Beyond Grass

I like grass. Believe it or not, I even like mowing, although hand mowing and trimming will never be at the top of my list of fun things to do.

There is, though, such a thing as too much grass—acre upon acre of boring green sameness. It just takes up hours of our otherwise “free time” in riding around in circles on noisy gas-guzzling machines. That’s when I turn to groundcovers—not only to cover areas that are difficult to mow, but to break up large expanses of grass, making the yard more interesting to look at.

In installing new groundcovers, the obvious first decision is where to plant them. A good place to begin is to plant difficult-to-mow areas with something that doesn’t have to be mowed. Make sense? So around the house, on a steep slope, in places where grass won’t grow, and along stone walls or around trees are all good places to start.

Make the new bed of generous proportions—if it’s too small it will make the garden look stingy and uncomfortable. And please, no polka dots! A garden bed stuck in the middle of an expanse of lawn for no apparent reason interrupts your eye’s movement across the landscape and causes stress. Have a reason for the shape you choose: in a formal garden, straight edges might be most appropriate, while in an informal country setting, gentle curves that follow the existing topography or lead your eye further into the garden would be best. A good way to tell if your curves are gentle enough is to run your mower along the proposed edge as if the bed were already there. You should be able to mow the edge without backing up or needing trimming tools.

Before planting any new bed, all existing unwanted vegetation has to be removed, roots and all. Every gardener has his or her favorite method of achieving this. My preferred method is to spray with Roundup (the original formula, not the stuff that kills in 24 hours). Using an herbicide is the most effective way of killing established perennial weeds. It is impossible to dig out every root of certain grasses and weeds, and each piece left behind will sprout into a new plant in your new bed. Also, if your new bed is on a slope, killing the vegetation and leaving the dead roots in place (except where you need to dig a hole for the ground cover) helps to control erosion while the ground cover gets established. After spraying, wait three days and you’re ready.

Whether or not to till depends on what you’re planting. If the bed will contain a mixture of groundcover and other plants, tilling is probably the best way to go. If you’ve used an herbicide, till in the old vegetation and just remove the big clumps. The rest will rot, providing organic matter to the soil. (And no, the herbicide residue won’t hurt the desirable plants). The soil can then be improved with whatever amendments are deemed useful to the particular plants and soil type.

If the bed will be planted with a single type of plant on a slope or under and around trees, I would leave the dead vegetation in place and plant through it. On a slope, the dead vegetation will control erosion. And under trees tilling is not only impossible; it will damage the tree roots and bring up weed seeds that are now lying dormant under the ground, compounding the weed problem. (Not to mention that I’m a lazy gardener.) In these situations, instead of amending the soil, choose a plant that will thrive in the available conditions.

A note about herbicides. Be careful in choosing an herbicide. I only use glyphosate, the active ingredient in the original Roundup, and now available in other brands. Unlike other herbicides, glyphosate is only absorbed through green tissue. It does not travel through the ground or remain active in the dead plant. Other chemical labels will tell you not to use it where the roots of desirable plants are in the area. Glyphosate can be sprayed right up to desirable plants and if it doesn’t touch foliage, the plant won’t be harmed.

Next time - Choosing plants and caring for the new bed.