Can I Have a Lawn-Free Garden That’s Kind to the Environment?
Try these tips to help you plan a garden without grass that’s still leafy, lush and eco-friendly
There are several reasons to do without a lawn in your garden, but many of us worry that a lack of grass will cause problems for wildlife and the environment. There are, however, plenty of things you can do to minimise any negative effects. Take a look at this guide to get you started.
Green up damp ground
In damp areas, it’s possible to get bare patches in between paving stones, but there are various plants that cope well with moist conditions and will provide a mossy effect.
Often sold as a houseplant, Soleirolia soleirolii (mind-your-own-business or baby’s tears), can also be found outdoors smothering a drain – this is because it does well in moist, shady areas. You also see it in living walls and Japanese-style gardens, where it’s used as a substitute for moss.
Due to its slender, spreading stems that root as they run, the tiny leaves of this mat-forming creeping perennial form a soft mound, similar to a deep-pile carpet.
Another good choice for damp areas is Lysimachia nummularia ‘Aurea’ (golden creeping Jenny), a bright-green trailing foliage plant that has cup-shaped yellow flowers in summer. This is a good plant for softening the edges of a pond or low wall and, as it grows rapidly, it will soon hide unsightly features, too.
In damp areas, it’s possible to get bare patches in between paving stones, but there are various plants that cope well with moist conditions and will provide a mossy effect.
Often sold as a houseplant, Soleirolia soleirolii (mind-your-own-business or baby’s tears), can also be found outdoors smothering a drain – this is because it does well in moist, shady areas. You also see it in living walls and Japanese-style gardens, where it’s used as a substitute for moss.
Due to its slender, spreading stems that root as they run, the tiny leaves of this mat-forming creeping perennial form a soft mound, similar to a deep-pile carpet.
Another good choice for damp areas is Lysimachia nummularia ‘Aurea’ (golden creeping Jenny), a bright-green trailing foliage plant that has cup-shaped yellow flowers in summer. This is a good plant for softening the edges of a pond or low wall and, as it grows rapidly, it will soon hide unsightly features, too.
Cover shady areas
It can be difficult for grass to flourish in patches that get little sun, but there are various plants that do well in shady areas and can act as a soft, spreading lawn.
Ajuga reptans, for example, is a great plant for shady areas of the garden and is usually grown for its evergreen foliage rather than its flowers. However, in late spring and early summer, you’ll be delighted by the short spikes of deep blue-violet flowers. This plant makes a lovely low-maintenance ground cover to keep your space green. A good choice would be Ajuga reptans ‘Black Scallop’, which can also tolerate sunlight.
Pratia pedunculata has tiny, pretty, star-shaped blue flowers. However, it can be very invasive and many people complain they can’t get rid of it once it’s entered the garden.
The mat-forming and evergreen Pachysandra terminalis (Japanese spurge) is also a great plant for shady areas. It flowers in summer, producing upright clusters of tiny white flowers, but most of the year you’re blessed with rosettes of dark-green leaves serrated at the edges. This plant does very well in areas of bare ground between deciduous shrubs and trees.
It can be difficult for grass to flourish in patches that get little sun, but there are various plants that do well in shady areas and can act as a soft, spreading lawn.
Ajuga reptans, for example, is a great plant for shady areas of the garden and is usually grown for its evergreen foliage rather than its flowers. However, in late spring and early summer, you’ll be delighted by the short spikes of deep blue-violet flowers. This plant makes a lovely low-maintenance ground cover to keep your space green. A good choice would be Ajuga reptans ‘Black Scallop’, which can also tolerate sunlight.
Pratia pedunculata has tiny, pretty, star-shaped blue flowers. However, it can be very invasive and many people complain they can’t get rid of it once it’s entered the garden.
The mat-forming and evergreen Pachysandra terminalis (Japanese spurge) is also a great plant for shady areas. It flowers in summer, producing upright clusters of tiny white flowers, but most of the year you’re blessed with rosettes of dark-green leaves serrated at the edges. This plant does very well in areas of bare ground between deciduous shrubs and trees.
Use vertical zones
If you want to save floor space in a confined area, consider growing climbing plants up walls and fences as an engineered ‘green wall’.
Vertical greenery can deflect water away from walls in heavy rain, help to regulate temperature and alleviate noise pollution. It can also provide nesting habitats for birds and insects to maintain biodiversity in your garden.
There are some lovely climbing plants that will add scent to your garden, such as honeysuckle, roses and jasmine, which will also encourage bees and butterflies.
On the Up and Up: Overcoming Green Wall Challenges
If you want to save floor space in a confined area, consider growing climbing plants up walls and fences as an engineered ‘green wall’.
Vertical greenery can deflect water away from walls in heavy rain, help to regulate temperature and alleviate noise pollution. It can also provide nesting habitats for birds and insects to maintain biodiversity in your garden.
There are some lovely climbing plants that will add scent to your garden, such as honeysuckle, roses and jasmine, which will also encourage bees and butterflies.
On the Up and Up: Overcoming Green Wall Challenges
Create drainage
Without getting into too much detail here, one of the issues with a paved area is surface water and ensuring there’s adequate drainage. There are a number of permeable grouts and jointing compounds on the market that can be used to make sure the surface water drains correctly.
It’s also essential to make sure the paving has an adequate fall, no matter how small the area, in order to alleviate ponding, which inevitably causes problems during heavy rain or icy conditions.
Planting between paving not only looks good and retains the green feel of a garden, it can also help with drainage issues, as you’re not sealing the joints between the slabs.
Without getting into too much detail here, one of the issues with a paved area is surface water and ensuring there’s adequate drainage. There are a number of permeable grouts and jointing compounds on the market that can be used to make sure the surface water drains correctly.
It’s also essential to make sure the paving has an adequate fall, no matter how small the area, in order to alleviate ponding, which inevitably causes problems during heavy rain or icy conditions.
Planting between paving not only looks good and retains the green feel of a garden, it can also help with drainage issues, as you’re not sealing the joints between the slabs.
Grow in gravel
Gravel is very attractive to self-seeding plants, which revel in the free-draining stone. The result can be very natural, and can prevent weeds that impede the growth of self-seeders.
There’s more to laying a gravel path than merely throwing it over another surface, though. You can either lay a special permeable membrane, which will stop weeds coming through but allow water to drain, or, better still, lay a firm foundation or sub-base of hardcore. The hardcore will prevent the top layer of thin, crushed stone from becoming dislodged and will help bed the path properly. A good sub-base will also prevent larger stones from the sub-base appearing through the gravel in an unsightly way.
Browse more marvellous images of garden paths
Gravel is very attractive to self-seeding plants, which revel in the free-draining stone. The result can be very natural, and can prevent weeds that impede the growth of self-seeders.
There’s more to laying a gravel path than merely throwing it over another surface, though. You can either lay a special permeable membrane, which will stop weeds coming through but allow water to drain, or, better still, lay a firm foundation or sub-base of hardcore. The hardcore will prevent the top layer of thin, crushed stone from becoming dislodged and will help bed the path properly. A good sub-base will also prevent larger stones from the sub-base appearing through the gravel in an unsightly way.
Browse more marvellous images of garden paths
Entice the bees
Using sweet-smelling creeping thyme as a ground cover will help attract bees, as well as create scented mounds to brush past. For a white mat form, opt for Thymus serpyllum ‘Snowdrift’, which has whorls of two-lipped white flowers in summer.
Thymus serpyllum ‘Minor’ is an evergreen with tiny, rich green-grey foliage. In the summer months, it becomes smothered with mini purple-pink blooms that join together to form a block of bright colour.
For a good, bushy thyme, often used in cooking, look for Thymus ‘Silver Posie’, which has white-margined leaves and pale-pink flowers. Thyme thrives in well-drained, dry, sunny positions, so make sure it doesn’t become waterlogged.
Another scented creeping plant, often used instead of a lawn, is the herbaceous chamomile. The aromatic leaves form a dense mat, and daisy-like white flowers are produced in the summer.
If planted in shady areas, the lawn will become patchy, so choose open, sunnier sites. Only trim the flowers in late summer to prevent dead patches, and don’t walk on a newly planted chamomile lawn for at least 12 weeks.
Using sweet-smelling creeping thyme as a ground cover will help attract bees, as well as create scented mounds to brush past. For a white mat form, opt for Thymus serpyllum ‘Snowdrift’, which has whorls of two-lipped white flowers in summer.
Thymus serpyllum ‘Minor’ is an evergreen with tiny, rich green-grey foliage. In the summer months, it becomes smothered with mini purple-pink blooms that join together to form a block of bright colour.
For a good, bushy thyme, often used in cooking, look for Thymus ‘Silver Posie’, which has white-margined leaves and pale-pink flowers. Thyme thrives in well-drained, dry, sunny positions, so make sure it doesn’t become waterlogged.
Another scented creeping plant, often used instead of a lawn, is the herbaceous chamomile. The aromatic leaves form a dense mat, and daisy-like white flowers are produced in the summer.
If planted in shady areas, the lawn will become patchy, so choose open, sunnier sites. Only trim the flowers in late summer to prevent dead patches, and don’t walk on a newly planted chamomile lawn for at least 12 weeks.
Bring in water
Whatever the size of your garden, introducing an element of water will naturally attract wildlife and be kind to the environment. If you’re building a natural pond, try to use a local stone, so it blends in seamlessly with the surroundings.
Plant up around the water feature to encourage more wildlife, such as dragonflies, frogs and birds, as well as a host of other amphibians and insects.
Tell us
Are you planning a lawn-free garden? In the Comments below, tell us what you’re planting instead of grass or share how you’re landscaping your garden. And remember to like this story, save the images and join the conversation.
More
Need some customised advice on which plants will thrive in your garden? Find a local landscape contractor or gardener who can recommend plants for your light levels and climate
Whatever the size of your garden, introducing an element of water will naturally attract wildlife and be kind to the environment. If you’re building a natural pond, try to use a local stone, so it blends in seamlessly with the surroundings.
Plant up around the water feature to encourage more wildlife, such as dragonflies, frogs and birds, as well as a host of other amphibians and insects.
Tell us
Are you planning a lawn-free garden? In the Comments below, tell us what you’re planting instead of grass or share how you’re landscaping your garden. And remember to like this story, save the images and join the conversation.
More
Need some customised advice on which plants will thrive in your garden? Find a local landscape contractor or gardener who can recommend plants for your light levels and climate
There are so many plants that work well in between paving and will act as a creeping carpet. This is useful if you don’t have or want a lawn, as it adds greenery and allows water to drain away.
Pictured here is Ajuga reptans, but campanulas also work well as ground cover and are classified as either annuals, herbaceous or evergreen perennials.
Campanula poscharskyana is a semi-evergreen, spreading perennial form of this trailing bellflower, which creates a low mound of rounded leaves. The stems bear lovely blue-violet, star-shaped flowers from spring well into autumn. Campanula looks lovely popping up between steps and stones, and forms a beautiful blue and green carpet.
You could also opt for Campanula portenschlagiana, which is a very vigorous form. It has less of a trailing habit, but it still bears bell- or star-shaped flowers on branching stems, forming a dense, low-growing mat.