Any flutherers eschewed the American lawn obsession?

When I visited Las Vegas recently, I was amazed at how many homes have front yards that consist of nothing more than rocks and cactus plants.

I complimented my friend on his and he proudly said, “You really like it? The scorpions will be delivered, Monday.”

I live in the desert where stone replaces grass—seems like the right thing to do in the desert.

YES! My neighbors don’t like it very much. We mostly ignore the back yard and plant prairie plants in it (my father runs a real, honesttogod, prairie). Hopefully we’ll get it turned in to a butterfly sanctuary soon for a butterfly that is going extinct.

I suggest using lawn space to grow food. We grow beets and spinach and tomatoes. I think this will be a trend in coming years.

You don’t need to go to all rocks. My lawn has gradually been replaced by low-growing native species like violets, wild strawberry, etc. that hang on through drought and saturation. Whenever I get a bare patch I sprinkle in some white clover seed to add nitrogen to the soil. Here in central Virginia thyme and succulents such as sedum and euphorbia do well in our increasingly Mediterranean climate. Most of my Zone 7 perennials have died off. I also suggest changing downspout configuration to collect water for plants or wildlife.

Desert type landscaping can be quite beautiful. In particular, I’m quite fond of aeoniums. Beautiful rosettes without all the water or fuss.