[Madelaine Amee]

A couple of years ago I was on a garden tour north of 466 and one of the homes in Royal Oaks in Springdale had put in a large expanse of ground cover and still had some grass. It looked really nice. I made inquiries today and I am told that because it is considered water wise TV are allowing it now, but it has to go through the right Board or something or other to get it done. The one I saw was professionally landscaped and looked really elegant. This particular home has a big old beautiful oak in the front yard and the ground cover had been brought around the oak and curved down across the front lawn and down towards the street, then the remainder of the yard was grass. I believe the ground cover had a small blue flower (maybe low growing periwinkle), it was very low, only the height of the grass. However, this is not a cheap fix for getting rid of grass, it needs maintenance to keep it looking immaculate.

[scot_atc]

Originally Posted by Snowbirdtobe

Ask the county agent for help in making your lot Florida friendly. Whatever you do contact the county agent before you implement any plan proposed by a landscaper. If the county agent will tell you it's Florida Friendly you should have no trouble with community standards.

Don't suppose there's any chance that the county agent's name is Hank Kimball?

[Indydealmaker]

Florida friendly or not, if it looks like weeds it has got to go.

Originally Posted by ladylake1

My neighbors in Santiago went to some Board to get permission to take up ALL their sod and replace it with pine mulch. It must be possible to do at least where I am.

What?! YUCK. Glad I don't live by them.

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by Snowbirdtobe

If the county agent will tell you it's Florida Friendly you should have no trouble with community standards.

I think that Florida Friendly Landscaping involves a lot less grass than our deed restrictions require, which a lot of residents would like.
Has anyone been successful in having Community Standards approve Florida Friendly Landscaping?

[Bonanza]

I have never heard about any grass vs. planted areas being measured to see if a certain percentage of their yard was grass.

I think the main thing is that your yard (front and back) is kempt. If you do something attractive with edging, some stones and some mulch, perhaps a boulder or two and with some shrubs interspersed, you can end up with something very eye-catching and low maintenance. I doubt that anyone would object -- OR measure what you have done.

Unfortunately, we are not permitted to put in synthetic turf. I believe the courtyard villas are the only ones that have it. It is a dumb rule because the better turf looks better than grass and you can not even tell what it is unless you bend down to actually feel it! It definitely is a water saver which is a plus all around, although to install it is expensive. If anyone is interested in why we can't have it, PM me and i will tell you why, but I'm not able to print it here.

[xcaligirl]

Are we allowed to have synthetic grass in a courtyard villa? I don't want the hassle of mowing, etc, either however I do like the look of green instead of the look of desert. Just my opinion!! We just moved in to a CYV, rock in the front with a ton of weeds. I realize the expense of synthetic grass but I think it will be cheaper in the long run.

[graciegirl]

[Dr Winston O Boogie jr]

Interesting that the OP never posted again.

[CFrance]

Originally Posted by graciegirl

It looks like that is going to be a stream. There's no way to tell if there will be grass on the rest because it isn't finished yet. The job is still in progress.

There are companies out west who replace grass with artificial grass due to their severe water shortage problems. It's pricey but looks immaculate, and you can't tell it isn't grass till you walk on it. It's not the old artificial turf stuff from our youth.

I would love to have it, esp. since it says the dog pee wouldn't stain it yellow!
This is one company in FL: Residential Lawns | Just Like Grass

[pbkmaine]

Would the ARC allow this?

[Bill Tasker]

I have never understood why someone would purchase a home with a lawn if they had no desire to take care of it. We have the same issue in our development. Mostly it's folks coming from Town Homes to individual homes and can't be bothered with the time, care and expense a lawn requires. I have seen some beautiful rock garden designs throughout TV, which cuts down on the amount of green space you have to take care of. So, I guess there are some soltutions. But I'm with Gracie, I think the green expanse of TV is wondeful.

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by Bill Tasker

I have never understood why someone would purchase a home with a lawn if they had no desire to take care of it. We have the same issue in our development. Mostly it's folks coming from Town Homes to individual homes and can't be bothered with the time, care and expense a lawn requires. I have seen some beautiful rock garden designs throughout TV, which cuts down on the amount of green space you have to take care of. So, I guess there are some soltutions. But I'm with Gracie, I think the green expanse of TV is wondeful.

Thank you Bill for saying that. I love the beauty of lawns and well kept yards. I have been told that one of my favorite arty people; Uptown Girl, has a beautiful yard with no grass.

I think that our deed restrictions that I like so much would be trumped by the environmentalists in a court of law.

If I were asked how I would like to protect the environment, I would say to save the gas pollution by banning people driving gas fueled cars to buy pot, get tattoo's and nose rings and get their checks cashed on money they don't have and LEAVE the Zoysia alone!!.

But if we all looked at the world in the same way, yadda yadda yadda.

[Uptown Girl]

Ground cover is Dwarf Asiatic Jasmine- low growing, stays green all year, but does need pruning to stay in bounds. I do that myself.
We incorporated a flagstone platform to allow for raising and lowering our flagpole.
Landscaping gravel (red) is called 'Seminole rock'- we also used river rock-type pea gravel between the flagstones.
This photo was taken after it was a year old.
I co-designed it with Wendy- owner of Village Palms- they did the install.

The back courtyard is grass free as well- with a pond, waterfall and babbling brook encompassing the entire space. Very tropical, easy peasy with lots of lush, green plants. Lovely.

[rdhdleo]

Originally Posted by Uptown Girl

Ground cover is Dwarf Asiatic Jasmine- low growing, stays green all year, but does need pruning to stay in bounds. I do that myself.
We incorporated a flagstone platform to allow for raising and lowering our flagpole.
Landscaping gravel (red) is called 'Seminole rock'- we also used river rock-type pea gravel between the flagstones.
This photo was taken after it was a year old.
I co-designed it with Wendy- owner of Village Palms- they did the install.

The back courtyard is grass free as well- with a pond, waterfall and babbling brook encompassing the entire space. Very tropical, easy peasy with lots of lush, green plants. Lovely.

Beautiful! Would you be so kind as to post a picture of your back area? Its sounds awesome!