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Baby Safe Garden Area

I have been asked to come up with a recommendation and implementation of a baby safe area as part of a complete remake of a fairly large garden. The customer is keen on live, or soft, as opposed to hard landscaping. Which is in accord with my own instincts for this overall project but . . .

If my memory serves me well, when my two each went through the stages of crawling and early walking, when they found something new it went straight into the mouth for testing. They were not untypical of small children everywhere.

Which of you can offer me the best get out of jail card for this one?

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  • For a green space thats not hard landscaped - Bark chips - Out full of dirt,

    So back to basics, for something interesting you could try a Red or White Clover lawn - looks beuatiful and is harmless if eaten - Bitter but harmless.

    You could consider a camomile lawn, but they can be difficult to maintain,

    Id go with clover lawn, raised wooden edging for the play area, clover also sspreads and roots so is self repairing.

  • Id go with clover lawn, raised wooden edging for the play area, clover also sspreads and roots so is self repairing.

    Terrific solution and one I just hadn't even thought about! Thanks David.
  • Try Lolium perenne or something similar. There's a fair bit of research been carried out on it and it's harmless if eaten. Quite easy to maintain too I am told.

  • Don't forget that clover will attract bees, which might prove hazardous to small crawlers/walkers.
  • Got a good protein content too if you want to try it:)



    John Baker said:

    Try Lolium perenne or something similar. There's a fair bit of research been carried out on it and it's harmless if eaten. Quite easy to maintain too I am told.

  • There used to be all sorts of soft materials you could use, with different textures, for feeling but that were a part of the material, that and inserting a square that is flexible that you can bounce on a bit, and then grassy mounds they can crawl up and down on, no shrubs or plants - that and I am not even a gardener!

  • OK, well I'll do some research around Lolium perenne for similar grasses so there wil be more than one solution on offer. I really like the clover idea but Sarah has a very valid point. It will probably scare mum and dad off, although it will get a mention along with the caveat. The raised wooden edging looks good too, whatever goes inside. There are lots of soft, bouncy, non-chewable, man-made, rubbery plastic things, to add a bit of interest and colour onto such a base. Nowadays it is easy to select recyclable ones which keeps me and, to my knowledge, mum, don't know about dad yet, happy. So give me a nudge if I forget to report back by Saturday after Friday's meeting. Thanks to all of you. :-)

  • To be fair clover attracts relativly few bees from experience - I've recently cut 8 acres of red clover (90% of the sward) ley and insects were few and far between.

    Hover flys seem to do most of the polination from my observations - Bees tend to go for clover when their is few other things in flower - so early in the year and again later on in the year.

    If you go down the grass route, I'd steer clear of perrenial rye grass (lolium perrene) unless your client is willing to commit to feeding it,

    ALL rye grasses have high nitrogen requirement, and without regular feeding they become week, sparce and other wild grasses will quickly establish in the sward. Rye grasses are also THE fastest growing grasses for our climate, Period - hence most of the countryside being covered in it for anmials!

    Id reccomend a Dwarf variety If you must choose rye, but would personally choose Creeping red fescue,

    https://www.cotswoldseeds.com/product/dwarf-ryegrass-turf-ryegrass-...

    Creeping red fescue give the beneift it is self repairing, and quite slow growing, - as it creeps and spreads via rhizomes and patches in the sward are quickly filled, which also helps keep weeds down.

    https://www.cotswoldseeds.com/product/creeping-red-fescue-festuca-r...

    It also has a much lower Nitrogen need and response - so will not thin out after 12-18 months without being fed.

    You could combine clover + Grass (fescue) and as the clover is leguminous it will provide all the N the fescue needs, giving you a very thick and persistant, self reparing lawn as both spread by rhizomes and creepers - to boot weeds will be less of an issue in such a vigourous mix.

  • Honey bees can't get the nectar from red clover for physical reasons, but bumble bees which tend to be solitary can. Honey bees go for white clover

    David Cox said:

    To be fair clover attracts relativly few bees from experience - I've recently cut 8 acres of red clover (90% of the sward) ley and insects were few and far between.

  • Assume the worst they will try anything. I found good soft cut grass with in built undulations the most fun. Tellytubby style or think miniature Iron age fort ground shapes, then they can roll up and down. Also moss is good, however clover lawns and camomile are also loved by bees and that can be problematical. Can get good rubberised tiles like schools use as a softer paving, just make sure customer accpets they need to be changed in a few years. A good 6 inch edge to beds that they can kick a ball against is fun, It would be great to use materials which 'ring' when hit. Have fun.
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