In February 2020, the City Council approved an ordinance that allows residents to plant and nurture native landscaping on their properties. Previous language in City Code limited landscaping to turf grasses. The initiative to recognize native landscaping as a viable option required significant research and efforts by the Environment Commission and Planning Commission.

• Ordinance 20-02
• Landscape diagram

Education/Resources

• The Minnesota Board of Soil and Water Resources promotes Lawns to Legumes, a program that offers a combination of workshops, coaching, planting guides and cost-share funding for installing pollinator-friendly native plantings in residential lawns. BWSR also awards individual support grants.
• Blue Thumb, a Lawns to Legumes partner, offers many workshops for homeowners who want to learn more about native and resilient yards. A list of workshops is available here. 
• Capitol Region Watershed District, which covers most of Falcon Heights, also has a Stewardship Grant Program to promote water quality improvement best management practices (BMPs).
• Rice Creek Watershed District, which covers a smaller area of our city, offers a Mini-Grants Program to promote native plants and other projects.