Try different grass varieties for planting
We will never tire of repeating it: mixed lawns, those composed of different varieties and species of plants, are the healthiest and most resilient. Biodiversity is a fundamental concept within every ecosystem, including that of domestic gardens. It is one of nature's strategies for always surviving adversity thanks to the countless ways it finds to adapt.
We can learn from it, and draw inspiration from biodiversity to have healthy gardens without the need for special maintenance and without the use of chemicals. However, to have a mixed and resilient lawn, you cannot improvise, and it is necessary to try several varieties of alternative lawn and discover which combination adapts most successfully to the conditions of your garden.
- What makes a mixed lawn more resilient
- Reflections on our twenty years of experience with biodiversity
- How to test different varieties for planting
What makes a mixed lawn more resilient
Every plant has its own characteristics. Every variety has different strengths and weaknesses. Having a mixed lawn means letting nature take its course and adapt to survive. Potentially, a biodiversity-rich lawn is more resistant to drought, trampling, and pests, depending on the characteristics of the plants that are combined. The strengths of each variety add up, resulting in versatile lawns that are able to adapt to many different conditions.
Introducing different varieties of alternative lawns within the same garden means achieving a more resilient lawn. Generally, two to four different plants are combined, depending on the case, but only a test involving as many varieties as possible can indicate the right choice. Only then can you achieve a lawn that is more resistant to weeds, heat, or trampling, and only then do you get a healthier garden: combining different plants, which therefore also have different nutritional needs, makes the soil richer.
Reflections on our twenty years of experience with biodiversity
Many years ago, about twenty, we began thinking about a new type of lawn, an alternative to the usual English lawn. Our Mediterranean gardens required something that was more integrated, natural, and rustic, a lawn that was less demanding in terms of water and maintenance, that blended into the bushes and planted areas without a sharp break, while also maintaining color notes similar to those of the surrounding vegetation.
Lippia nodiflora canescens immediately answered all our questions, has been and continues to be our workhorse, especially when working on challenging soils and conditions. It is a plant capable of withstanding extremely dry summers; it may enter dormancy, but as soon as it rains, it regrows and blooms again in just a few days.
However, over time, we have added other species alongside it. To make our work more harmonious and integrated into the surrounding landscape, lawns must have a natural appearance.
Verbena hybrida, with its touch of light purple, creates interesting shades and is very resilient: especially in winter, it keeps its green leaves longer than Lippia.
Achillea crithmifolia is a versatile evergreen in combinations and very cold-resistant; it is a grey-leaved plant that develops cream-colored flowers between June and July. It can provide a contrast to the showy blooms of Lippia nodiflora and/or Verbena hybrida, or create a cold-resistant carpet when mixed with Frankenia laevis.
Achillea tomentosa aurea ‘BDG’ is an evergreen with soft, velvety grey-green leaves that develops bright yellow flowers from May to July. It can create a magnificent and varied color palette when paired with the showy blooms of Lippia nodiflora or Verbena hybrida, or create a particularly refined carpet when mixed with Frankenia laevis.
Frankenia laevis is a groundcover suitable for both full sun and partial shade, resistant to salt spray and very intense cold. It reaches a maximum height of 4 cm, covers itself in pale pink flowers between May and June, and for the rest of the year retains a dense emerald-green mantle, which takes on reddish tones in intense cold. Frankenia looks very attractive when paired with Achillea crithmifolia; this mix will allow you to have a lawn that is very resistant to cold and shaded areas.
Cotula lineariloba is a groundcover that forms dense cushions of light green, finely incised leaves, with very rapid growth. In spring, the plant covers itself in an abundance of lemon-yellow flowers, round flowerhead inflorescences that create a field of bright spots. The yellow flowers of Cotula can reappear in autumn in the milder areas of our country. You can create a varied color palette by pairing it with the showy blooms of Lippia nodiflora and Verbena hybrida, or by experimenting with different shades of yellow by mixing it with Achillea tomentosa aurea ‘BDG’.
Dymondia margaretae is a groundcover composed of small, dense leaves, grey-green on the top and silvery on the underside. At the end of spring, it produces small yellow flowers. We recommend planting it in larger groups to create clearly visible patches. It is highly recommended for particularly sandy soil.
Choose different varieties based on the characteristics of your garden and make your lawn as rich as possible.
How to test different varieties for planting
For years we have addressed the topic of biodiversity and encouraged people to try much more than just one variety before proceeding with the planting of a lawn across the entire surface of the garden. To facilitate this testing phase, we have decided to offer a mixed plateau, composed of four different species of alternative lawn plants.
This way, anyone who wants to test different varieties to discover which is best suited to their garden, climate conditions, soil, and maintenance can do so without having to buy large quantities of each. The plateau contains 60 plants: 20 Lippia nodiflora and 20 Verbena hybrida, two very resilient and versatile varieties, and a final set of 20 plants selected based on the customer's characteristics or needs.
The proportions of the plateau are designed to provide a concrete example right away on a 6-square-meter surface. After the first few months from planting, it will be possible to understand which plants are best suited and also in what percentage to combine them.
Discover the alternative lawn mix!
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