Chickweed

This is the bain of most with a Spring lawn. I used to battle it when I was foolish enough to travel that path.
Now I welcome it. My neighbors are aghast to see it growing freely at my place, but I see it as a beautiful, green, Spring ground cover. It looks great (to me) and requires no upkeep. Who would not like this?

A weed is actually defined as a plant in the wrong place. In my yard, it is not a weed. I don't have a lawn or even a lawnmower. I like lawns and admire those of people in my area:eagerness:. After 30 years of that, prefer "natural" these days.

The funny thing is this year it took over the island in my pond. It is thick and lush. The overflow growing into to the water is chomped on by my Koi. My Turtles are over their Winter sleep and also like it. (older turtles love salad).
Attachment 5260

It will die out as heat arrives. It is a cool weather crop. It will return next Spring with no help from me. That is a plant to love.

Another area that we have some agreement on, AO. :eagerness:

I still mow by lawn (front and back) and do some basic weed and tree maintenance (never use poisons but do remove weeds from walkway cracks, etc., and do basic tree/hedge trimming), but gave up on the front yard planters that border the sidewalk and driveway and just let them go to natural plants/weeds and the effect is not all that bad. A huge natural plant grew out in one area of these planters and is quite beautiful. I weed whack back the rest of the natural plants (weeds...mostly) when they protrude too much into the front sidewalk, but other than that, they are on their own (with the surviving rose bushes and annual flowers that survived the current status quo of no more weeding around them, poking out through the weeds from time to time...). Why fight this natural world order? :listening_headphone

One thing that has "WOWED' me is my rock island.
In 2006 I used PVC pipe to build a platform for flat rocks in my garden pond. I got the flat rocks from an island on the lake. The goal was to build a "Sun Space" for my turtles to bask.
I know all that seems extreme, but you guys worry over copper wires so WTF?

Today Nature has a fern, a couple young trees, hair grass, etc growing there.
There is no soil except from Nature. It is not surviving, but flourishing. Hell, there is no room for turtles.

My experience (I am a Master Gardner and have a paper to prove it:triumphant:) is build with Nature and don't fuck with her.