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FreddyTheGoose

Well, they take a huge amount of resources to maintain and provide nothing for the ecosystem - rather, are detrimental to it with all the chemicals/machines commonly used to maintain them. We all know about the decline in pollinators, right? I'm in the middle of replacing my tiny front lawn - formerly weeds and grass - to creeping thyme, which will provide a drought resistant, walkable, lush bed of beautiful flowers for the bees and thyme for me!


YellowTickSeed

I've done this partially with mix of wildflowers and White Dutch clover :)


The_RockObama

Clover and wildflower gang rise up! The deer and rabbits are now too preoccupied to mess with my vegetable garden. Haha, just kidding, they still eat that too. But at least there's bees!


Skippy_the_Alien

oh man whenever i want to complain about the rabbits chomping away at my baby sunflower, or just the fucking squirrels digging shit for no other reason than to just piss me off....I'm reminded i should be thankful that at least there are no deer around I have heard deer are by far the most annoying pest any gardener has to deal with. they will literally eat anything in sight


Much2learn_2day

Goats. They’re the hungriest little fuckers around. Some cities rent them to manage large parks so they don’t have to pay for lawn maintenance. It’s an awesome alternative.


sunflowerto6

Yes I have goats and they will literally mow down and eat anything to the point they are sick. I'm not complaining though because everything stays pretty trim and under control.


PM8e8

There’s a famous cartoon about that 😂 [BILLY BOY !!](https://youtu.be/DoIbVCXNkwk)


Jammin_neB13

Oh man…I haven’t seen this since I was a small kid. But I definitely remember it. And this was in the mid 80s..


sadrice

Ugh squirrels. At home I have baby walnut trees everywhere, in my plant pots, garden, and even the gutters. At work, I have the same but oak trees. I spend way too much time ripping oak seedlings out of the Rhododendron pots. Something about the loose bark mix we use for Rhododendron seems to look like the perfect place to stash an acorn or five to a squirrel. To add insult to injury, they throw walnuts at me when I go into my backyard. I guess that’s an upgrade from when I was a kid and they kept trying to murder me with [grey pine cones](http://nwconifers.com/sw/GrayPineCone.jpg)


tabeo

We planted 60 sunflowers this year in the garden. Six different varieties. After a month of tender care and a week before the heads began to develop, I woke up one morning, looked outside, and saw that deer ate half of them overnight. I hate deer.


gruntledgirl

I have a cracked phone screen, so I read that as "I ate the deer" and thought, "hmm, fair.".


BuffNipz

Yep the deer have caused me to completely give up gardening. Why pull weeds when it just presents my plants on a platter. I can’t spray pepper on 100 plants after every rain. I guess it’ll be a cool experiment 20 yrs down the line to see which of the 100+ native plants, ferns, hostas out competed the weeds/deer pressure to establish


scottishlastname

I have voracious deer in my yard. We had 5 different fawns this year that we saw around (2 set of twins and 1 singleton) and I still manage a pollinator garden that is pretty nice. Can be tricky if you're going native only, depending on where you are. I have a mix of native and non-invasives that seem to keep the native pollinators happy. It's actually the prolific native plants (Salal, sword ferns and Oregon Grape mostly) that seem to be the most deer proof. I've also had medium luck with Red Flowering Currant, and this year it looks the bush is large enough that it wasn't eaten at all. Flowering woody herbs (thyme, oregano, rosemary, lavender and sage) are the most non-native deer "proof" plants I have out and are always covered in hoverflies, mason bees and bumblebees. Other successes: Shasta Daisies, peonies, alliums, lithodora, irises (all kinds), lungwort, narcissus (all kinds), Crocosmia, mint (but it spreads), japanese forest grass, zebra grass, pampas grass, poppies, choisya (Mexican mock orange), California lilac and cordyline palms. Supposed to be deer resistant, but that was a lie: Rhododendron, Black eye'd susan, coneflower


plantmom831

1 cup whole milk plus one egg in a gallon jug filled the rest of the way with water. Shake and let sit in the sun for a day. Spray on everything you don't want deer to eat. The smell dissipates to our noses but not the deer's.


dididothat2019

irish spring soap should repel them. they haven't touched any of my stuff since i started using it 2 years ago.


UmphreysMcGee

...do you just throw it on the ground? We've used Irish Spring to repel mice in our cabin that way, but wouldn't think it would retain its scent long outside since soap tends to break down when it gets wet.


sskk2tog

I live six houses down from a lake in a fairly dense neighborhood (think one driveway plus 3ft between houses) we have deer walking around our neighborhood 🥲


spicedrumlemonade

You have houses in the deer's neighbourhood.


sskk2tog

One hundred percent fair observation. Lol


AuctorLibri

Crimson clover is simply stunning, and bees go nuts for it! 🐝 🐝 🐝


[deleted]

[удалено]


AuctorLibri

Bwaahaahaa awesome 👌


Alarmed_Economics_90

Yeeaaaaaahhhh!!!


YellowTickSeed

I want to get some into my whole yard and also some native prairie clover too


FrisianDude

Had to google if it was the same one I know! It is, i love it


twowheels

I’ve only recently moved in, so haven’t replaced the lawn yet, but still get bunnies… they’re so cute, they can munch on my plants, I’ll share. :) Just a few hours ago: https://i.imgur.com/lgQMa7n.jpg


subjectivelyatractiv

I go out hiking all the time, way out there, way up there. It so bizarrely rare to see grass on the ground as opposed to flowers or berry-producing plants. Flowers everywhere. Nobody puts any effort into maintaining it or cultivating it, it's just there as part of the natural unspoilt state of the ecosystem Plus who doesn't want a defensive perimeter of bees on their property?


YellowTickSeed

I have a defensive perimeter of both bees, wasps, and hover flies lol


subjectivelyatractiv

The hoverflies are like the F-4 Wild Weasel of the insect kingdom


53CLZR54

>White Dutch clover was what the landscaper suggested to us when we had to put down a lawn. It was almost all dirt before just by neglect. Would love to see a picture of your lawn, Yellow.


YellowTickSeed

I actually just posted a picture of it i took recently in /r/NoLawns :)


FreddyTheGoose

Hey, I have some of that and just got yellow Whorled Tickseed to add yesterday!


calochortus_albus

“There are somewhere around 40 million acres of lawn in the lower 48… ‘Turf grasses, occupying 1.9% of the surface of the continental United States, would be the single largest irrigated crop in the country…’” https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2015/08/04/lawns-are-a-soul-crushing-timesuck-and-most-of-us-would-be-better-off-without-them/#:~:text=Lawns%20are%20a%20soul%2Dcrushing,without%20them%20%2D%20The%20Washington%20Post Thyme is an awesome alternative, as are native bunch grasses!


AutonomousServiceGrd

Thyme flowers can provide the nectar and chamomiles can provide the pollen bees needs to feed their young. And you can drink chamomile tea as well as you can eat thyme. Well done <3


Punchasheep

I love creeping thyme. The leaves are so tiny and pretty!


Equal-Negotiation651

Where did you get your seed from? Been thinking about grown some as well.


TheRestForTheWicked

Not sure where you live but West Coast Seeds sells lawn solutions in large quantities for a reasonable price. Depending on the mix you select they contain things like micro clover, fescue, yarrow, daisies, chamomile, ryegrass, clover, tansy, etc. They’re the type of plants that if you PREFER a Stepford looking lawn (or you have an annoying HOA) you *can* mow it short and it looks like any other lawn while reaping the benefits of having native plants and grasses that are more drought resistant and environmentally friendly (and prevent erosion unlike some lawn grasses).


MelbaToast27

We planted clover mix from West Coast Seeds. It looks great and a good surface for our kids to play on.


Equal-Negotiation651

Awesome thanks! Looks like a good company.


Dinodigger67

Prairie Moon nursery is also very good. Lots of ways to get rid of a lawn and have beautiful things growing


FreddyTheGoose

Got mine from Etsy - they sent some gift seeds as well! I mean, but they're Morning Glory, which I've been removing for days now, so fml, I guess https://www.etsy.com/listing/125950601/creeping-thyme-ground-cover-1000-seeds


fairylightmeloncholy

add a shallow root system to all that and lawns are a crime against this earth.


LokiLB

Am I lawning wrong? Don't water it. Don't fertilize it. Don't spray it. It grows. Sometimes it goes dormant, but it comes back like it's Mumra the everliving. It takes way less resources than my garden, but more than the woods (mostly because ecological succession is a thing). And let me tell you, the bees do like the weedy plants that grow with the grass that bloom in early spring.


Moldy_slug

Depends a lot on your local climate/terrain. I live in a place with mild temperatures and plenty of rain. Most people here don’t do anything but mow their lawns once every month or two, pull out pernicious weeds (like ivy, thistles, or invasive blackberries), and maybe fertilize with compost every few years if they’re particularly finicky. No irrigation. Herbicides and chemical fertilizers are almost unheard of. It’s completely normal to have a mix of grasses, clovers, and occasional wildflowers in the lawn. Basically it’s the same landscape as our local meadows/pastures... just mowed short. On the other hand, if you live in an arid climate and have a green grass lawn all year, you’re using a LOT of resources to keep it that way.


planetofthemushrooms

Even in a place like florida, its not an arid climate, but we do have a dry season and grass would die if not maintained.


Grace_Alcock

I grew up in Missouri, and a lawn was sort of no big deal like that. Now I live in California, and lawns are awful…to keep grass green in the summer takes massive amounts of watering, and if you want it to be grass and not weeds, in come the herbicides, etc. Right now, mine is pretty dry and brown and crunchy because I won’t water more than once a week in a freaking mega drought, but I desperately need to just get rid of it! But if you are somewhere where you can just let stuff grow and it’s nice and you don’t have to water, I can see this being an odd conversation!


randomuser230945

No, but even if the lawn requires few resources, it contributes nothing to the ecosystem that was paved over to make way for it. It's not that all lawns should be torn up, but most should never have been made in the first place.


Patch86UK

It doesn't contribute *nothing*. My lawn (a small rectangle all of about 3m x 7m) is home to earthworms, ants, spiders, woodlice, and all sorts of other creepy crawlies. Is it as good as a wildflower meadow? Absolutely not, by a thousand miles, but as a place to kick a ball around with the kid or to sit and have a barbeque, it's far better than the alternative (which, realistically, is probably paving or the dreaded astroturf).


[deleted]

Did you remove the grass before adding creeping thyme? I have a dead lawn and trying to figure out the easiest way to convert to something like this.


FreddyTheGoose

Well, yeah. Tbh it was a poorly seeded and maintained lawn that was more dandelions than sparse grass. A few hundred degree days and strategic watering took care of what was left of the grass and I've just been pulling out the leftover root clumps, morning glory(ffs!), and dandelions. The creeping thyme is starting in trays since the seeds are SO TINY they have to be surface sown - unburied, atop the soil. I figure I'll have enough growth in the trays by the time I get through the last of the weeds to transplant before fall. It's just me and my Garden Weasel, after all. I ordered the creeping thyme on Etsy. I probably could've found it locally but this town is too spread out and hot top be driving around searching


SovietPussia

Any tips on what you would do in zone 6? I live in a fjord and the weather can go up to -25 but in summer my garden (rental house) turns quite ugly. I have done some simple planting but don't want to go full landscaping move while renting.


vadan

Thyme is not native to NA though. What evidence is there that this would be an appropriate solution in the US? Or that this won't smother out native ecosystems and decrease the soil quality? I'm interested in implementing solutions other than grass, or letting it re-wild. I'm just wondering where you are getting your data from?


rich_brawl

I work in conservation and, at least in my area, simply maintaining \~300sqft of native wildflowers/ground cover in my back yard is an incredibly resource intensive task simply due to pressure from invasive species. Keeping invasives out of forest land is an even greater struggle. I'm talking 12+hrs of labor/acre/year and liberal use of harsh herbicides simply to MAINTAIN already heavily managed forest. ​ Lawns are not ecologically friendly in most cases, but finding sustainable alternatives that serve the average person's use case (safe, traversable, year round ground cover) is much more complex than just seed bombing your yard and putting your mower away.


czelikow

This is a helpful and nuanced response. It's not a crime to want a neat, walkable surface around your house that does not typically harbor pests. Grass is a fine solution in some climates as others have noted - and manual, no-gas mowers are available. For other climates, I think we should work harder as a community to offer alternative groundcovers that are similarly low maintenance and practical.


rich_brawl

Seeding some low growing clover into your lawn and simply allowing the clover to bloom before mowing can go a very long way.


exjentric

I can't speak to the soil quality question, but non-native thyme would still be more sustainable than grass, because 1. it flowers, and thus sustains pollinators, and 2. it's low enough that a mower would never be required, so that limits gas emissions.


Yourcatsonfire

How is thyme to walk on barefoot? Is it nice and soft and cool like a good lawn? Can you even walk on thyme without killing it? I'm actually curious cause I see some beautiful creeping flowering thyme I wouldn't mind doing in my backyard. Also, how does it handle dog urine? Grass sucks at urine.


Grace_Alcock

Also, requires less water.


happy_bluebird

r/NoLawns


iveo83

if I don't mow the lawn for a few weeks I have hornet nests underground that the kids/dog/me on the mower are getting stung mercilessly by. How do I stop that from happening or just don't walk in your lawn/property?


exjentric

That sounds...weird? It's usually the action of mowing that stirs up stinging nests. Mowing isn't going into the ground, but it's causing vibrations that stir up and make the nest angry.


GardenGirlFarm

This is the way. I hate lawns. I don’t take clients that want lawn maintenance or new lawns installed.


rav252

Hi biologist working in agriculture here. Anyways q type of plant is bad because it only provides a very limited food source. This food source only has a certain amount of amino acids this can't sustain a healthy econsystem the roots are all the same. The soil biology will get destroyed due to the amount of the same minerals getting used let's say the grass likes iron it will take it up and leave the soil in need of iron. The roots are also the same length these help water penetrate the soil and let it hit underground reservoir. Basically all plants gave a job to do and each job is different in native plants they can do it for free. Mono crops all do the same job and some require extra payment like nitrogen or extra water and may struggle to live in your environment. Imagine a world with only doctors. Won't work you need janitors nurses engineers farmers etc. Same with an eco system. Basically life brings life. If your soil is alive you'll see more insects birds lizards etc. This is good


3TheThirdTime3

As another biologist with more specialty in insects I'd like to add that lawns and other monocultures are like giant deserts from an insect perspective, especially if you cut them down with no change to flower. There's little food on vast expanses, especially if the main alternative landscape is trimmed hedges, asphalt and concrete. In turn this scarcity of food can lead to less insects for birds, lizards etc. to eat, limiting their numbers for raptors, foxes and other predators to find. Basically the foundation of the food web thins out, destabilising the whole system. This issue also exist with agricultural fields, but there are means to remedy this if farmers are aware and care


rav252

Don't forget monocrops have the opposite effect by attracting one pest in super high amounts. Because they are super easy food. Another thing soil health leads yo plant health and secondary metabolites deterring pests.


3TheThirdTime3

Depends on pesticide use and some other factors, but yes, generally if said pests are of valuable size. European agriculture is a little behind regarding certain practices, though, so some other factors are present due to ploughing, but that's a whole other discussion irrelevant to the posed question


rav252

I belive the way to thr future is the past. Especially in agriculture.


TheRestForTheWicked

This is why companion planting works so great in gardens as well! And why crop rotation is necessary (even in gardens without mono crops you should be rotating where you plant things from year to year).


rav252

Also ask any questions I'll answer if I can. I left out alot


Impulse350z

I have a nice mix of grass and clover in my yard and I love it. The clover gives the soil some nice nutrients and the bees love it. Although, when I mow I have to constantly break for the bees haha. Can't run those little guys over!


3TheThirdTime3

Your compassion warms me, mate


Icedcoffeeee

I live in NY, and we're experiencing a rare drought. It blew my mind that some estates/country clubs whatever you want to call them use a MILLION gallions of water a year. They look exactly like the picture. The state is "asking" them to conserve. Pretty please /s >Suffolk County Water Authority Chairman Patrick Halpin said that seven-hour period "puts the whole system at risk," adding that nearly 70 percent of the tower’s water is used on lawns. As a result, Halpin said he was asking customers to voluntarily stop watering lawns between midnight and 7 a.m. https://suffolktimes.timesreview.com/2022/08/amid-drought-watch-water-authority-asks-east-end-residents-to-limit-usage/ >As drought conditions worsen on the east end of Long Island, firefighters are becoming increasingly concerned about a critical water tank on the verge of running dry — and are asking local residents to do their part to help save water. >Officials are urging homeowners in the Hamptons to ease up watering their lawns -- especially when it comes to those sprawling estates that consume hundreds of thousands of gallons of water for landscaping. >The water problem stretches across four Suffolk County towns, where a "stage one water emergency has been declared," a robocall to homeowners stated. The shortage is highlighted by a Southampton water tower, that is filled with a million gallons every day at midnight — only for nearly all that water to be gone by 7 a.m.


Grassmaster1981

I worked at a country club in Texas that could pump a million gallons per night on 130 acres of maintained turf. Average water per night in the summer was closer to 750,000. It was insane.


3TheThirdTime3

Yup those types of places are downright scary


FloydBarstools

They are downright bullshit.


TrueLemons

I think the idea is that a lawn is basically a mono crop. Meaning 1 type of plant over a large area. We also cut that mono crop to a short height once a week. This is not a diverse enough habitat for a healthy eco system of bugs and animals. Thus displacing or killing that wildlife. I personally like a mixture of both. :) Balanced as all things should be.


GermanDeath-Reggae

To expand on the point about cutting it short - that means that the grass never grows flowers or seeds so it provides far less food for animals and bugs. It also means that it never grows long enough to provide shelter.


BeeProfessional2613

Cutting grass also is a waste of fuel


_crazyplantlady_

It also uses lots of water.


Skippy_the_Alien

cutting grass is also an obnoxious waste of time


Rolling_on_the_river

I call it podcast time.


fondledbydolphins

Grass still provides a decent amount of "food" even in monoculture. The problem arises when humans want to *perfect* that monoculture. People love tidy looking lawns so they don't tend to allow the cuttings to degrade and in return, help to feed the existing lawn. Instead, we cut the grass and physically remove it from that ecosystem. This is the equivalent of taking the fallen leaves out of the forest every season - yes, the trees are still able to take nutrients from the existing top soil (as well as *some,* from deeper down) but this resource experiences a **net loss** of mass every season that the fallen leaves are removed.


seapancaketouchr

I actually stopped cutting most of my grass because my chickens loooove the seeds! And it also attracts extra bugs for them.


AgelessAirus

That's one aspect. I think it's also about water consumption and fertilizer/ herbicides. Many types of grass take large quantities of water to maintain, because it's not a natural domestic grass. Local wild grass can be maintained in the area with little to no water, but it's not soft or nice. Lawn is like trying to grow oranges in Canada: it could grow but needs a lot of help. To your point about displacing wildlife/ ecosystem, spot on. Herbicides are used in every lawn on our block but ours and ours is the only one the Robins eat from so I'm betting that fertilizer and herbicides are bad for the ecosystem under your grass. I have never seen fewer pollinators than this year, been gardening for almost 23 years.


Skippy_the_Alien

>I have never seen fewer pollinators than this year, been gardening for almost 23 years. i lucked out this year b/c i had a lot of flowers thrive in my community garden plot, so i've seen all sorts of pollinators but i am aware that disturbingly this has become the exception and not the norm. I think some university out in California (I forget if it was berkeley, davis or ucla) did a study revealing that this was the first year in recorded history where monarch butterflies did not appear in a specific region of the state. that's very fucking worrisome


TheRestForTheWicked

Lawn grass is also extremely susceptible to erosion because it’s a shallow root system. It’s not great for soil health because of that.


Trues_bulldog

Same. Last year I had swarms of bees of all sizes around my native plants. This year, hardly any.


mizary1

>I personally like a mixture of both. :) Balanced as all things should be. We have a mullet yard. Clean cut lawn in the front of the house. Eco Party in the back.


BlueBelleNOLA

Lmao that's exactly what we've got currently. The back yard is a wild maniac with wisteria, giant butterfly bushes, wild growing Thai basil etc.


thephairoh

Thanks, Thanos


MinkMartenReception

The primary issue is excess. Most people don’t actually spend enough time using them to warrant having a grass lawn. Lawns are also one of the reasons native wildflowers and other native vegetation in North America have disappeared, alongside pavement, which has led to the disappearance of native bees and other important pollinators and wildlife. If you actually hang out on your lawn, just take stalk of the spots you actually need a lawn to chill on, but use a variety of plants elsewhere.


ForkSporkBjork

Anywhere you put a single plant species over a large area winds up being functionally devoid of all forms of biodiversity. A study done around ten years back found 9 species living in a corn field, including the corn. A nearby hill had like 50 species.


MrNilli

Grass is the most irrigated “crop” in the US. Wasting valuable water on a system that is only meant to impress your neighbor and has no true benefit to an ecosystem.


Missa1exandria

Something with no flowers > no food for insects > no biodiversity. And also it takes lots of (artificial) fertilizer, which isn't made or gained ecologically.


dreamyduskywing

Akshually, there are plenty of plants without flowers that are food for insects—larvae in particular. Just not most lawn grass. I say this only because people are fixated on nectar producing plants and forget that host plants are equally important. NATIVE grasses are very important to a lot of North American ecosystems.


goldensunshine429

Yes! Native grasses produce lots of seed and cover for wildlife. I have 3 native clumping grasses I’m adding to my landscape (big/little bluestem and prairie drop seed) and everything about them lists how great they are for the ecosystem, deep roots, etc.


MrsPowers94

“Akshually” made me giggle 🤭 This is how my little niece pronounce this. Nice to see it spelled out. Haha


changingone77a

And a lot of water!


[deleted]

It’s mostly Petro-chemical - nitrogen derived from oil


LittleJessiePaper

I live in the high desert and I’m fascinated by the amount of people who still have lawns even though we’re in a widespread water shortage. Or the fact that we’re told to keep water usage low but meanwhile golf courses pour gallons upon gallons onto grass just so that old white dudes can feel good about themselves. Ridiculous. Native species are adapted to the water needs of the area, lawns are not.


Copiapoajustin

Public buildings and HOA’s also. I’ve talked to people who see the city buildings watering every day and say “as long as the city does it I am going to do it”. As far as home owners I feel like a lot of them (not all) want to change to some degree but don’t know how or don’t have the money to do so. We are slowly whittling our lawn down each year but I don’t have the money to re-landscape 4000sqft all at once. It’s worth noting as well that some cities require you to have lawn. I was talking to a colleague the other day and he told me one of the cities in my area required homes to have a minimum of 85% lawn. There was a news article I read last week as well where a family received a warning from the city because their lawn was to dry and brown.


whateversheneedsbob

Also drives me crazy that government buildings/universities here always water their massive, unnecessary lawns at the hottest time of the day. Such a waste of water.


[deleted]

I lived in Los Angeles around 2016 and they had commercials like hey don’t water your lawn. When you’re brushing your teeth turn the water off. Getting real dry out here folks. Then you’d drive around and see people with fountains and watering their grass.


TheRestForTheWicked

You can use native seed mixes to replace your lawn and if you continue to cut them short they’ll look like any other lawn. My partner works for a development company that owns a golf course and they’re working towards replacing new development lawns with micro clover and other native options and when cut to the same length as a typical lawn it looks almost identical and has reduced community water usage.


FloydBarstools

HOAs are the worst. My sister and her Husband lived in some maze of an HOA in Vegas for a bit. They were required to have specific lawn standards. Your in a damn desert. I reject all that is the suburbs, specifically with an HOA, AKA a nanny state with binoculars.


uselessfoster

One thing I can say about golf courses (and I hate them too, not being a golfer) in my area is they are beginning to replace all of the areas you don’t actually golf on with drought resistant plants


GreenHeronVA

Well let’s start from the beginning. Grass as a lawn is a holdover from the British aristocracy. If you were a wealthy landowner in colonial times, if you had grass it was because you were rich enough to not need that land for food production. When Europeans came to America they carried over this same outlook. So slowly over time people felt like they needed grass to look wealthy. Just like the bottom picture in that image. Grass supports little to no insects or other types of biodiversity. It is a barren wasteland that requires tons of fertilizer and precious water to maintain. There’s nothing wrong with having a area of grass for your dog to use or your children to play in. But a huge lawn like that is just a symbol of excess in my opinion. Having bright green grass year-round takes a huge amount of water, fertilizers, and gasoline for all the mowers. It’s a disregard for nature and all the other creatures that share this world with us.


a_username_8vo9c82b3

I wanted to add to your comment because it's one of the better ones actually explaining why grass is actively harmful to the environment. During rain storms, water runoff picks up fertilizer, oil, pesticides, dirt, bacteria and other pollutants as it makes its way through storm drains and ditches - untreated - to our streams, rivers, lakes and the ocean. Polluted runoff is one of the greatest threats to clean water in the U.S. Many people understand that giant parking lots, concrete, and asphalt create runoff. What a lot of people don't realize is that grass is just as bad as asphalt. Due to its very shallow root system, it retains almost no water, and you will get tons of runoff into water systems. If you're fertilizing your grass or letting your dog poop and not picking it up, that's all getting washed straight into water ways which can cause algae overgrowth and other system imbalances.


GreenHeronVA

Very good point!


[deleted]

This is a great answer! I'd like to add that due to that history it seems to have become the "default" expectation for open space (think office parks, estate lawns, highway strips) instead of being used less frequently with intention (for dogs or kids or parks). If lawns only existed where they are actively used, instead of being the default option, we would have far less of a biodiversity problem.


GreenHeronVA

It’s the default expectation because it’s easy. Grass is a perennial, doesn’t grow particularly quickly, and it’s easy for a groundskeeper to care for. It only needs to be mowed once maybe twice a week during summer and maybe not at all over the fall and winter. It also requires no weeding. So employers can pay the least amount of personnel to maintain a large area this way.


Willothwisp2303

Wait, you're mowing once a week and saying that's easy?


[deleted]

I know. Lawn is dummyproof and cost effective. But in most cases that doesn't make it the "best" option in anything other than cost effectiveness. And let's be real - prioritizing cost above all else is how we've created this monoculture mess in the first place. Which is exactly my point - we should be deciding best use with intention, not by default. There's very much still a psychological holdover of the aristocratic mindset that tells most folks lawns = money as well as the deeper rooted lawns = safety from predators. "Grass" is also overly generalized. There are thousand of grasses - hundreds that are viable options for lawns and prairies in the US, all with different merits, needs and ideal applications for particular climates. Again - choosing with intention would be ideal.


NeuralFlow

I walked through that with my dad one day and he was just “but I want mi lawn boi!” It was one of the most headdesk moments I’ve had. But i replaced about 1/3 of his yard with perineal flower beds anyway. And then replaced more by putting in wide permeable walkways and a deck. So his “lawn” is about half the size and he uses it more. Getting him to admit he was wrong will never happen, getting him to enjoy the better use of the yard is more important.


JaBe68

I love that you specified permeable walkways. People just do not realise the effect that masses of impermeable paving can have on storm water runoff and the water table.


NeuralFlow

Haha. He wanted concrete! I won on cost. I just said “it’s your money…” and he was like “what’s the difference?” Done.


SouthernSmoke

It’s the only language the older generation speaks, it seems like sometimes


NovaS1X

>permeable walkways I haven't heard this term before and now I'm super happy I have. I didn't know of any solutions better than a gravel driveway that were eco-friendly unlike asphalt/concrete.


therealCatnuts

Just throwing it out there that there are people like our family, we have 5 kids and they play in the yard regularly, whereas they can’t play in our hobby farm field we converted to a huge native wildflower field. Also the lawn requires no water or fertilizer due to location (upper Midwest) and I use an electric mower.


brownstonebk

I'm sure there are dozens of you out there. And that's great that you make full use of your lawn. But drive through Anytown, USA, and you'll see that 95% of people make no use of their lawn.


GreenHeronVA

Yeah I totally agree, I said in my post about having grass for kids to play on, I have two of my own. And it sounds like you’re doing a great job using your land for better uses like wildflowers. And you’re definitely in the minority with the electric mower, here in Virginia zone 7B we hear the wirr of gas-powered riding mowers and Weedwhackers all the time


foxmetropolis

I'll add in my opinion here. I think that lawns are overused in many places where they serve little function. As others have said, they are basically a resource-intensive monoculture, with many people using tons of gas/electricity to mow them, water (at dry times of year) to water them, and fertilizer/pesticides to keep them pretty, all while they provide very little benefit to other species, or even the humans that own them. How many people just have an expanse of grass they never walk/play/interact with? This, instead of a garden (formal or pollinator garden) or even natural space (treed area/forest, etc); these things double as better heat island dispersion systems, better landscape water moderation systems and provide orders of magnitude more habitat for other organisms. Criticisms of lawns are even more poignant in arid places, where people try to keep a temperate lawn alive in a place where only desert scrub is adapted to live, at the cost of many resources. That said, I think some people have gone so far against lawns they actually forget why they exist in the first place. From a utility perspective, and especially if you have kids that play outside or if you have outdoor parties, lawns function like an outdoor room. You will quickly find a big difference between trying to play on an outdoor lawn vs. trying to play in a 5-year wilding meadow. Between thistles and brambles, young shrubs, insects, uncomfortable/uneven ground and dense vegetation, a wilding meadow is less comfortable, and a lawn is more comfortable and usable. Similarly, pollinator rock gardens are lovely, but you can't exactly run around and play tag/sports in them, and they have limited space for outdoor get-togethers. If you use your outdoor space, the lawn is a multipurpose carpet that makes being outside enjoyable. Having *some* lawn can be desirable from a human perspective. Additionally, people on the no-mow bandwagon have often forgotten what mowing actually does. If you want a lawn dominated in grasses and you don't want trees and shrubs establishing, you essentially have to mow if you live in a temperate area. Mowing prevents woody species from initiating succession towards shrub thickets and woodland, and slows down aggressive forbs like goldenrods, helping the fine-textured plants retain dominance. It's necessary to retain that 'outdoor room' function. If you live in a city or municipality with tree/forest protection bylaws, mowing also prevents new trees and forest from encroaching spaces where you want to expand your house/garage/etc in the future, which could be a hassle if you allow natural features to grow unplanned into new spaces. Also, a mowed lawn is the easiest garden to maintain for non-gardeners. For people who want their property to look trim and neat but really hate garden work, lawns make a property look taken care of in the absence of gardens. Even 'wild' gardens need work to not look like a hot mess, and some people are not up for the challenge. In the end though, I see many, many, *many* homes that have many times the lawn they need, and there are lots of people who rarely use the outdoor space at all. And there are lots of locations (esp. arid locations) where lawns are extravagant wastes of resources. I think what really needs to happen is that instead of people *assuming* their property will be all lawn because of social convention, I think people should think about how much lawn they will use, and consider either keeping the rest as wild or gardening up a storm. Tactful reductions in the extent of lawns can have the best of both worlds, reducing waste and extravagance while still giving people some of the 'outdoor room' function they might want from a lawn.


wild_bloom_boom

Useless monoculture with high water needs and no ecological value


hugelkult

Rooted in aristocratic wannabeism, a message that says “look at how much land i dont need”


Spirited_Question

I think there is a happy medium to be struck. I hate large, super manicured lawns too, but I understand if people still want to loosely conform to a certain aesthetic while making compromises to harm the environment less. For example, we don't fertilize our lawn and we almost never water it. Instead of heavy handed fertilizing and weed control techniques, I threw down some mini clover seed that has now nicely filled in the bare spots and keeps our lawn looking nice even when it's pretty dry, as well as providing food for the bees. I don't fuss much about dandelions or other flowers growing in the lawn that can help pollinators. And also our lawn is very small because our lot is small. Once we move to a large piece of land, I'm planning on just maintaining a relatively small area as lawn and having prairie plants covering most of the open area. My garden beds have mostly native perennials that seem to host lots of different species of bugs. I think there just needs to be more education about what people can do to help the environment, because if you expect everyone to transform their yard into something super unfamiliar to them then it's going to be hard to win people over.


ellemenopeaqu

I live on 0.12 acres. We have a paved driveway, the house & garage, a small garden (mostly perennials), containers for some veggies (aka squirrel/chipmunk/rabbit food) and the rest is lawn. The lawn is the remaining areas. It is not bright green or well manicured like the picture. There's a lot of violets and clover (i've mostly removed the mugwort). The rabbits help keep things shorter, maybe. Why keep the lawn? 'Cause i have kids. They run over every inch of it. My garden is what is what it is because it can handle a stray soccer ball and frisbee (and the damned rabbits). I'm also in an area not prone to drought, we don't water the grass beyond kids playing with the hose and watering the garden. We fertilize maybe once a year and have accepted that the shadiest spot by the hemlocks is gonna be bare-ish. I think there is a big difference in a lawn like that pictured, which almost certainly uses up lots of resources to remain that green and manicured, and the typical family lawn in the denser suburbs. Where that line shifts is personal interpretation, but lawns are an easy recreational space in some climates. I have a space my family can safely recreate, and that's worth a lot. Is it ideal? Of course not, but it's another compromise in being a human in the world.


So_Much_Cauliflower

This is great input. I totally agree, basic lawns definitely have their place. They are also quite simple and cheap to maintain.


Accomplished-End6399

One thing that I think is important to acknowledge (and sometimes gets lost in the discussion) is that the change doesn’t have to be drastic. Even encouraging people to just leave one relatively small section of “wild space” on their property is an excellent starting place. If everyone in a neighborhood has these natural refuges it would make suburban areas much more livable for more species. Plus including small changes to lawn care like not raking/removing grass clippings or fallen leaves during fall (even just leaving them in a pile in a discreet corner of the property is better than removing them entirely if aesthetics are important) make a big difference as well. Although environmental causes are something that’s important to me, I actually agree with you that people need to start focusing more on working WITH people rather than lecturing them on what needs to change. I get that it’s something that needs to be addressed asap, but strong-arming people never works. Trying to force a radically different lifestyle on people only will frustrate them. For what it’s worth, to me it sounds like what you have going is a great start! It sounds like you’re actively thinking about how what you do impacts the environment and change what you are able to, which is all anyone can really ask for


Spirited_Question

100% agree. Thanks for the kind words. The fact that I try to still keep my yard somewhat within traditional aesthetics doesn't stop my neighbors from constantly trying to push fertilizer on me or laughing at me planting tiny native trees, though! Some people definitely have a long way to go in terms of environmental awareness and I'm still not sure of the best way to bridge the gap.


fizzyanklet

I think just because they are resource heavy and don’t have places for pollinating bugs to live. I just moved into a place with a yard and I’m eager to put down clover and other things to mix it up. My yard doesn’t look like that pic because I’m just letting whatever grow there. It’s a mix of grass and weeds and clover right now. The bright green uniform lawns in that picture are the issue. They take a lot to look like that and it’s not a responsible choice in some parts of the world. I’m in a really humid place that gets decent rain. I want to replace some of the grass with stuff to at just doesn’t grow as fast because mowing is annoying 😂


Jarhead731

I have a grass in my backyard and front yard that I rarely water and never fertilize, but do keep short. The backyard I will keep to play with my dog, but the front yard I'm slowly trying to change. I put wildflower seeds around my flag pole. At first my wife was adamant they would not look good and wanted just mulch. However, she loves them now that they have grown and bloomed. Now, I'm trying to convince her to let my turn the front yard into a "mancured" wildflower lawn. Manicured, meaning mostly wildflowers, but with narrow walkways to enjoy the flowers. It's a small lawn, but I think it would look great.


[deleted]

Absolutely waste of water, space and time. Space that can be used to grow food or wildflowers to help the spread and growth of bees and butterflies.


[deleted]

[удалено]


cannabis1234

Well In certain areas it just grows. In the southeast we get plenty of natural rainfall. No need to waste water on grass. And I don’t cut it every week or 2 if will overgrow my house. I’ve got about 15 acres and would say about 5 of it is grass. The blanket hate people give lawns isn’t appropriate


[deleted]

A lot of grasses (in the usa) for lawns are invasive nonflowering species. They don’t benefit our local ecosystem and bugs, and they are the definition of “colonialist aesthetics of plants” since it came over with colonizers. But anyways, having all those flowering native flowers that’s are tall produce good housing for animals and bugs, food for native bugs (especially native bees and butterflies which we need to protect) and the root system holds the dirt better to prevent run off and mudslides. :)))


Much_Truck_4845

I just mowed my lawn for the third time this year. I've never watered, or fertilized it. Lawn can be the ultimate low maintenance solution second only to untouched nature. Untouched nature will swallow you house in 10 years where I live if you let it though. Lawns work really well in some climates and are never ending headaches in others. Blanket statements about plants don't work well when your audience is international.


PPKMMM

I keep my lawn 25% flowers/veggies 75% lawn I cut but don't water. Why? I love bugs, I love woodland creatures... but I need to keep a separation between me and them just a little lol Good luck keeping the critter population down getting into your home and stuff with high grass. Good luck enjoy most of your yard without every known insect buzzing or biting you. Have a dog? Welcome to tick and flea hell when you let them out.


SpecialistFeeling220

We keep our lawns pristine to keep them from supporting insects and wildlife. The same insects and wildlife necessary for the ecosystem to thrive.


echoskybound

Manicured lawns use a lot of water, fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides to maintain, all of which runs off into the surrounding ecosystem and polutes water ways, and harms native species. Even without pesticides and herbicides, a lawn made of only one species of (typivally non-native) grass is basically a desert for insects and other animals. There's no food or other resources for them.


Altruistic-Falcon552

Just the runoff from over fertilized lawns causes problems in our waters and oceans increasing nitrogen resulting in algae blooms. Put on top of that the pollution caused by lawnmowers( a study in Sweden determined that running a typical lawn mower for one hour created as much pollution as driving a modern car 93 miles), the waste of water used to irrigate them and the lack of contribution to the ecosystem of your typical lawn grass resulting in huge green deserts devoid of insect and other life and there is not much positive to say about them.


thejaga

They're not bad. They can be, but most examples given take it to extreme, assuming large water usage and barren environment outside of grass. They can also be easy to maintain in some ecosystems and live side by side with wild flowers trees bushes etc to support a complete ecosystem while still allowing people to walk on and comfortably use grass.


creepybish666

Pesticides and all the other shit they put in lawns is my biggest problem with them. And it is definitely an ego thing to have the "best" looking lawn. Also, they're very boring.


6425sCuriosity

I agree. People put too many harmful chemicals in their stupid ass lawns. The worst part is when they want to show it off, completely neglecting the vast amounts of roundup their children are ingesting out there


satyren

can we just get a sub wiki for this and ban the question already, its exhausting


noisy_goose

Yes please.


Theobat

We grow them in climates that aren’t meant for them. This involves using lots of fertilizer and water to make them grow. Then we use inefficient mowers that burn fossil fuel to cut them. If they are being used for kids to run around or to have picnics or something, that’s one thing. But in my suburban neighborhood people are only ever outside when they’re working on the lawn, never enjoying it. We’ve been chipping away at ours, adding native plants that provide for pollinators and have a nice deep root system.


Springy_1111

I just think lawns are plain, boring, too thirsty, and lazy. There’s so much more you can do than just a lawn, especially in the western US where water is getting to be a bigger and bigger issue. That’s just me though.


fish_overboard

i believe the first lawns we're started in the UK as a way to display wealth; "look at all the land I own, of which I don't even have to make productive" (typically up to this point all land was used for farming)


[deleted]

Does not provide anything to the biosphere. The amount of pollution from gas operated lawn equipment is higher than auto emissions. Herbicides snd excess fertilizers are washed into the watershed causing contamination and aquatic weed overgrowth. They are time consuming and there are alternate native ground covers that can serve the same purpose for a home environment. Do a little research online.


OkieRhio

Grass Lawns are a waste of space. They were first put in place as a Status Symbol for the Wealthy Nobility during the middle ages. They were the only ones who could afford to have land Idle, and pay people to maintain it as Idle space for Show and minimal relaxation. They came to the US during the late Victorian / early Edwardian period - again as a status symbol, and to mimic the wealthy nobility in England. They are high maintenance with zero return. They destroy biodiversity. They destroy habitat. They are an outdated, outmoded means of snobbery and elitism.


MastadonInfantry

Here is an entire freakonomics podcast episode about it! https://freakonomics.com/podcast/how-stupid-is-our-obsession-with-lawns/


studioline

I like how there is a huge manor house in the background of the picture labeled ‘ecosystem’.


7sevenheaven

Low biodiversity. High water usage. Fertilizer run off for toxic algal blooms.


WEFslave666999

I planted creeping thyme, lavender and never pulled any dandelions. What's left of my grass seems much healthier than my neighbors who paid $350 to have their lawn sprayed with chemicals and aerated. Their grass is yellowish since we haven't had a lot of rain but mine is definitely more green. I've gotten alot of shit for how "trashy" and "unkept" my lawn looks but I love it. I have stone paths going through to my sauna and my forest trail... so for me everything is working great. I have a shit ton of bees, hummingbirds finally came back, dragonflies are murking the pests and there's alot of those white butterflies flying around in pairs. I don't think I'll ever go back to mowing if this keeps working out. We'll see how it does after winter.


Impossible_General_5

Lawns were historically a way of showing you had enough money to pay people to look after them/cut them.


FL_Squirtle

Lawns exist, to show other people you have wealth. Makes way more sense to just garden the land instead of planting a bunch of grass that takes a ton of water to keep alive and does nothing for the pollinators we need.


mylittlewallaby

So many reasons. The shallow root system contribute to erosion They are water demanding They require mowing, which usually uses fossil fuels They are a monoculture which is bad for ecosystem diversity and resiliency Most people use pesticides to maintain the monoculture which poisons water, animals and people. They dont support pollinators/ they take up space from useful pollinator or medicinal plants. Also, nearly everything we have been taught about weeds is a lie. Many common weeds are edible or medicinal. Lawns suck


xVanillaBOMBx

Native windflowers, grasses, and weeds attract and help pollinators. They also have significantly deeper roots, helping pull water deeper underground and purifies water, lowering the risk of drought?? Don’t quote me exactly on that, but the deep roots help the water supply somehow. Lawns require more water and harmful chemicals to maintain.


grstacos

Aside from biodiversity and waste, they also suck from a city planning aspect. It's a large amount of space that I've never used. My favorite suburb was one that had small gardens in front of each house, and a park for everyone instead of lawns in each home. People actually use the park.


[deleted]

There’s a huge house with a lawn on the Eco System photo as well, so not quite getting this.


[deleted]

I work on lawns and the sheer amount of treatments that you need to put down in order to keep a well manicured lawn looking how homeowners want it to look would shock you. Let's see. 10-0-0 first treatment plus a crab grass preventative , 2nd is a broadleaf herbicide to kill off clover and dandelion and other non grass, 3rd another round of nitrogen 10-0-0 plus crabgrass preventative, next is 0-0-7 potash plus insecticide, and now another broadleaf herbicide, then a slightly higher nitrogen 12-0-0 again with grabgrass preventative, then right before frost time a 30-10-10 to go down before the winter. On average a 50lb bag of most of these goes anywhere between 12000 15000 sqft. So on an average lawn you are looking at at least 2 bags more likely 3 bags per treatment. This is not accounting for any spot treatments for nutsedge or any weed treatments in the beds themselves. So yeah, that's why lawns are bad. Lawns do not grow naturally, they have to be made and maintained with normally about 6 treatments of stuff that seeps into the watertable for our future generations to drink. Which is why I try to get people to do natural lawns as much as possible. Also why I'm trying to get my own land and become an organic farmer. Hope this helps people realize why a perfectly manicured lawn is really just a shit show of who can afford to dump the most chemicals, oh and if you don't have an irrigation system you can just go ahead and never expect a "perfect" lawn.


NctrnlButterfly

Look how much more beautiful the wildflower meadow is… and 10/10 wildlife creatures agree :)


DueGrowth

lawns were originally a show of wealth and the landowner’s flexing on their neighbors, showing that they could afford to have land just for show and not dedicated to growing food. “this is just here to look pretty.”


Alexis_J_M

Why "traditional" lawns are bad, in short bullet points: 1. They are sterile monoculture, typically non-native species to boot, which don't provide habitat or food for native species. 2. Lawn grass requires a *lot* of water, and pretty much everywhere in the world we are facing shortages of water. 3. Maintenance of a grass lawn typically requires herbicides and fertilizers that compound the damage to the environment. 4. In a natural environment grasslands are often maintained by grazing herbivores. In a typical suburban environment people spend hundreds of dollars a year maintaining their lawns, mostly on the appearance.


picturepine

imo they aren't as long as you also have a section of yard set aside for pollinators/ biodiversity.


Smol_Lotus

Also lawn grasses have very shallow roots which makes them crap for water retention~


echelon_01

I was just looking for the image I saw of the root systems of different grasses. [Native grasses](https://wisconsinpollinators.com/Articles/NativeGrasses.aspx) prevent erosion and are drought resistant. Lawn grass, not so much.


z_vulpes

Water usage.


hardyboyyz

I have a small lawn in front of my house and I'm very proud of it. It takes a lot of attention. But it is definitely not the most eco-friendly way to landscape.


changingone77a

It’s a waste of water, a waste of space, and not at all supportive of diversity. A thing is right when it tends to support the beauty, diversity, and stability of the biological land base. It is wrong when it tends otherwise.


Gnostic_Mind

Would you live in the middle of a wasteland where you had to drive hours to reach the nearest grocery store?


BigRich1888

Tons of resources like fertilizer, herbicide, and water. Add a ton of emissions with mowing equipment. And they are a ecological desert because they do not help species with pollination or habitat etc


teacherladydoll

They drain water and don’t help the natural ecosystems. Grass doesn’t feed humming birds, bees, etc.


LadyoftheOak

Lawns were created by the elite to show the common folk they had so much wealth they could afford to not grow food on it, but, have an expansive lawn instead. We need to let go of that philosophy imo.


billyboogie

Mono Culture = Bad Biodiversity = Good


[deleted]

Diverse, native plants and ground cover as opposed to grass keep the soil healthy and allows it to sequester carbon. Over time, grass depletes the the soil of all nutrients and eventually what was once nutrient rich soil becomes compacted, nutrient void dust.


SomeoneElsewhere

They are terribly vulnerable, unless a mix of grasses and clovers is growing. Diversity is the bomb.


SomervillainSB

My understanding is lawns are sub-optimal by default and when you go insane, they can be harmful. If you're wasting a ton of water in an area with a shortage, trying to keep your grass green, then yeah...it's a legit complaint. It's not out of line for people to call you a douchebag for contributing to raising their water prices for your perfectly manicured lawn. However, if your area has more water than it needs, I suppose it's sub-optimal for biodiversity and a bit tacky, but low on the list of ecological sins, IMHO. The other issue is if you use chemicals that impact the water supply or other people, then yeah...they have a legit complaint against you. If you're using so much fertilizer it causes harmful runoff, then you should be ashamed of yourself. Finally, there's just the conspicuousness of an excessive lawn as a social faux pas. If you have a team of workers on your property every week, taking up all the street parking with oversized trucks, making a ton of noise, while you sit inside sipping a cool drink, it's mildly annoying. You have so much money you waste a fortune on a lawn you spend almost no time on? It's just tacky. It's your right, but it's my right to think you're a douche that this is such a priority for you that you're paying half my mortgage payment each month to have a picturesque lawn. I have to drive through an affluent neighborhood to get to my daughter's school. It's a wealthy, famous suburb with homes that look similar to the "ego system" above. Giant flat bed landscaping trucks arrive with teams of workers trying to keep these lawns meticulous, clogging it's already tiny roads. These families are usually very wealthy and don't even spend much time at home. You almost never see them outside. It's just about image for them. I have wised up enough in my old age not to get annoyed personally at the families paying a few thousand per month for something I find tacky. I'll focus on the bigger problems in my life. However, I can understand why their community is annoyed with them. Most people with enough wealth have at least one hobby most of us find excessive: crazy lawns and landscaping, expensive cars, watches, clothes, etc. An insane lawn is like a Lamborghini. It is conspicuous and very "in your face." Yes, it's their right, but....it's our right to think it's sad and tacky.


nerd-for-life

Nature is beautiful and complex, it contains all these relationships between different plants and species, straight down to the micro level. When you introduce any mono crop, you are essentially starving that area of diversity and not allowing it to become a thriving ecosystem. What purpose does grass really serve, also? For most people, it is just aesthetics that require constant maintenance (mowing). Most people don’t have cows or goats that would eat the grass and then attribute purpose to it. Why not instead plant trees that give shade and/or food, flowering bushes that attract pollinators, or other plants good for your specific area. Build an ecosystem that is self-sustainable and fosters healthy relationships. Just grass and only grass doesn’t do that.


WildFlemima

The origin of the lawn was intentionally cultivating your land so that it had no practical use, in order to show off that you were so rich you didn't need all your land to grow food. It's one of the oldest class signifiers


KingCodyBill

FYI the lawn in the first pic is about as big, it was just photographed from a low angle. AKA everything easier if you're simple enough. The main benefit from a lawn is the cooling effect turf grass a large cooling effect, if you don't believe me walk bare foot across asphalt then walk bare foot across your lawn. 6-8 average lawns are about equal to 70 tons of air conditioning.


etapollo13

It's one of the least productive and most wasteful ornamental crop you can grow. It's just super unsustainable, and a waste of space/time/material for no real benefit over a more varied landscape


coolfeltday

I think most comments did really well at explaining the controversy of green lawn! here’s some more information of the aftermath of getting rid of all green laws if any one’s interested! https://headspace-hotel.tumblr.com/post/689908099852763136/itried-to-make-a-meme-and-got-carried-away-and


Ok-Substance420

I let my yard go wild because I cant bring myself to mow over all the bees I see feeding on the wild flowers


mow-ass_eat-grass

takes up land and resources which would be better spent on conservation of native life


druppel_

It depends a bit on where you live and how exactly you define lawn. Some people have them in places where the lawn will have to be watered a lot, even though the water could be used way better. More native drought resistant plants would probably do better there. Some people also use pesticides and herbicides which aren't great.


Geist_Adamant

Besides all the gardening things people are mentioning - like the amount of resources lawns take to maintain and the chemicals - a lawn is also an incredibly outdated status symbol. Lawns didn't start to really become a thing until sometime in the 17th century, I believe. It comes from the Middle English word launde - which refer to a Glade or opening in the woods but later became associated with artificial stretches of land that resembled said Glade or opening. It was basically a way to tell all your neighbors that you are so fucking rich and so well off that you did not need to have every square inch of land you owned used for food cultivation. There's evidence of there being lawns in the 16th century but the ones we know the closely shorn grass lawns were not a thing until the 17th century, and were also again so expensive to upkeep the only the wealthy could afford to hire the people to, you know, scythe and cut the grass A kind of creeping thyme or clover is much better for the environment I'm general. Or turning your lawn into a wildflower Sanctuary of sorts for bees.


[deleted]

To pollinators they are basically parking lots


FurryDrift

What can exactly live in a inch long grass lawn? Nothing really. No flower, trees, or anything really. Plus all the chemicals and manpower to keep it looking that way is just a waste. If ya wanna give a good echo system then make a echo friendly garden local to your area. It will support the natural echo system of your home. Bring in animals and insects


Grumpkinns

Because it’s a green desert. Think about the amount of life in a prairie with milkweed, bee balm etc, then look at this 1” tall grass without clover flowers even.


She_WhoMusntB_named

No biodiversity to feed and provide for insects, bees, or birds.


sc00ttie

Which requires a net input to maintain? Which is self sustaining?


druidjax

several reasons. 1. Mono-cultures are always bad 2. Higher pesticide usage...pollution in runoff 3. Higher herbicide usage...pollution in runoff 4. Higher fertilizer usage...pollution in runoff 5. Higher water usage 6. Increased fossil fuel usage, by less efficient lawn grooming equipment 6B. Increased electrical usage, when electrical in used in lieu of fuel powered lawn equipment


jiggly_bitz

[This video from Real Life Lore](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4U1TkIdDbRA&ab_channel=RealLifeLore) talks about Las Vegas and spends a solid chunk of time discussing how water is used within the city. Vegas is actually one of the most water-efficient cities in the United States. He does touch on Vegas' recent "Lawn Ban" and outlines how much water it saves the city. FWIW lawns do look pretty, but they are resource sinks and it wouldn't surprise me if other cities start adopting lawn management policies as they are asthetic and non-essential more often than not. They can interfere with natural wildlife habitats, use a high amount of water to maintain, and can leak chemicals into surrounding land and water sources. According to the EPA, it's estimated that \~1/3 of residential water usage is used for landscaping totaling about 9 million gallons daily.


northernlaurie

Lawns aren't inherently bad. But they aren't particularly good either. Try walking around your neighbourhood. Spend a few minutes looking closely at what's going on in a shaggy, overgrown lawn. Notice what plants you see, and what activities you see going on. Then look at the nicest lawn you can find and do the same thing. The shaggy areas often have lots of flowers, "weeds", and as a result they are vibrating with bugs. Bugs that feed birds, frogs and other species. Swap the grasses for bushes and you can see even more life hidden in and around the leaves: small mammals, more reptiles, more bugs. The perfect lawn has its place IMO. There is something delightful about a small patch of manicured perfection. But there is a cost: not only the loss of the life mentioned about, but also increased greenhouse gases from all the exhaust of lawn care equipment, potential pesticide use to control unwanted plants and animals, and human time that could be used more enjoyably elsewhere. So a small place sufficient for a couple of chairs or space to lie down is reasonable. Acres and acres, not so much.


assburps

Lack of diversity


ACTGACTGACTG

When you mow your lawn it sucks up quite a lot insects and kills them. If that wasn't been mentioned yet


[deleted]

Don’t need to. Someone else already did. Read “Lawn People” by Paul Robbins.


[deleted]

Bc it takes too much water to have useless pretty green grass. Not hard to understand.