Coturnix Quail

They also take up very little space, and could even be raised on an apartment balcony. I’ve read suggestions of 5 quail per square foot, but 1 bird every 2 square feet is much more reasonable and humane. Just make sure you keep the cage clean, because their droppings contain more ammonia than chicken’s and can get smelly fast. I had to modify our chicken coop to accommodate the quail hutch, but it resulted in a tighter overall feel to the space that I’m very happy with and we have room for about a dozen more quail. Also, Francis the friendly poultry woman at Callahan’s General Store, suggests cutting a door into a medium sized cardboard box to create a nesting area in your hutch. They are pretty shy creatures and need their privacy in order to lay.

Why aren’t more people doing this?

UPDATE: Our quail are on Treehugger! Also, if you are introducing new quail into your flock, do it in a neutral cage because quail are very territorial and you can end up with some nasty quail fights. Lesson learned! If your quail are wounded, apply some Rooster Booster to their wounds to discourage further pecking by the rest of the flock. Like chickens, quail can become cannibalistic and aggravate injury if the blood piques their curiosity.

Fore more info on raising backyard quail download:
Texas A&M Quail (pdf)

Our Chicken Coop with Quail Hutch Expansion

Screech Owl via KMorrison

Snags, common in the wild, are often removed from cities because a dead tree will ultimately fall on and possibly damage damage nearby people and property. Even if the tree doesn’t pose a physical threat, people often associate dead things with ugliness, and will therefore remove it in favor of new plantings.

These are not completely unreasonable steps to take, but if you have a snag that is out of the way, let it stand and take advantage of it. You can plant a vine near the base and use it as a trellis, nail birdhouses or lights to it, turn it into a piece of sculpture, enjoy the wildlife that come around, or all of the above. With a little understanding and creativity, we can turn a problem into a solution to enrich and diversify our struggling urban ecosystems.

Here are a few photos of my favorite Austin snags:

Ent-like snag near the Colorado River

I transformed this snag into an organic lightpost by stripping off the bark.

Snag turned sculpture at a local Dentist's Office

Standing snag off Cherrywood

Skull on a snag near MLK

Cecilia Nasti

As I was rushing around town before thanksgiving, I was lucky enough to catch Growing Concerns on the radio. Cecillia Nasti had a great episode on giving thanks to our planet through earthcare and wildscaping. Have a listen here at kut.org.

The Native Lawn

Buffalo Grass by Sally + Andy Wasowski

Your beautiful native lawn will need little water once established, will provide habitat for many wild species, and will only need to be cut once a year to be kept clean. It can only handle mild foot traffic, so if you use your lawn more intensively, you may consider another alternative.

• Visit the Native American Seeds website for a variety of great grass and wildflower mixes, as well as more specific planting directions.
• Check out Prairie Nursery if you’re a northerner.

Hybrid Turf Lawn
The newer hybrid grass lawns are more suitable for heavier use. Turffalo, is a buffalo grass hybrid developed by Texas Tech University, that requires little water and little mowing. It only grows 4″ tall, so you could quit mowing altogether if you were in the mood. Turffalo can also handle heavy wear and a variety of sunlight conditions.

This is a great choice for those of us who spend a lot of time on our lawns and are hesitant to lose our open green play space.

The Herb Lawn
The herb lawn is a creative alternative composed low growing herbs such as clover and thyme that can handle moderate traffic and will release sweet smells wherever you step. Buy 4″ pots of low growing “Creeping” or “Magic Carpet” thyme, which will not grow over a few inches tall, and plant them at a 6-12″ spacing. Other scented and medicinal herbs such as rosemary, oregano, St. John’s wort, sage and lavender make a nice border that increases the soothing effect of the space.

• Hobbs and Hopkins out of Oregon makes some interesting custom herb lawn seed mixes that I have not had the opportunity to experiment with.
  
• High Country Gardens also has a variety of herb and native ground covers.

Fake Grass
The only situation I could recommend installing this is for athletic fields. Some people are starting to reconsider them as alternatives as water demand increases, but I’m not convinced they are worthwhile. They will hold up to the heaviest foot traffic and take no watering, but they also give nothing back. All of the previous alternatives I’ve mentioned will have a positive impact on the environment, by providing habitat and cleaning the air and water.

Design
Most importantly, when planning your antilawn, think about how you really will use the space. Try to minimize lawn area to just what you need and design more space for beds, paths, and patios. Why bother with a lawn when you can mulch it over for roses, veggies or a just a quiet place to sit and watch the neighbors mow?

Slow down. Look closer. I’ve found the average untended lawn to be a meadow of hardy, and often useful wildflowers. Here are a few notable ones from Texas (click name for image):

Dandelion courtesy Pensiero(Flickr)

Clover (Trifolium sp.): Once prized as an ideal lawn plant, they have fallen out of favor for some reason. I love the flowers and so do bees. They fix nitrogen in the soil and make good teas. Part sun.

Dandelion (Taraxacum sp.): When did we learn to hate this pretty yellow flower? Every part of it is edible/medicinal, the deep tap root improves the soil, and bees love them. The seeds are also a fun lesson in aerodynamics for any child, but many adults lose sight of this in the quest for a tidy lawn. Euell Gibbons gives a wonderful and more thorough description of the pleasures of dandelions in his book Stalking the Wild Asparagus. Full sun.

Oxalis (Oxalis sp.): This cute and lemon delicious plant, which is often called shamrock or (mistakenly) clover, is a regular snack as I’m “weeding” my vegetable garden. It’s also an easy way to get kids to look closer at the world at their feet. The sour flavor comes from oxalic acid, which is also present in spinach. Consume it in moderation if you have sensitive kidneys and always make sure your feeding grounds are free of pesticides. But don’t hesitate to top your salads with it. Part sun/Shade.

Why do we fight these plants? If we ask ourselves this question, maybe we will start to reconsider pouring tons of time and harmful chemicals into our land to eradicate them. Can’t we find a better use for our energies?

Why not just let them go? They are often productive and grow naturally, without any care. As antilawn.org grows we’ll keep you updated on all of the cool “weeds” you might want to notice.

Americans mow 31 million acres of lawn every year. It takes 300 million gallons of gas and 1 billion hours to complete the chore. And for this privilege they will spend $17.4 billion on everything from pesticides (70 million pounds) to lawn tractors.

They interview Warren Klink, my hero for being the first person to take dandelions to the Cincinnati Flower Show, and who touches on the possibility of just letting your lawn return to its natural state, which I think is a great alternative for people who lack the time or interest to invest much in their landscape. Why not just stop mowing and see what happens? The birds and the bees will love you for it.

Read the whole article here.

Eat the view produced a cool promotional video that is worth watching. Read on to see it and share it with friends.

His first edible antilawn was planted in the middle of American suburbia, Salina, Kansas, in 2005, and he has since planted five more across the United States and over the pond to England.

His latest garden was planted here in Austin, TX and it was great to see such enthusiasm for his work. Keep it up Fritz.

Seirra Ridge Garden via Arthouse Austin

To learn more visit his website or buy his new book, Edible Estates: Attack on the Front Lawn.

Read the full story here on the BBC.