What are some mowing alternatives for a large yard?

Question

I have a 20,000+ sq. ft. yard (about .5 acre). The house sits all the way in the back of the yard (or I would just let it go to wildflowers). We have huge gardens all around the house, but one can only weed so many gardens and spend so much time and money on mulch. We plan on planting a few more trees and getting rid of the corners in our garden (low ground cover, weed choking plants), but I still find it pointless to mow the entire front yard. Is there some inexpensive way to reduce the amount of mowing we have to do? I've read about clover, but I don't want to rip up my whole yard to get rid of the current crabgrass. Goats and sheep are out of the question.

Answer 1

You could:

Install a pond

Plant ornamental, perennial grasses

Plant low growing perennial herbs

Go for the wild flowers, Why not? There are large containers of wildflower seeds available that promise you will have flowers all season long.