The grass alternative

Crouched down weeding grass seedlings and other weeny plants from between our ‘alternative’ lawn plants, I know full well why we use grass for lawns, and how easy mowing is compared to this. So much for low maintenance, although these plants are beginning to knit together now, so it should work. Third time lucky and all that.

The idea was that it wouldn’t matter if we went away during the mowing season if our lawn wasn’t grass. It’s only a five foot circle anyway and we only walk on it to reach the borders that need work on them. It also gets the drips and shade from our rotary washing line and the past-its-sell-by-date native cherry.

First we tried red clover but used seed that turned out to contain white clover too. The idea was to have red clover because it doesn’t spread by runners. White clover does. And we mistakenly bought an agricultural red clover that grows up and up, so looked as trampled as it felt when we walked over it.

Next idea. There’s plenty of pearlwort (Sagina procumbens) that grows in our area. It’s considered a weed but makes good ground cover. So we scraped it up from around and about, put it in place … and went away for far too long. A hot sunny spell before the trees could cast any shade did for that idea.

Back to a weedy patch again, trying to revert to grass. But then we found a great little plant, New Zealand brass buttons (Cotula squalida is its old name; Leptinella squalida its new). Squalid it isn't, but a teeny ferny-leaved creeping plant with bronze-ish leaves in winter and bright green cheerful growth once spring begins (there's a photo on Gardening Masterclass). Likes semi-shade, likes some sun, doesn’t mind a bit of being walked on, so we dug up some from the drive side where it has successfully spread (over the tarmac as much as the ground, so will need a feed soon enough) and transplanted it into our circle. Covered it with fleece to stop the young blackbirds pulling it out in case it was an earthworm, and it was happy enough until the heatwave, when it sulked a bit. But now – it’s romping away. Still having to weed in the clumps though – and guess what’s growing really well in the gaps? Yep, it’s pearlwort. But at least between the two of them, we’ve got an almost completely green circle now.