The lawn, pride of the American homeowner, is not a natural landscape. Lawns are generally a blend of hybrid grasses and, unfortunately, are often maintained by the application of chemical fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides. They may be good for picnics, frisbee tossing and croquet, but they can be a detriment to the natural environment.
If you hope to attract a wide variety of wildlife to your property, try to minimize your lawn coverage. Expand wild borders with trees, berry-producing shrubs and native wildflowers. Leave grass clippings to fertilize the lawn and try to maintain its health with aeration and limited watering. Learning to accept dandelions, clover, plantain, wild violets and other "weeds" will make your landscape more colorful and more attractive to wildlife. Moles and birds will keep the grubs in check.
Of course, the lawn maintenance companies would scoff at this advice; then again, they're not in the conservation business.
