing more habitat for native plants and reducing the size of our lawns.
Considering that land as habitat for wildlife is being swiftly devoured by development around the world—turning forests into expansive grassy areas, or into plantations for palm oil, or into parking lots, or you name it—the idea of delawnification is a good idea.
Now, before I offend lawn lovers of the world, I want to say I am not anti-lawn. I understand the need for lawn areas for children to play and adults to play golf or croquet and other polite games of society. Lawns do have a place in our lives. The problem with huge expansive lawns of extravagant size, acre upon acre of lawn, where no one walks or plays, is that those lawns gobble up millions of gallons of gasoline, polluting the air as well as the peace and quiet we all need. Noise pollution is a very real thing in the suburbs, and even the countryside where I live.
When I first moved to my country home twenty-eight years ago, I went crazy with grass seed in order to control erosion of the soil around our home. Being on a slope, it seemed essential. I remember being horrified by the interminable rain that threatened to wash away all of our topsoil, so I was out in the rain throwing grass seeds like a maniac.
However, after stabilizing the slopes, I began to see possibilities of creating large areas of wildflowers, and so began my personal process of delawnification. I killed off grass by putting down black plastic on those same slopes I had sown in grass years before. Leaving the plastic on for one year, I was amazed how wonderfully rich the soil had become underneath it. This actually is a great time for one to put plastic down. By the autumn, you can lift it and find nothing but friable, rich soil. Then, throw a nice mix of wildflower seeds in the soil, and voila! The following spring, there will be flowers galore as habitat for bees and butterflies. There will always be volunteer plants as well, such as daisy fleabane and golden rods, perhaps queen ann’s lace (a non-native, but then, so am I) and maybe even wild wine berries (yum!).
In my meadows, I learned to identify and make teas using medicinals like yarrow, vervain, purple clover, and St. John’s Wort. On one bank, I began growing cucumbers and squash, mulching them with straw and manure from the goat pen and, yes, grass clippings! Grass clippings make a wonderful natural mulch. Also, planting trees on large parcels of land creates shade, as well as multiple advantages for birds and insects, even hummingbirds. I have many gorgeous mimosa trees now, which are a magnet for swallowtail butterflies and hummingbirds. If one allows wild plants to grow between the trees, mowing but once a year in the fall, amazing plants may emerge. Flowers such as black-eyed susans, phlox, even fern in wet areas, may come forth without trying. I have not mowed my old four-acre hay field for two years now due to the small dogwood trees coming up. Once I identify any small trees and protect them from deer, then I will mow in between all trees in the autumn.
The mowing of old fields once a year is especially important to keep the invasives controlled. I learned the hard way why that is important (no details here).
Enough advice as to how you can delawnify your lawn. It does take effort, and, yes, it is not everyone’s cup of tea, but it is one definite way to contribute to the health of our precious planet. Some people dedicate a small portion of their yards to flowering plants—native and non-native—and the result can be lovely. Indeed, I have seen some amazing yards around town this year. Yes, you have something very valuable (not in dollars and cents) if you own land, so have fun making a plan to expand your botanical haven.
As I always say, every little bit helps…and Mother Earth thanks you!
