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Posted by Sunset, December 3, 2008 in Sources , Sustainable gardening

By Sharon Cohoon, Sunset senior garden writer

Susan Harris has a veritable treatise on losing your lawn on her website.  It includes reasons why you should get rid of or at least reduce your lawn, including Michael Pollan's excellent Case Against Lawns; ways to kill it off; and plenty of examples of what to do next, including one of my favorite examples from Sunset Magazine, shown below.

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The garden belongs to Rick Cole, the city manager of Ventura, California, and it was designed and installed by Michelle and Jeremy Walker of Blooming GardensHere's more about it.

I also loved the contemporary garden designed by Northern California designer Michelle Derviss, shown below.  It's 180 degrees different but equally stunning.

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For more photos of this garden.

And, if you're still not convinced to give up your lawn, Harris has some tips on how to grow it organically.

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Comments

All excellent suggestions. I am seeing more and more lawns replaced in Southern California. Many are putting in full vegetable gardens or charming pathways with native plants.
So much more interesting than a big plot of grass!

Posted by:Theresa Loe/LivingHomegrown | December 05, 2008 at 06:12 AM

Great gardens!
Could you please tell me what is the wall in the contemporary one made of?

Posted by:Marta Ratajszczak | October 10, 2010 at 02:20 AM

It looks like Corten steel but you'd have to contact the designer to be certain.

Posted by:sharon | October 10, 2010 at 07:41 AM
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