Landscape Enhancement: From Dead Grass to Bright Corner Bed

After a large corner lot tree was taken out by the May 2022 derecho in South Dakota, the homeowners struggled to grow grass in the area. 

This was due to the accumulation of pine needles over the years. Pine needles create a challenging environment for grass growth due to a couple of key factors:

• Soil acidity: When pine needles decompose, they create acidic soil conditions, but grass thrives in neutral or slightly alkaline soil.
• Nutrient depletion: Pine needles deplete the soil of some nutrients as they decompose while releasing other nutrients. This creates an imbalance that hinders grass growth.

The homeowner missed his tree and was tired of the unsightly brown area on the corner of the property.

As an eye-catching solution, Dallas designed a simple mulch landscape bed that integrated pollinator plants the homeowner selected. These included hydrangeas, Pugster Amethyst butterfly bushes, powwow white coneflower, and lobelia.

We surrounded the bed with steel edging that will provide years of longevity over poly-edging.

Our client was thrilled to be part of the plant selection process and says many neighbors have commented on the new focal point of his yard.