Blade runners: the joy of moss lawns

I know I mess with the hallmarks of traditional British gardens at my peril, but there is one that I still struggle to love: the grass lawn. Of all garden features, to me at least, it has to be the one that provides the most work and worry, while offering possibly the least in return. This is particularly the case if you are growing a lawn on a “problem site” that suffers from compaction, waterlogging, drought, poor soil, thin soil, acid soil, too much shade or heavy traffic. Frankly, does anyone’s lawn not fall into at least one of these categories?

However, if you still long for an expanse of soft, soothing green, and are up for something a little different in a small space, there is a simple substitute that might give you a whole lot more reward for a lot less effort: moss lawns. In Japan, moss gardens have not only been a mainstream feature for hundreds of years, but are so commonplace one can buy more than a dozen named cultivars of moss for any situation. Meanwhile, in the UK, if you mention moss in the context of a lawn, it’s almost always in terms of the huge amount of effort to get rid of it.

If you are one of these people, here’s the deal – it is probably far easier for you to work with, rather than against, nature and convert your grass lawn to a Japanese-style moss one. Once established, not only will it be less work to keep looking green and lush, but also it will never need mowing. It’ll be far more resistant to any of the “problem plots” mentioned above too, and may even act as a far better carbon sink. Speaking to the designer of the LG Eco-City Garden at this year’s Chelsea Flower Show, which featured an abundance of the stuff, I was surprised to learn that studies suggest just 12 square metres of moss lawn can apparently absorb as much carbon as 275 mature trees. Given all these benefits, it’s no wonder that moss lawns are increasingly popular with our friends on the other side of the pond, and maybe one day we will cotton on to their charms here.

To get the transition started, mow your lawn on the very shortest setting and continue every week throughout the summer. This will help knock some of the grass back. Then water the whole area enthusiastically with a hose or sprinkler every few days just for the first two to three months to provide the moisture and compaction mosses love to get established. This also conveniently washes away excess nutrients that might otherwise mean grasses can outcompete the moss. Once it takes hold, moss can be really drought-tolerant, so don’t let an initial outlay of water and labour put you off. Never fertilise, scarify or aerate.

If you have a shady site with poor, acid soil you will be able to see a change within as little as a few weeks. I have seen sites in the US and Japan that have become lush colonies within a year, after only an initial period of prep in the summer, which then require almost no maintenance apart from a weeding every few weeks.

Email James at james.wong@observer.co.uk or follow him on Twitter@Botanygeek