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Nope! Fertilizer, especially liquid and artificial fertilizers are worse than useless for native wildflowers and grasses. Application would only encourage weed growth, and actually weaken the longevity of your native plants. The only nutrition that is required is an optional, thin top-dressing of compost every 2-3 years.

In general, you will rarely or never have to water your Wild Lawn. The exception is during the first growing season when seedlings are getting established. Excessive or prolonged hot dry periods can kill seedlings, which we want to avoid! Once plants have set down roots, they will be able to handle all but the most extreme droughts. Under extreme conditions, you may decide to water occasionally. If and when you do, it’s better to soak everything deeply and then leave it until it’s completely dried out. This will encourage plants to grow their roots deeply. Don’t water frequently in small bursts, which will encourage the plants to set down shallower roots and make them less resilient.

If you’ve chosen a native grass-based Wild Lawn, you have the option of mowing down to a maximum of 4”, or letting the grass grow naturally (most will not exceed 6-8”). It is generally important to mow at least once a year in the spring to maintain vigor. If you’ve chosen a tall meadow-based Wild Lawn, you will only need to mow once a year in the spring before 2” of new growth has occurred.

Your Wild & Co growing guide will provide some guidance and images to help you gauge the development of your wild lawn at different stages of growth. It’s important to bear in mind that results are designed to vary, as no mix and yard are exactly the same. Some degree of patience in the first few months especially will be required. Native perennial plants typically develop a root system before they expand their above-ground vegetation, which can cause concern for first-time growers. However, if you’ve provided good seed contact (pressed the seeds into the soil) and kept the seeds moist through the first 2 months, you should see an even amount of small, green shoots. Bare spots can be overseeded with additional or reserve seeds at any time.

The short answer is, “no”, not strictly speaking. The longer answer requires an examination of the goals of selecting native species in the first place. There are of course many:

• maintaining biodiversity and preserving these relatively rare species for their own sake,

• to help support and enhance local food webs and support the integrity of local ecosystems,

• to provide food and habitat for pollinators and other species that uniquely depend on endemic native wildflowers,

• Practicality: natives are better adapted to local conditions and thus require fewer inputs

In an ideal world, we would use all natives all the time. However, there are practical downsides to using natives as opposed to say, highly adapted or naturalized species in certain circumstances. Some natives can:

• Can be difficult to germinate, requiring long dormancy periods, fire, scarification and stratification

• Require niche microhabitats in order to thrive, which might be rare or difficult to reproduce

• Be difficult to source seed from

• May be diminutively small or weak when facing competition from common or invasive species

Because of the limiting factors, and balancing the need of our mission to convert America’s turf-grass lawns to the best alternatives that average homeowners are able and willing to manage on their own, we have elected for a “native first, naturalized second, and balanced-overall” philosophy to our seed formulations. In summary, we’re attempting to prevent the “perfect” from interfering with the “good”. For most people, a 100% native mix might be too challenging. As the native lawn movement spreads, and as plant literacy and experience grows, we hope that over time we will be able to introduce options with ever greater endemic biodiversity to our mixes.