I've owned my San Diego home for over 2 years now and finally narrowing down what I want to do with my large front lawn area (currently consisting of patchy grass that just wont die + weeds). It is about 1000 sq ft total (wedge-shaped corner lot). Most all of it gets full sun for a good part of the day. I had grand plans of many native plants and swales but the cost and upkeep made it quickly out of the question. And frankly, I enter and exit my home from the back/side yard anyway and would rarely see/enjoy the front. What I'd like it a lawn alternative that is uniform and simple. I would prefer to use a native plant as the rest of my garden will likely be native. I'll concentrate on the side/back yard for beauty.

I've narrowed down my search to yarrow or carex pansa. I'm hearing a lot of conflicting information about the two as far as suitability for groundcover/lawn alternative. I love that meadow look. My #1 criteria is water use. I understand it will take some water to get these plants established, which is fine. But I DON'T want to install an irrigation system. Which would best lend itself to hand watering for establishment and then occasional hand-watering in the summer or other dry times (1-2x month?) #2 would be cost - is one much more expensive than the other? Any other advice? Thank you!