To people who were raised on manicured lawns and shaded porches, Fairbanks is truly the Last Frontier. Junked cars are substituted for flower beds. Tarp-covered woodpiles are a suitable replacement for hedges.
Lawns consist of whatever happens to grow in front of a house.
It's enough to make a serious yard worker shriek. But amidst the Alaskana, more and more pockets of Outside influence are making their way into the Interior. Some of the newer subdivisions in Fairbanks look more like American suburbia than the rugged North . Parking lots, once simple oceans of asphalt, are now frequently garnished with shrubs and trees. Some local landscapers, developers and gardeners say it could be the beginning of a new approach.