Nine of us garden designer/writer/rabble-rowser types have been conspiring for a while now to come up with a way to bring attention to the problems with the American Lawn as we know it, but even more so on all the solutions we have to choose from – better lawn types, organic, low-water lawn care, and alternatives to lawn altogether. Because you know where the public is always sent for gardening help, right? Those Extension Service websites. Well, most of them are still telling us to "green up" the lawn in the spring, water a inch every week throughout the summer, and kill that awful clover. Yep, the need for information about better choices is clear.
So we pitched in a hundred bucks each, hired a designer, and put together what we hope will be an inspiring website. A little more scheming resulted in a Facebook page, a Flickr group, and printable materials for other lawn reformersr to use locally.
And today’s our big coming out party!! So mosey on over to LawnReform.org and look around. It’s just a start, and puh-leeze send me your suggestions for books, articles online, success stories about overturning laws and rules that mandate perfect, green lawn, etc. And spread our link – especially to the Resources page – because right now people looking for help online are finding pretty much nothing. Seriously, I Googled "lawn replacement" and found a website that was nothing
but stolen content, including my own. (We reported that sucker to their server and got the site taken down stat.) But soon, people looking for help with find it, and they just might make some changes.
WIN THE AMERICAN MEADOW LAWN BOOK
John Greenlee is a pioneer in the use of sustainable plants as lawn alternatives, many of them regionally native, and he’s teamed up with the fabulous photographer Saxon Holt and Timber Press to create what we can safely assume is a gorgeous and informative book about meadows. To be eligible to win a copy, write a blog post or blog comment on this subject: "I used to have a lawn but now I have____________." Coalition member Susan Morrison is in charge and has all the details on her blog. THIS JUST IN: Greenlee and Timber have a trailer for the book on YouTube.
ON PARTERSHIPS
I love ‘em (obviously) and the Lawn Reform bunch is awesome. And about websites, you know I love them because I have so damn many and I have enough now, thank you.
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Whoopee! Congrats Susan! It’s about time some spirited folks take up this cause! Americans make peace with clover and dandelions~ gail
Congrats Susan!
Best wishes on this new undertaking!
Oh this is wonderful! We’re planting clover all over the “dead zones” of our lawn, and the response from one of the neighbors? “Glad I don’t live next to you.” GRRRRR. Go get ‘em with knowledge, Susan!
I love this idea! I’m definitely heading over to check out the new website.
I used to have a LOT of lawn but this summer installed a 400 sq. ft. rain garden and in late winter will sow about 1,500 sq. ft. of native no-mow grasses around it. Down with turf grass!
What an enterprising idea. I’ll do my best to spread the word through my blog and will send you a link to an article I wrote that was published in some local CT papers about shrinking your lawn that you might find interesting.
Great idea, Susan! This is very timely information and will maybe help to dispel some of the angry “lawn hater” rhetoric. You’ve developed a great resource for folks to get informed about this issue. I’ve written about your new venture and linked from my blog. Congratulations!
This is an amazing idea that I cannot get behind enough. I will link you guys to our site, and mention this in our features. Good luck.
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