They call them "hellstrips" in some parts of the country. Here we call them "berms". They're the utilitarian space 3 to 6 feet wide between the sidewalk and the street. Here in Grand Forks, North Dakota, the city owns the berms but the homeowner is required to maintain them. Snow gets piled on them in winter (lots of snow!) by the plows, and brush and leaves are left there for the city to pick up during Fall clean up (see 2010 post with pictures of the leaf machine). Don't worry we don't give away our leaves, they're far too precious to us, though we do make sure to not rake leaves on windy days.
The standard default is a grass berm that the homeowner is required to mow and maintain. Our neighbor Bob across the block though is smart and has a better idea for his berm...wildflowers.
I'd like to try something like this in the coming years. For most of Spring and Summer it just looks like weeds growing on an untended patch, but for a month or so
in late Summer and Fall it looks magnificent with explosions of color.
Wildflowers mixes are pretty inexpensive (you can buy them by the pound) and cover a huge area, so a big bag of seeds can last for several years. What do you do with your hellstrip/berm?
The standard default is a grass berm that the homeowner is required to mow and maintain. Our neighbor Bob across the block though is smart and has a better idea for his berm...wildflowers.
Wildflowers mixes are pretty inexpensive (you can buy them by the pound) and cover a huge area, so a big bag of seeds can last for several years. What do you do with your hellstrip/berm?
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