I am seriously thinking about using creeping thyme (mother of thyme) as some lawn area around a new house we are building in the Blanco area. The area is now very rough having been part of a ranch with no improvements until we purchased the lot, so I am hoping to not have to spend a lot on soil improvement for a large area. It is quite rocky there. Don't want to have to water every other day either. I hear it is drought tolerant and deer resistant, both of which would be important to me.
Have any of y'all used creeping thyme for a lawn? I would love some feedback on how that worked for you.
Tonya
Creeping Thyme as a lawn
I have used two different types of creeping thyme....one was elfin, and the other I don't know. We used it to go in between some pavers. We even irrigated it as it was in full sun. After replanting it year after year because it croaked in the sun, we just took it out and put in colored rock.
Sorry.
I was wondering about the alkalinity, too. I don't know anybody here who's had good luck with creeping thyme. I think it may be that "drought tolerant" isn't the same thing as "likes to bake in full sun". Or there are apparently lots of different varieties, and maybe they didn't have the best one.
Is something like buffalo grass or that buffalo/blue grama mix a possibility? Or gregg's dalea? Those are all native, so I'm guessing you wouldn't have to do anything to improve the soil (unless the ranching really messed it up somehow).
Thanks morganc, that's interesting. I have some in my flower bed )in direct sun with no shade at any time of day) that I grew from seed last year, that has just taken off and is extremely healthy. I'm sure your climate is almost exactly the same as mine, so "go figure". Maybe I should do a little experiment in my current yard and out at the property to see how it does.
Any other experiences with creeping thyme out there?
Hi realbirdlady, we were both typing at the same time apparently. Interstingly enough, I have been doing some reading on buffalo/blue grama. I was hoping to relieve the hubby from some mowing chores as he will be super busy on the rest of the 30 acres! I was thinking of having the thyme just near the house, maybe further out the buffalo/blue grama would be great and wouldn't have to be mowed at all. I've never heard of gregg's dalea, will have to look that one up. Thanks.
My tyme does well in part shade but under the stress of full sun and less water it doesnt seem to thrive. If you plant it in mass in areas with poor soil I am not certain it would give you the results you want. It also doesn't really appreciate being walked on a lot. I have never tried bufalo grass but have wanted to. Let us know how it does if you plant it. I wonder if there might be some other low ground cover more adapted to tough conditions?
Cheryl
Thanks Cheryl. Yep, I'd be open to hearing about some more low ground covers, too. I looked up gregg's dalea and think it might grow a bit too tall as I am wanting something we can walk on, though not necessarily high traffic.
I have 3 differnt kinds of thyyme and all have some sahde at some part of the day but like you siad you might have a micro climater that allows yours to do well.. from what Ive read some kinds are great between pavers but dont do well if walked on like you would grass..woolly thyme seems to be best for what you want.. it has pretty good reviews
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/326/
Thanks blkraven. I looked up your link and that is the type I have, thymus serphylum. I didn't know it was called woolly thyme. The reviews have renewed my hope. Since it will be a while before the house is completed, I should have time to transplant and experiment. I walk on mine several times a week to cross the bed cuz I'm too lazy to walk all the way around the bed. 'Course I'm probably the only one who does that since the fam knows better than to walk on my plants and I haven't let them in on the secret yet!
Why not xeriscape. I've seen lots of cactus around Austin. Beautiful structure and interesting rocks and almost no maintenance.
Cactus would sure make sense there. They grow wild all over the place. Unfortunately, I don't like cactus! I guess there's no accounting for taste. I'm more of a cottage-garden-with-lots-of-green kinda gal. I am sure I will be putting other xeriscape plants in the beds. I like sages and salvias and I know some of those are drought tolerant. Good thought, though peony...
If I had a clean slate I would definately go the xeriscape route. I have seen spectacular yards with nothing but gravel, pathways, cacti and succulants. Not good for kids to play on but certainly low care and they can look really nice. You are a little warmer than I am down in Austin and you can grow more variety of agave and cactus. Toss in a few large and well placed rocks and you would be set.
C
I'm with you Tonya on a more "Cottage Garden" look. We bought old ranch land as well and built. Lousy soil and lots of rock.......we ended up bringing in truckloads of dirt just to start. 2 Years later we built raised beds for the vegetables and herbs and brought in more dirt. After 5 years of amending and composting it is coming around.
But you have a clean slate to work with which is major fun! Try the Thyme idea and see if it works....all you are out is a little seed. Somethings work for one and not another.....go figure.
Oh, and make friends with the deer in your area and they are less likely (but not guaranteed) to leave your plants alone. We feed out deer fruit and veggie scraps and deer corn. They like us.
Let us know what happens.
Pam
I hear you Newton. I'm sure it would work very well, but if I kept looking out at it and thinking it was ugly it would truly be a wasted effort. Just not my bent you might say. That's not to put down folks who do like cacti and succulents, it certainly takes all kinds, but it's not me. In fact, once I'm out there, I could give away a bunch of the cactus that are already growing wild. There were some with beautiful blooms that I'm sure some folks would like.
So Pam, does feeding them the scraps and corn keep them out of your plants? I have been trying to figure out how to keep them from the plants since I for sure will have to have some roses and hibiscus! I even thought of growing some purple hyacinth bean vines away from the house for them to eat since I hear they love that. DH's answer is a dog. Better be a well behaved one that doesn't tromp around in my beds!
As for veggies, we have a good creek running through part of the property which seems to have some better soil near it, so are hoping to grow them there. Will still probably have to amend the soil some and find a way to keep the deer out of that too! I figured I'd have to do some raised beds around the house for my "purties".
We fenced in the entire back of our property with 6 ft fencing so we could grow anything we want. There are only a few thing they will not eat even when hungry. I would not put in a veggie garden without adding a fence if you have deer. To them it's just a new cafe' in town.
When planting the front yard we would set the new plant out where we wanted to put it but not in the ground and leave it for a few days. If they didn't nibble on it we'd plant it. Still sometimes they ate it later.
Most of the front yard is natural grasses and deer proof (to some degree) plants. Compared to the backyard which looks like this.
Oh gosh, there's more to xeriscaping than cactus and succulents. All that stuff at the Wildflower Center works for Blanco. Sages like you say, but lots of nifty shrubs and smaller trees. Airy things like retama, so you could still have lawn, but the grass/groundcover isn't left completely to the noon day sun. Blanco SP has some restored meadow with wildflowers, that might give you some ideas, too.
Anyways, I ran into the lady down the street who had bad luck with her creeping thyme, but she didn't know which kind it was. She said the plants didn't die, but they didn't spread, either. I think it's supposed to put down new roots where the joints touch the ground, and then eventually that's it's own new plant. Hers didn't root, so she ended up with a very woody original plant, and bare patches. But that was just on bare dirt, so maybe it's a simple as throwing down a layer of mulch, not completely reworking the soil. Fwiw.
Looks like the Fredericksburg native plants folks include creeping thyme on their list of "adapted", but don't say which variety, either. Probably you could contact them. They also mention sedges. http://www.npsot.org/Fredericksburg/news.html (down at the bottom).
Yall are definitely in for a longterm adventure...
Beautiful yard, Pam. We had figured we would have to fence the veggies. We are also planning some fruit trees, so will have to protect them while they are young as well. As for the plants around the house, that dog is sounding better and better!
Great ideas realbirdlady. I love Wildflower Seeds in Fredericksburg. Is that what you were referring to when you said wildflower center? Or perhaps the Ladybird Johnson center? I haven't been there. I'll have to check out the state park, too. I'm going to check ou tthat link, too. Thanks for the ideas!
There are some tough plants that you could use. Trees, shrubs and flowers but they won't look exactly like a well manicured lawn with pampered flower beds. I have grass but honestly I have no love for it and almost never do anything for it. I inherited the lawn and its just not practical to take it all out. I am working on that slowly, so my husband won't notice LOL.
C
I got my DH to agree to take out part of the lawn. We wanted more flowers and guess what? The flower beds take less water than the lawn....YAY!
I had grass in the fenced back yard untill my dogs killed it for me...(S)....so Im slowly graveling it.. Its much easier to maintain that way.. my front yard is a combo of grass and other things.. Im not doing anything to the grass till I get all my beds put in then Ill figure out what I want to do. With driving the truck over it to get dirt and stuff in place it doesnt make sense to me to get it all fixed up and then do that... Im a firm believer in the less grass more flowers school of gardening...lol