Lunch and Lawn: Can You Have Grass and Eat Too?

Enthusiasm for local food production and self-sufficiency, as well as concern over food safety has generated increased interest in home vegetable gardens.  However, many urban dwellers have small outdoor spaces and often lawns occupy the only full sun areas of the landscape.  In order to explore the possibility of using the same space for fall vegetable production and a warm-season summer lawn, Top Bunch Hybrid collards, Sweet Surprise cabbage, Kaboko cabbage, Coronado Crown Hybrid broccoli (Brassica sp.) and Butter Crunch lettuce, (Lactuca sativa) were planted into a hybrid bermudagrass lawn in late September.  Sod cutters were used to cut strips 13 cm, 18 cm, and 46 cm wide into the turfgrass.  All five cultivars were planted into the strips. Broccoli, lettuce, and collards were also planted in 46 x 91 cm plots. All cultivars were also planted directly into turfgrass (61 cm apart). Plants were fertilized individually at the rate of 50 g/m² at planting and again at four weeks. Field observations were made through early December on general plant health and yield. Lettuce, collards and cabbage were successfully produced in the 18 cm row, 46 cm row and the 46 X 91 cm plots. Lettuce, collards and cabbage were not successful in the 13 cm row or when directly planted into turfgrass.  Broccoli produced edible florets in all treatments.