Our 2026 Landscape Challenge winner Jeanine Arrighi’s before and after
Each year one lucky homeowner is chosen to receive a reimagining of a portion of their front yard; transforming excess turf into a native Missouri landscape.
Wild Ones St. Louis Chapter, with the support of Grow Native!, sponsors the Landscape Challenge, which encourages homeowners to landscape with native plants. The sponsoring organizations collaborate to provide the services of a native landscape designer, up to $600 worth of native plants, plant tags for the garden space, a Wild Ones Landscape Challenge sign, and volunteers to install the landscape. The approximate area of the landscaped area will be 300 sq ft. The homeowner prepares the site and agrees to maintain the new plantings as well as host a Wild Ones gathering within 3 years of the planting.
2027 is the 21st year of our program! How many new native gardens exist because of this program?! It’s great to think about how each Landscape Challenge yard impacts friends and family, which impacts more friends and family. We also know that a Wild Ones front yard is more alive and more inspirational for the surrounding neighborhood!
Our landscape makeover contest was inspired by a pilot project in 2005 designed by the Missouri Department of Conservation’s Grow Native! program and the Mid-Missouri chapter of Wild Ones Natural Landscapers. They laid the organizational groundwork and coached us through the 2006 St. Louis contest. In St. Louis, the partnership consisted of Grow Native!, Wild Ones St. Louis chapter, and Shaw Nature Reserve. Other chapters might consider partnering with a wildflower nursery, the local Sierra Club, nature study groups or similar organizations.
The 2027 Landscape Challenge application period is open as of Monday, October 26, 2026
The application period will close on Monday, November 30, 2026
The Application page will go live on Monday, October 26, 2026
The rules and agreement:
- Applications are received in the fall. The selection committee reviews the applications, and the winner is announced in late early January.
- While it is not required, preference is given to applicants who are current Wild Ones members AND have had a Bring Conservation Home (BCH) assessment by St. Louis Audubon at least one year prior. If you’ve made changes to your landscape based on the BCH assessment, please highlight them in your application.
- The selection committee will look at criteria such as potential exposure (walking/car traffic), previous native plant experience, willingness to interact and help educate neighbors, and potential landscape issues such as erosion, water issues, or compacted soil.
- The grant is designed to showcase formal native front gardens to educate the public on the potential for utilizing Missouri natives in more traditional gardening styles. It is not designed to tackle landscape “tough spots” or other issues. We will consider front yards with elevation changes or water management issues; however, they are rarely selected as the Landscape Challenge winner.
- If chosen as the winner, the homeowner is expected to prepare the site for planting including turf removal and mulching, with guidance from Wild Ones.
- The native landscape designer works with the homeowner on the design and plant selection in January and February. Wild Ones procures the plants.
- Planting date is usually toward the end of April or in early May. Wild Ones recruits volunteers for planting day and the designer will be on hand to lay out the plants.
- Mentorship is available for new (or not-so-new) gardeners who have questions about the planting and its stewardship.
- The winner agrees to host a Wild Ones gathering at their home within 3 years of the planting. This is a great opportunity to show off your native landscape AND meet other native plant enthusiasts.
A huge THANK YOU goes out to all our partners, sponsors, chairs, designers, volunteers and homeowners who make this yearly project possible!
Good luck to all applicants!
Landscape Challenge Winners
| Year | Location | Homeowner | Chairperson | Landscape Designer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Webster Groves | Nathan and Julie Jacobs | Scott Woodbury Betty Struckhoff | Simon Barker |
| 2007 | North St. Louis | Habitat For Humanity | Scott Woodbury Betty Struckhoff | Scott Woodbury |
| 2008 | South St. Louis | Mary Lamb | Ed Schmidt | Scott Woodbury Walter Peterson |
| 2009 | Richmond Heights | Kevin and Melissa Baum | Ed Schmidt | Penney Bush-Boyce |
| 2010 | Creve Coeur | Nick and Donna Giunta | Ed Schmidt | Jeanne Cablish |
| 2011 | Chesterfield | Neil and Erica Rose | Ed Schmidt | Jeanne Cablish |
| 2012 | Pasadena Hills | Tim and Caroline Yau | Ed Schmidt | Jeanne Cablish |
| 2013 | St. Louis City | Dawn Weber | Ed Schmidt | Jeanne Cablish |
| 2014 | Kirkwood | Lisa Wilhelms | Ed Schmidt | Jeanne Cablish |
| 2015 | University City | Terry Egan and Rosalie Uchanski | Ed Schmidt | Jeanne Cablish |
| 2017 | Brentwood | Marlene Becker | James Faupel | Robert May |
| 2018 | St. Louis City | Dan Pearson | James Faupel | Robert May |
| 2019 | Ballwin | Steve and Krystal Coxon | Sue Leahy | Robert May |
| 2020 | Maryland Heights | Amy and Ryan Cuttrell | Sue Leahy | Sue Leahy |
| 2021 | Webster Groves | Amy Maddin | Sue Leahy | Erin Goss |
| 2022 | Crestwood | Diana Linsley | Sue Leahy | Erin Goss |
| 2023 | South Hampton | Laura Arthur | Sue Leahy | Erin Goss |
| 2024 | Ballwin | Jon Hammond and Megan Grothman | Erin Goss | Maureen Keaveny |
| 2025 | Kirkwood | Linda and Buzz Jelinek | Erin Goss | Maureen Keaveny |
| 2026 | Affton | Jeanine and John Arrighi | Erin Goss | Maureen Keaveny |
| 2027 | Could be You! | Erin Goss |