lawn alternatives

Lawn Gone! Book Party, Review and Giveaways

by Rebecca Sweet
Thumbnail image for Lawn Gone! Book Party, Review and Giveaways

To celebrate the release of Pam Penick’s new book, Lawn Gone! Low-Maintenance, Sustainable, Attractive Alternatives for Your Yard, you’re all invited to attend her Lawn Gone Book Party – with some very cool party prizes! Six garden blogging friends and I are hosting 7 great giveaways this week, all related to the theme of – [...]

Read the full article →

Cornerstone Garden Grasses

by Rebecca Sweet
Thumbnail image for Cornerstone Garden Grasses

Sonoma’s Cornerstone Gardens is one of my very favorite public gardens to visit any time of year.  In my opinion, though, the fall is the best time of all. Not only are the summer crowds long gone but the colors of fall are just beginning to explode.  No longer filled with grapes, the surrounding vineyards [...]

Read the full article →

Gorgeous grasses in the garden

by Rebecca Sweet
Thumbnail image for Gorgeous grasses in the garden

If you’re familiar with my blog, then you know I love grasses.  And luckily they’re becoming more and more common in most every nursery, with many selections to choose from.   Yes, grasses are all the rage and for good reason. Why?  Generally speaking, grasses will grow in just about any type of soil, most [...]

Read the full article →

Garden Designers Roundtable – What’s lawn doing in Hell?

by Rebecca Sweet
Thumbnail image for Garden Designers Roundtable – What’s lawn doing in Hell?

Let me state up front that I’m not a hater when it comes to lawns.  There, I’ve said it. If you have a lawn and you or your kids actually use it, then it’s okay in my book.  Especially if you don’t have unrealistic expectations that you need to saturate your garden with chemicals to keep [...]

Read the full article →

So you want to create a no-lawn front garden?

by Rebecca Sweet
Thumbnail image for So you want to create a no-lawn front garden?

As a garden designer, I’ve noticed a growing trend over the past few years: more and more people are wanting to replace their unused, water chugging, labor intensive front lawn with a beautiful low-water, low-maintenance garden. These days it seems no-lawn gardens make up about 75% of my business.  The remaining 25% are people who’d [...]

Read the full article →

Design tips for a low-water Meadow Garden

by Rebecca Sweet
Thumbnail image for Design tips for a low-water Meadow Garden

Today I’m participating in a massive, worldwide blogging event called Blog Action Day, where the topic we’ll all write about is Water. As any California gardener knows, water is our most precious resource.  In this post, I’m going to show you how to create a lawn-and-chemical-free meadow garden teeming with life, color, scent and natural [...]

Read the full article →