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Weed Laws Article on Landscaping (John Marshall Law Review) Page 10 of 27 municipal code which forbids "grass, weeds, or any other plant that is not cultivated" to grow higher than 10 inches or "in rank profussion on the premises. "83 The case went to trial in 1988. The city weed inspector testified that Allison's yard was filled with ivy and honeysuckle, but he found no garbage or litter. A state urban wildlife biologist, Karen Yaich, testified that natural landscapes, like Allison's, do not attract rats or pest snakes. Ms. Allison testified that she cultivated a natural landscape in order to provide nesting sites for native wildlife and because she preferred the natural appearance. Little Rock Municipal Judge Marion Humphries dismissed the citation. The Court held: It appears that what [Ms. Allison] was cultivating was the kind of vegetation that would not attract snakes or rats as suggested by her neighbors, that it would attract songbirds. For that reason, her premises would meet the standards of the Game and Fish Commission of having a certified backyard wildlife area.84 Without interference, Ms. Allison currently continues her natural landscaping efforts. 6. Ladybird Johnson and the National Wildflower Research Center Ladybird Johnson led the effort to beautify the National Highway System and was instrumental in the passage of the statute implementing her efforts.85 In 1982, as a spin -off of her highway beautification efforts, Ladybird Johnson and the late Helen Hayes founded the National Wildflower Research Center, a non - profit environmental organization dedicated to the preservation and reestablishment of native wildflowers, grasses, shrubs, and trees. The Wildflower Center, with 18,000 members, provides information on recommended native plant species and seed and plant sources for each state, plus tips on planting and maintaining native plants through its Information Clearinghouse.86 The center is an important institutional base for the natural landscaping movement. 7. The Canadian Cases Across the border, the same battle is being waged between the natural landscapers and some of their neighbors and village officials. Lary Lamb, a university ecologist, has fought neighbors in his Toronto suburb for years to maintain his native North American prairie in his yard.87 One thousand miles to the east, Cathy Smallwood grows a native woodland in the Newfoundland capital, St. John's.88 In September 1992, the city served her with a citation for violating the law that required yards to be "kept clean and free from growth of weeds and grass that are detrimental to health or public safety... or by reason of not being cut regularly are excessive when compared with neighboring properties. "89 The matter came before the planning commission and Mrs. Smallwood convinced the commission, 5 -4, to allow her to keep her natural http: / /www.epa.gov /glnpo /greenacres /weedlaws /JMLR.html 2/22/01