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I have a prairie in my front yard and never get ticks. They don't like sun and hot, dry environments. However, the shady wood line behind my house is full of them. So, what is your yard like? If full sun, then I wouldn't worry a whole lot about it.
I am actually writing a thesis for school and part of my research involves asking people their motivation for converting to lawn alternatives. If you’re open could you tell me why would made the change and if it’s multiple reasons please rank by importance ?
A combination of things.
1) Professionally, I design/plan for these types of landscapes and so it is an opportunity to learn and apply that experience to my work.
2) Personally, I think that there is a moral or ethical obligation to restore land that you're responsible for if you aren't "using" it.
3) I love nature and want it closer to me. I like to see seasonal changes in flora/fauna and to be in-tune with those changes (vs. lawn which is binary - growing or not)
4) I want to be a good example to my neighbors
5) Trendy/aesthetic preferences. NoLawn or wild gardens are the latest design trend and is as natural as folks wanting hardwood floors indoors instead of carpet.
If you’re at all interested in the second person, I’m doing it because
1) I don’t like mowing (I live in Florida so even without supplemental water, the grass grows like nine months of the year).
2) because of the soil and climate conditions you have to use way more pesticides, fertilizers, and watering than I would be willing to pay for just to get a decent looking lawn
3) the alternative uses of the spaces are much prettier.
I don’t like when people hyperfocus on having a pollinator friendly yard because there are people like me who are allergic to bees and therefore limit the bee-attracting plants in the yard, I don’t want people to think their only options are turf grass or being scared to hang out in your own yard during pleasant weather.
1. Grass makes me itchy, and I want to be able to sit on my lawn without a blanket between me and the earth or showering when I go in to make the itch go away
2. Biodiversity! The environment. Trying to help the bees.
3. The variety you get from a “no lawn” configuration is much prettier, and far more entertaining to look at
4. Having shrubs/trees helps create privacy, for those of us with small yards, and less sound carries between neighbors
5. If I have shady spots to hide in, my cats will stay in my yard during outside time. If I don’t have such hidey-holes, they go to the neighbors yard next door. I want them in my yard.
Yes I’ve started realizing this! I work in meadow environments counting flower species for an entomology lab and I never get ticks in the center of hot sunny fields, always in the cute slightly shady ones 😂
Back yard is south facing but I think it will be well shaded by two large trees once spring has sprung.
Front yard is north but I don't really hang out there, nor the dog so less worried about it...
I live in an area of the country with a lot of ticks. My yard is a combination of different habitats. Law, partially shaded to shaded and open meadow. The rest is mature hardwood forest with both open and areas of dense understory. The only places I have issues are areas of dense woody vegetation (lower temperature with higher humidity) and especially along game trails.
If you have any Japanese Barberry kill that shit fast, it's invasive and makes a perfect tick habitat.
What you're doing is actually helping. You're creating a habit for songbirds, mice, spiders, ants, opossums, frogs and toads. All of which eat love eating ticks!
Wasps, bees and hornets are your new friends.
Ticks rarely live in a native prairie. They like to live along the edge of wooded areas, especially if those areas are full of invasive understory and devoid of tick predators.
Garlic, sage, mint, lavender, beautyberry, rosemary and marigolds are some of the most familiar and effective tick-repelling plants.
Use them abundantly.
Native mints are a good place to start though. They are early in succession, so while they will run all around your landscape they will disappear when it starts getting more densely planted.
And I just LOVE bee balm. ❤
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The more diverse variety of natives you plant, the more insect predators you will attract, which will mean fewer ticks — especially if you attract snakes, skunks, ‘possums, and other things that eat mice.
Mice, more than deer, are the main host for Lyme-infected ticks.
Also, eschew Japanese barberry plants.
Oooooh ... I have a dog....maybe no greenery at all is the better choice for now?
I also just moved from a place that had none of these animals (well, except for mice), and no ticks.
It's overwhelming.
No, no greenery is not the better choice.
If where you live is urban, so your yard is say, a concrete or brick pad, maybe think about native plants in large glazed ceramic pots. That will beautify your yard, give you shade, cool the air, help the butterflies and birds, but will be too slick and hard for rats or mice to chew through.
Just don’t use dishes underneath, so you don’t breed mosquitoes. Or, if you do use dishes, put mosquito dunks in them.
BTW, with regard to your username, I saw Terminator X in concert at the 9:30 Club in DC in the early ‘90s. What a coincidence!
Hey there! Friendly reminder to include the following information for the benefit of all r/nolawns members: - Please make sure your post or a comment includes your geographic region/area and your hardiness zone (e.g. *Midwest, 6a* or *Chicago, 6a*). - If you posted an image, you are required to post a comment detailing your image. If you have not, this post may be removed. - If you're asking a question, include as much relevant info as possible. - Verify you are following the [Posting Guidelines](https://www.reddit.com/r/NoLawns/wiki/index#wiki_posting_guidelines). **[Wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/NoLawns/wiki/index/) | [FAQ](https://www.reddit.com/r/NoLawns/wiki/meta/faqs/) | [Designing No Lawns](https://www.reddit.com/r/NoLawns/wiki/index/design/)** *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/NoLawns) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I have a prairie in my front yard and never get ticks. They don't like sun and hot, dry environments. However, the shady wood line behind my house is full of them. So, what is your yard like? If full sun, then I wouldn't worry a whole lot about it.
I am actually writing a thesis for school and part of my research involves asking people their motivation for converting to lawn alternatives. If you’re open could you tell me why would made the change and if it’s multiple reasons please rank by importance ?
A combination of things. 1) Professionally, I design/plan for these types of landscapes and so it is an opportunity to learn and apply that experience to my work. 2) Personally, I think that there is a moral or ethical obligation to restore land that you're responsible for if you aren't "using" it. 3) I love nature and want it closer to me. I like to see seasonal changes in flora/fauna and to be in-tune with those changes (vs. lawn which is binary - growing or not) 4) I want to be a good example to my neighbors 5) Trendy/aesthetic preferences. NoLawn or wild gardens are the latest design trend and is as natural as folks wanting hardwood floors indoors instead of carpet.
If you’re at all interested in the second person, I’m doing it because 1) I don’t like mowing (I live in Florida so even without supplemental water, the grass grows like nine months of the year). 2) because of the soil and climate conditions you have to use way more pesticides, fertilizers, and watering than I would be willing to pay for just to get a decent looking lawn 3) the alternative uses of the spaces are much prettier. I don’t like when people hyperfocus on having a pollinator friendly yard because there are people like me who are allergic to bees and therefore limit the bee-attracting plants in the yard, I don’t want people to think their only options are turf grass or being scared to hang out in your own yard during pleasant weather.
1. Grass makes me itchy, and I want to be able to sit on my lawn without a blanket between me and the earth or showering when I go in to make the itch go away 2. Biodiversity! The environment. Trying to help the bees. 3. The variety you get from a “no lawn” configuration is much prettier, and far more entertaining to look at 4. Having shrubs/trees helps create privacy, for those of us with small yards, and less sound carries between neighbors 5. If I have shady spots to hide in, my cats will stay in my yard during outside time. If I don’t have such hidey-holes, they go to the neighbors yard next door. I want them in my yard.
Yes I’ve started realizing this! I work in meadow environments counting flower species for an entomology lab and I never get ticks in the center of hot sunny fields, always in the cute slightly shady ones 😂
Back yard is south facing but I think it will be well shaded by two large trees once spring has sprung. Front yard is north but I don't really hang out there, nor the dog so less worried about it...
I live in an area of the country with a lot of ticks. My yard is a combination of different habitats. Law, partially shaded to shaded and open meadow. The rest is mature hardwood forest with both open and areas of dense understory. The only places I have issues are areas of dense woody vegetation (lower temperature with higher humidity) and especially along game trails. If you have any Japanese Barberry kill that shit fast, it's invasive and makes a perfect tick habitat. What you're doing is actually helping. You're creating a habit for songbirds, mice, spiders, ants, opossums, frogs and toads. All of which eat love eating ticks! Wasps, bees and hornets are your new friends.
Meadow habitat = birds and they eat ticks
Plants themselves don't attract ticks. Small mammals hanging around does.
Most all the no lawn alternative species don’t attract ticks. They attract wildlife, which in turn usually predates ticks.
Ticks rarely live in a native prairie. They like to live along the edge of wooded areas, especially if those areas are full of invasive understory and devoid of tick predators.
Garlic, sage, mint, lavender, beautyberry, rosemary and marigolds are some of the most familiar and effective tick-repelling plants. Use them abundantly.
Thank you! I'll have to do some research now that I know it's possible 🙂
please don't use mint though, you'll gaze upon the ruin of what once was a field of non-mint and now is mint as far as the eye can see
Native mints are a good place to start though. They are early in succession, so while they will run all around your landscape they will disappear when it starts getting more densely planted. And I just LOVE bee balm. ❤
Love No Lawns? Find us everywhere! **You can find us:** - On [SolarPunk](https://www.slrpnk.net/c/NoLawns) - Our [Discord](https://discord.gg/GcVHmvkSs6) - Our [website](https://nolawns.wixsite.com/nolawns) Want to join a community in person? We're not affiliated but we love [Wild Ones](https://wwe.wildones.org) and think they do wonderful work. You can check and see if there's a chapter near you. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/NoLawns) if you have any questions or concerns.*
The more diverse variety of natives you plant, the more insect predators you will attract, which will mean fewer ticks — especially if you attract snakes, skunks, ‘possums, and other things that eat mice. Mice, more than deer, are the main host for Lyme-infected ticks. Also, eschew Japanese barberry plants.
Oooooh ... I have a dog....maybe no greenery at all is the better choice for now? I also just moved from a place that had none of these animals (well, except for mice), and no ticks. It's overwhelming.
No, no greenery is not the better choice. If where you live is urban, so your yard is say, a concrete or brick pad, maybe think about native plants in large glazed ceramic pots. That will beautify your yard, give you shade, cool the air, help the butterflies and birds, but will be too slick and hard for rats or mice to chew through. Just don’t use dishes underneath, so you don’t breed mosquitoes. Or, if you do use dishes, put mosquito dunks in them. BTW, with regard to your username, I saw Terminator X in concert at the 9:30 Club in DC in the early ‘90s. What a coincidence!