Special New Lawn Doesn’t Need Mowing Yet

[Published May 28, 2015, in the Jeffco editions of the Denver Post's YourHub section and in four Jefferson County weekly newspapers]

Regular readers of this column may recall that, as part of our commitment to sustainable practices, Rita and I had our traditional bluegrass lawn replaced last fall with a newly created variant which requires almost no watering or mowing. When we left on our 3-week vacation May 2nd, we were trusting those promises would hold true — and they did. The picture at right was taken this Tuesday morning, May 26. It has greened up nicely, thanks to all the rain, but has hardly grown an inch.

We’ll see how the lawn fares if there is a long dry spell, but our expectation is that we won’t have to turn on our sprinkler system all summer. 

Driving cross country in May, you can imagine how often we saw mowing operations in the medians and on the shoulders of our nation’s highways. If all those governments would install Bella Bluegrass (as this variant is known) you can imagine how much water could be saved, as well as how much their mowing budgets could be cut.  All those workers who are putting their lives at risk mowing our highways could be retrained to install similar grasses to replace the current grasses, which require so much water and attention.

You can Google “Bella Bluegrass” to learn more about this great product.  It cost us about $1 per square foot, including removal of the old lawn and installation of the new sod.  Our only problem was that elk frequent our subdivision (which backs to open space), and they left quite an impression when they walked on the new sod with its freshly turned subsoil.

With no watering or mowing expense, we know that this investment will be recouped in just a few years. Ask your favorite vendor to install it for you.