Watering Tip #5 LAWNS How to Remove a lawn

This is a sensitive topic, gardeners have a love hate relationship with lawns. Some gardeners love caring for this green oasis, while other struggle to keep it green no matter how much water is use. The drought we are working through may make the decision easier for many, including me. If the time has come to remove  this blog posting is meant to help with the step by step directions to safely and effectively get rid of the lawn. Once removed  there are many things to replace it with, I will cover those ideas in the next blog post.

Most importantly make sure you are ready to do this, it is a big change not only for you but all of the plants located around your lawn . This photo is my lawn in the fall, once it cools down. It does not look this nice in the heat of the summer. 

Solarization

Solarization will not only kill the lawn it will also kill all pests that are in the top 3 to 4 inches of the soil. The mobile pests such as nematodes and other pest in a juvenile stage may be able to burrow deeper into the soil to escape the heat. Use organic amendments when planting to re-establish good healthy soil. 

1. You will start by mowing the lawn very short, and turn the water system off. If other plants count on that water make sure to set something up to ensure they are watered.
                                                                                                                            2. Once mowed and your are ready to cover give it a good last drench, this will help it heat up faster.
                                                                                                  3. Cover with a sturdy clear plastic that is a 2 to 4 ML thick and anchor well with bricks or rocks. The closer the plastic is to the soil the better. You will want to make sure the area is sealed well, the point is to get the area as hot as possible during the day and not cool down at night.                                                                  
                                                                                                           
4. Remove in about 4 to 6 weeks, if you leave it on longer the plastic will break down. The area's in full sun should be dead by now, the area's in the shade may need more time or mechanical removal.      

Sheet Mulching                                                                                                          This method can be a bit cumbersome because of the materials you will need to gather, but it is very effective and you can plant directly into the area you have covered. The graphic shows what and how to use for a very organic planting area. I have a friend who used this version, but did not use all of the products you see here and was very successful. Truthfully if you can cover the lawn with at least 3 inches of newspaper or cardboard, aged compost or manure, and cover with leaves or straw you should be able to plant in 2 to 3 months. In our area you may need to lightly water occasionally to keep in place will this to mulch breaks.

This photos shows how to mulch around plants

Mechanical Removal

I have never seen this done, but I know it is a machine that can strip the top several inches of lawn away. This sounds easy, but make sure you are careful of any roots of trees and shrubs and that are under the lawn. Call a professional to do this job. 

My next blog will cover different ideas as to what to replace your lawn with; some ideas
Edibles

Thyme lawns

Drought hardy plants.

Rock mulch