Plant Science & Conservation
Garden Stories
How scientists are rethinking lawns鈥攁nd how you can, too
For many homeowners, a long, hot summer means mow the lawn, water, repeat. It鈥檚 a cycle that feels inevitable if you don鈥檛 want a brown, unruly patch of land.
Conservation scientist Becky Barak, Ph.D., is looking to change that assumption. By studying alternatives to traditional turfgrass, she and her collaborators are hoping to offer a 鈥渕enu of options鈥 for greener lawns that not only look good and stand up well against the Chicago area's moody seasons, but also have positive ecological implications.
The team will also judge how well each option benefits the environment. Pollinator observations will determine how supportive each plot is to bees and other pollinator species. Soil samples will test for carbon storage; more carbon absorption means healthier soil, not to mention more carbon removed from the air. The team will also monitor plant cover in each plot, watching which species do well and spread. 鈥淲hen you look at regular grass, there鈥檚 not a lot of bare ground,鈥 Barak said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e thinking about that too.鈥
Since the alternatives in this study are better suited to Chicago鈥檚 climate and habitats, they鈥檙e better able to thrive independently. This means less mowing, less water use, and fewer chemical treatments鈥攑lus an increase in aesthetically pleasing guests like butterflies. There鈥檚 a lot to look forward to.
鈥淭raditional grass lawns dominate the cities, suburbs, and exurbs of our country, which makes the potential impact of this work enormous,鈥 said Kay Havens, Ph.D., Chief Scientist and Negaunee Vice President of Science at the 成人b站. 鈥淓ach converted lawn uses fewer resources while increasing insect and bird habitat, carbon sequestration, and more. It is hard to imagine just how beneficial this switch could be.鈥
Multiple students in the joint graduate program in plant biology and conservation through Northwestern University and the 成人b站 have served as research assistants working on the experimental plots, and to date, two students have written their masters theses on data collected with this project.
Barak鈥檚 research has garnered excitement not just from conservation scientists, but from horticulture, collections, and natural areas staff at the Garden, who offered advice on growing methods and plant options and helped with the practical issues of preparing and caring for the garden plots. Working with interpretation and design allowed for signage鈥攆eaturing Kozik鈥檚 art鈥攖hat explains the goals of the experiment and the layout of the plots. While much of the communication on this topic appeals to homeowners, this study partners with horticulturists and land managers that could implement the new ideas on public lands, allowing the impact of the study to scale up quickly. Partnering with the Chicago Park District also means the results can be implemented directly on a large scale.
Visitors to the 成人b站 can see the experimental plots growing just south of the Mitsuzo and Kyoko Shida Evaluation Garden. Barak鈥檚 team will be looking for public feedback: 鈥淲hat people like, what they don鈥檛 like, what they can see potentially using or would like to have in a park near their house,鈥 Barak said. 鈥淸This research is] only helpful to the extent that it鈥檚 used!鈥
Visit
鈥攁 website designed by Kozik in collaboration with Barak, Tonietto, and Umek鈥攖o learn more.
Illustration courtesy of Liz Anna Kozik. View a larger version.