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Why grow something other than grass?
to spend less time on lawn chores;
to use less water;
to avoid using pesticides and fertilizers;
to add variety to the landscape.
Plant sources
A good source of plants for boulevard gardens are other gardeners. Check with friends and neighbours to see if they have suitable plants they wish to donate.
Many ground covers are quite invasive which means they can be well-suited for the confined area of a boulevard. Some gardeners plant different types of ground covers and let them "fight it out". Others prefer a more organized approach and use edging material to restrict how much a given plant can spread.
Think of your boulevard as a giant planter. Boulevards are usually exposed to sun, wind, snow, salt, car exhaust and foot traffic. Soil conditions are often dry and compacted. These may not sound like ideal growing conditions but there are many plants that can survive and even thrive in these harsh conditions.
Grow plants that are:
inexpensive
widely available
easy to care for
Avoid rare, expensive plants, plants that need constant care (water, fertilizer, etc.) and plants that require special soil conditions.
Many plants often referred to as exotics have been introduced from other parts of the world. Some (many types of herbs for example) are well suited for boulevards. Depending on your goals you may want to just grow only natives or exotics alone or a combination of both.
There are hundreds of plants that you could try on your boulevard. Check the following page for some plants suggestions.
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