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“We spend at least as much on lawn care — estimated to be $30 billion a year — as we do on books.” – Doug Stewart, Smithsonian
“Homeowners use up to 10 times more chemical pesticides per acre on their lawns than farmers use on crops.” – Matthew Romanelli
“Lawns in this country already occupy more land than any other crops, including wheat and corn.” – Doug Stewart, Smithsonian |
Not grass, but knot weed, Polygonum (proper name) is an ornamental, low-growing, turf-like plant that I’ve been cultivating at my farm for several years now. Why? It’s easy to get rid of — easier than grass when you decide it’s time to go; it’s tough as nails (grows in my gravel roadways); it’s drought resistant (actually, I think it lives without water!); it hugs the ground (permanently mowed); and it stays green. It never needs limed, fertilized, aerated, dethatched or butyled. It’s a scruffy stranger that I’m head over heels mad about.
I’ve helped it spread by clipping the tiny flowers full of promise and carrying them with me to places where I need tough turf, like in front of my porch steps, my chicken coop, or along the base of rock walls. I love the way it slowly spreads into my gravel pathways and roads. On some of my compacted roads, it’s found a permanent home up the middle, giving me velvety green relief from crushed granite rock. I even have a sturdy patch at the base of my steps; and when it rains, it’s the perfect doormat for wiping my muddy feet.
To buy some Polygonum aviculare seed, go to www.sandmountainherbs.com/knot_grass.html.
Find more lawn alterntaive solutions in The Shoulder to the Wheel issue of MaryJanesFarm magazine. Click here to find out how to order your copy today.