It’s Landscape Challenge time!
Calling all Wild Ones and native plant fans: Imagine the average lawn along a front sidewalk in late August. Imagine the tan, ochre, sepia, and bone of drought-beaten turf. Now imagine a different sidewalk scene: blue and purple, yellow, pink, gold and cream. Little sweat bees and skippers, swallowtail and bumblebees rove and hover about. There’s a rhythm to the planting, an order. Layers, all on the shorter side. The lawn is now a lively gathering space – for insects and pedestrians alike.
The Wild Ones Landscape Challenge grant is designed to encourage more native plant gardens in urban and suburban neighborhoods by offering up one makeover a year – and your front yard could be our 21st! Wild Ones will supply design expertise, up to $600 in plants, plant tags, a Wild Ones Landscape Challenge sign, and volunteers to install the garden and troubleshoot after planting day.
Your obligation, if selected, is to prepare the area for planting, maintain it once planted, add the provided plant tags, install a sign (provided by Wild Ones) designating it a native Missouri landscape and be willing to host a Wild Ones monthly meeting at some point in the next 2 years.
Pretty good deal, huh?
The Landscape Challenge is jointly sponsored by the Wild Ones St. Louis and Grow Native! in cooperation with Bring Conservation Home and is open to any homeowner in St. Louis City or St. Louis County. Applicants who are current Wild Ones member, have completed and utilized a Bring Conservation Home stewardship visit report, or who have neighborhood sidewalks or high pedestrian traffic and activity will score extra points. You do not have to be a member of Wilds Ones to apply though we hope you will consider joining.
Applications will open on Monday, October 26 and close on Monday, November 30, 2026. For all the details, please visit the challenge website at stlwildones.org/landscape-challenge/. If you have questions about the challenge not answered there, please contact Erin Goss at stlwildones.org/contact-us/.
