So Long, Lawn: Replacing Turf with a Water-Wise Tapestry

From Thirsty Grass to Year-Round Beauty

Seattle designer Stacie Crooks replaced much of her lawn with a mixture of perennials and shrubs that survive on half the water. On a moderate slope, the new beds offer a sweeping view from the street and look great year-round.

Process

• Rented sod cutter to remove turf; stacked sod with a "free" sign—gone in five hours.
• Tilled in 6-inch layer of planting mix (compost, bark, peat, sand), removing roots and large rocks.
• Planted sweeps of perennials and shrubs at 6-8 inch intervals with organic fertilizer (5-5-5).

Plant Palette

• Evergreen shrubs: Ceanothus thyrsiflorus 'Victoria' (blue spring flowers), Senecio greyi 'Sunshine' (silvery foliage), Viburnum davidii (metallic purple winter fruit), V. tinus 'Spring Bouquet' (white winter flowers).
• Grassy foliage: Blue oat grass (Helictotrichon sempervirens), variegated Japanese sedge (Carex morrowii expallida), Phormium 'Apricot Beauty'.
• Perennials: Aster x frikartii (lavender fall), Euphorbia characias wulfenii and E. x martinii (chartreuse spring), Penstemon x gloxinioides 'Alice Hindley' (pale lilac) and 'Sour Grapes' (violet-red), Phygelius x rectus 'African Queen' (terra-cotta) and 'Moonraker' (pale yellow), Rudbeckia fulgida sullivantii 'Goldsturm' (yellow summer), Sedum 'Autumn Joy' (raspberry fall).

Contact: Stacie Crooks, Crooks Garden Design (crooksgardens@aol.com)