Have any of you ever replaced all or part of your lawn with a garden space? And if so, what are your thoughts on it? Was it worth the effort? Is there more maintenance now, or less? Is your water bill lower or higher? I’m thinking of removing about half the front lawn to plant flowers, herbs, peppers, veggies and maybe strawberries. I probably won’t use raised beds, but will just plant in mounds raised in a non-linear pattern and bordered by stone, rock or brick. Thanks in advance.
Also, I’m in Zone 5 and wondering if I can plant and transplant in September and October when the temps are more bearable here?
I do this all the time - I find the beds to be less work. I clean them out in the spring before everything starts growing, weed them regularly (which means looking at them and picking a few weeds out), freshen up the mulch occasionally, and water a little if we haven’t had rain in a week or two (I only plant drought-tolerant plants because I live in a semi-arid area).
I say go for it!
Oh, the water bills - I don’t know if they’re significantly lower, but I do know that I’m wasting less water, which is a very good thing.
As for planting late in the season, you want the plants to be able to set good roots before freeze up, so I wouldn’t plant much later than the start of September.
I’m currently house-sitting for a friend for the last couple of weeks—and the next four weeks. Years ago he converted most of his back yard to vegetable garden. My observations: It will be more work but it will pay for itself, depending upon how you value your time.
A lawn is fairly straightforward. It just takes lots of water but that can be automated. It requires regular mowing but with a riding mower—or even a self-propelled walk-behind—that isn’t much of a chore. A healthy established lawn is fairly impervious to weeds but it does require a lot of water. Fortunately, here in the PNW, water is almost free, just a few bucks a month.
A garden, on the other hand, requires significantly more work. Tilling and seeding in the spring. Watering—maybe not as much as grass—and weeding. Stay on top of it and it’s not much of a chore and it’s actually quite therapeutic to watch it grow. I swear that I can almost see the corn growing. Two weeks ago it was knee high and now its chest high in places.
If you are so inclined, I’d say go for it. It’s not easier than a lawn but it has other benefits.
*Please, gentlemen, continue. This is merely a routine inspection. Good morning, Squadron Leader.
Good morning, sir.
I am sorry the soil here isn’t better suited to your men’s purpose.
We’ll manage, sir.
I must say I am surprised with the extent of this activity, Group Captain. Pleased, of course, but surprised.
Surprised, Colonel?
Fliers are gentlemen, not peasants to dig in the earth. So I am surprised. The English are keen on gardening. Oh, yes, but flowers. Is this not so? You can’t eat flowers, Colonel. Good point.
(The Great Escape)
*
Sorry for the dupe. Edit window is acting all wonky.
I replaced a bunch of lawn with a bunch of garden.
It’s not so much less work as different work.
I don’t water either the lawn or the garden except in drought conditions (in which case the lawn goes brown and only the garden gets water) and since we have a well anyway there’s no “water bill” to impact.
The lawn has to be mowed more regularly.
The garden can go long periods with little or no attention, but it does require a spate of ground prep and planting in the spring, some weeding (which can be reduced through the use of mulch or landscape fabric), and time to harvest stuff.
Some types of garden are lower maintenance than others. There are types of low maintenance ground cover, for example. Some plants require more attention than others. A garden of certain types of flowers + ground cover will probably be the lowest maintenance, and if you select with care will require less water than a lawn.
Different work, agreed. Maybe more work. Less water though.
you could put in plants that take little work and come back or are easily propagated.
rhubarb shades out other plants. horseradish is large and hardy. mint can choke out other plants.
I’m gradually converting most of my front yard to garden–a big perennial garden, vegetable garden about the same size, and also plantings (daylilies, etc) that will eventually spread. I’d agree…it’s different work. The perennial garden requires a couple of weeding sessions, some upkeep, and, as it ages, yearly dividing and moving plants as they multiply. The vegetable garden requires a few days work in the spring and occasional weeding/watering/harvesting through the season. But overall, I’d prefer the work my gardens require to the work my lawn requires. My gardens give me flowers, food, and enjoyment. My yard is not nearly as rewarding. 
Between deadheading, weeding, pruning, etc., the overall effort is at least an order of magnitude larger than a simple lawn—but *unquestioningly worth it. *
From early spring to late fall, we can go out and pick ourselves a giant bouquet of flowers–almost daily–without denting the landscape. Every room usually has fresh flowers, and we’re similarly free to send any guest home with an armful of colour and fragrance. And there’s always the scent of gardens in the air, a scent that varies with time and season (you always know when the lavender is ready!).
Unlike a lawn, it’s a haven for hummingbirds and butterflies. We know nothing is truly deer-proof, but an 8-foot veritably invisible fence is set about thirty feet back in the woods and has worked so far. Everyone else is pretty much welcome.
We have a small lawn in the back if we need to look at non-ornamental grasses.
I was out a couple days ago with a camera and grabbed a handful of very quick, ill-composed shots—these aren’t stellar photographs, and they’re missing a lot of the garden (esp. all the areas outside the fence), but they should give you a sense of things: Rhythmdvl’s Gardens
I’ve replaced a lot of lawn space with garden over the years. It results in more work (and a lot more fun and useful yield). For most people pesticide and fertilizer input will be dramatically lower (though I don’t use either on our remaining lawn).
The amount of work depends a lot on what you grow. A dense groundcover or mulched hosta bed, for example, don’t require much effort at all.
Another positive about gardens–usually the work that needs to be done can be put off for a few days. If it’s too hot or rainy or you just don’t want to mess with it, most things can wait a week (except harvesting, but that’s kind of fun). With a lawn, it just keeps getting taller and weedier and if you aren’t careful you’ll have to call a Guy to come in with a brush hog.
I think a garden is a good idea but do you have a Neighborhood Assoc. and is it allowed? Some people have gotten in trouble for growing vegetables in their front yards. 
Very nice gardens - I like the gravel paths.
Also zone 5 (Chicago area) and have done this twice now, both with bulbs (from snowdrops and crocuses, to daffodils, daylillies, and allium) to come up earlyish, interplanted with a variety of prairie plants (coneflowers, liatris, grasses, etc.) often bought at the local farmer’s market.
More work year one to two, much much less after that. Once established prairie plants should not need watering and crowd out the weeds.
A vegetable garden though is work. Might be worthwhile work, but work.
Converting “some” lawn with garden isn’t going to save you much on maintenance. Let’s say you convert a strip of lawn 10ft wide by 50ft long into a garden. The labor you save is the time it takes to push your mower 50 feet 5 times, once per week. Now, you still have to be out there with the mower, it has to be gassed up, and in good repair, so you save yourself a 250ft walk once a week.
If you convert inconvenient or difficult to mow areas of the lawn, you may save more of your mowing time. If you convert an entire lawn area to garden, so you do not have to mow it at all, you can save even more.
Depending on the design, you may also be creating more areas to edge, which may increase your overall lawn maintenance time, even with less square footage.
Oh my goodness, your garden is AMAZING.
Thank you all for your replies.
Based on all the information provided, I think I’ve decided that if I’m going to do it, I’m going to do the whole yard, breaking it up into several small gardens with paths running through it and removing all the grass.
But I think the lawn–though it sucks the water–is less maintenance right now than a garden would be. I also have not decided whether I’m going to sell the house in a few years or not, and if I go that way, it will probably be easier to sell it with a nice green front lawn.
I have decided to add a large rock garden right next to the front of the house though, as I have water coming into my crawlspace from watering all the flowers there.
So again, thanks for all your responses, and happy gardening.
Beautiful!!! I’m bookmarking it because I see some ideas I like. 