Rewilding My Lot

I am taking advantage of the front yard having quite a bit of bare soil after the leveling project, to add some wildflower seeds to the front lawn area. This is a bit of an experiment, but if it works, in the springtime there will be an area in the center of the lawn that grows wildflowers and when they are all finished, the area can be mown again. If I leave the plants in place long enough to seed, then there should be new plants the following years as well.

I’ve chosen three different plants to seed together, because the timing of when they flower is not the same. This extends the flowering period, and also provides cover for plants that are progressing to seed (and therefore not so appealing to the human eye). Each of these is a different color, to provide variation.

1. TEXAS BLUEBONNET (Lupinus texensis). These are usually among the first of the prairie wildflowers to appear in the spring. They are annual plants, so in order to appear the following year as well, they must be allowed to seed before being mown down.

2. INDIAN BLANKET aka FIREWHEEL (Gaillardia pulchella). These are one of my favorite flowers — they are so bright and cheerful — and they should be blooming at the time the Bluebonnets are seeding. These are also annual plants, so must grow from new seed each year.

3. SPOTTED BEEBALM (Monarda punctata). These flowers have an unusual structure to provide contrast in shape and color, and they also should flower late enough to hide the seeding Bluebonnets. This plant is perennial, although since I plan to mow the area between seasons, it may also have to grow from seed each year.

I am not planning any particular action to germinate the seeds beyond scattering them on the ground with a light covering of soil. That’s how nature disperses them, although granted, I am a few weeks later than the seeds would normally be released.

There is no guarantee that these seeds will germinate in the first year, or at all, but obviously I hope that they do. And even if there are only a few plants in the first year, there may be more in subsequent years as they continue to seed the area.

Here’s a photo after the seeding was done. I used old flour as a marker to define my area, and the soil I used to mix with the seed is darker than what was underneath.