Alternative Lawn Overview
Historically lawns were a mixture of clover and turfgrass. This means that the alternative lawn movement of today is more accurately described as a return to a more species rich lawn. In many ways, the “traditional” lawn with its expanse of uniform turfgrass is actually the “alternative” to the original lawn. The concept of a weed free lawn only took hold in the late 1940s and early 1950s, and can be traced back to Levittown and other suburban and affordable housing built to accommodate GIs returning from World War II and their families. The importance of weed free lawns was promoted in newsletters that went out to new homeowners in these subdivisions. This ideal coincided with the invention of the rotary mower, weed free grass seed, and fertilizers and pesticides. Clover only then obtained its status as a “weed” because early 2,4-D broadleaf herbicides killed it, as well as other broad leaf plants that previously were an accepted part of home lawns.
There is a growing movement in re-wilding (allowing natural processes to determine the composition and shape of vegetation, accompanied over time with colonization by insects, birds and other wildlife), however, many homeowners value lawns as a place for children and pets to play, for recreation, and for a park-like area for entertaining.
A lawn with a mixture of grass, clover and other broad leaf plants, such as chickweed and violets, is a nice compromise between traditional lawns and diverse native plant communities. Such a mixture still needs to be mowed, but much less often, and most years requires little to no water, and requires no fertilization and no herbicides or pesticides. An added advantage of such a lawn is the support the flowering plants, especially clover, provide to pollinators (honeybees, native bees, butterflies and moths).
Please note: Different towns, counties, and other municipalities may have rules for what can and can’t be done in a yard. Be sure to do your research first!
Alternative Lawn Species
Landscape Use | Species Profile | Edible | Shade Tolerance | Deer Resistance | Wildlife Supported |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ground Cover | Dutch White Clover | Yes | Full sun to partial shade | None | Invertebrates; Various mammal and bird species |
Ground Cover | Wood Sorrel | Yes | Full sun to partial shade | Yes | Invertebrates, flowers used by pollinators |
Ground Cover | Chickweed | Yes | Full sun to partial shade | None | Invertebrates, flowers used by pollinators |
Ground Cover | Dooryard/Common Violet | Yes | Full sun to partial shade | Yes | Invertebrates, flowers used by pollinators; host plant for regal frittillary larvae |
Ground Cover | Woodland Strawberry | Yes | Full sun to partial shade | Yes | Invertebrates; Various bird species including waxwings, chickadees, cardinals, orioles, and wrens |
Learn More:
- Iowa Public Radio, Garden Variety Podcast: Keeping that Lawn Green
- Native Seed Suppliers
- Landscaping for Wildlife
- Native Tree Maintenance
- Lawn Alternatives to Turf Grass
- Plant. Grow. Fly. - Register your Lawn as a Pollinator Garden
- How to Create a Pollinator Lawn
- Xerces Society
- University of Minnesota Extension and Outreach
- University of Northern Iowa Good Neighbor Lawns
- Audubon Native Plants Database
- Mini-Forest Revolution by Hannah Lewis
- Nature’s Best Hope: A new Approach to Conservation that Starts in Your Yard by Douglas Tallamy