Homeowner preferences drive lawn and perennial species richness in newly constructed yards

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Tracy L. Fuentes, Interdisciplinary PhD Program in Urban Design and Planning, University of Washington, Seattle, WA

Background/Question/Methods
New home construction drives a large proportion of urban land cover change in the United States. As part of an effort to document the initial conditions of new residential landscapes in the Seattle Metropolitan Statistical Area, USA, I recruited a stratified random sample of 60 new homeowners. I documented the spontaneous flora of their new lawns and the perennial planting choices of the new homeowners. To link species richness to potential drivers, I also collected parcel and neighborhood scale variables, homeowner ranking of the importance of 8 goals for their new yards, and homeowner rankings of the importance of 10 plant selection criteria.
Results/Conclusions
I found that homeowner preferences were strong predictors of observed plant species richness. Four yard goals were linked to species richness patterns. Wanting to provide wildlife habitat (Habitat) and wanting a yard to provide space for children (Kid Space) increased the probability that the homeowner would manage their lawns as turfgrass monocultures, while wanting an easy to manage yard (Easy) decreased the probability. Homeowners who prioritized Neat yards planted fewer herbaceous perennial species. Habitat valuing homeowners also planted more shrub and herb species. Three plant buying criteria were positively associated with homeowner planting behavior: 1) Unique plants with tree, shrub, and herb richness; 2) Inexpensive plants with shrub richness, and 3) growing Food with shrub and perennial herb richness. To expand our knowledge of how people’s preferences shape plant communities in private spaces, other urban ecologists should attempt to replicate these household preferences and floral outcomes in other urban ecosystems.