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No Mow May, Low Mow Spring

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Re: No Mow May, Low Mow Spring

#71

Post by KMnO4 »

ThrowawayTestr wrote: post #66
bluefirebrand wrote: post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> More distance and acoustic isolation from neighbors. A larger property with a house in the middle of it separated from others by space means you hear your neighbors less and they hear you less. It makes your home a little more of a sanctuary. This purpose does not necessarily need to be serviced by a lawn , which is just a patch of grass. Lawns are stupid.

As opposed to a lawn made of asphalt?

Trees, shrubs, naturalized landscape, pollinator friendly fescues, etc etc.

There are lots of options.

Re: No Mow May, Low Mow Spring

#72

Post by ethbr0 »

giantg2 wrote: post #18
guepe wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is a strong advantage to regular mowing in my area (new england): way less risk of ticks. It's a real problem a'd with kids that spends time outside, ticks can be real scary. I got a few bites on myself and once on a kid, thankfully without side effects. What is impact of more natural landscaping wrt ticks in 'ew England?

Similar for mosquitoes in FL

People are insane about lawns in Florida.

Sandy soil that's so nutrient-deficient that you can't grow anything without chemical fertilizer.

And then the damn St. Augustine that everyone obsesses about (a) still needs watering during the summer if it rains too little & (b) gets aggressively eaten by fungus if it rains too much.

It's seemingly not uncommon for people to resod their lawn every few years. And they replant the same grass type that just died!

Re: No Mow May, Low Mow Spring

#73

Post by thedougd »

cmrdporcupine wrote: post #31
thatfrenchguy wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Never really understood why people have lawns in the first place, no-one ever sits on them. Really shocked me when I moved to the US, people value having backyards and just don't spend time there (yeah I'm watching you commenting down on how much you use it and challenge you to actual journal how much time your family spends in there)

Unless you live in an arid area... if it's not grass ... something else is growing there. Something usually far more labour-intensive to maintain. If humans displace natural grazing animals, something has to replace them. A lawnmower. I live on 6 acres. Half of it I leave wooded. I have a small hobby vineyard. And the house and garage. The rest, well, it has to be mowed. Because I don't have sheep or goats to do it f…

Similar situation for me. The garden and natural areas of my yard take a lot of work to maintain. Much more than my lawn.

Invasive species can be a nightmare on their own but even the native ones can become impenetrable if you let it go too long.

Even if you have nice forest around your house you’ll pay for it with wood rot, termites, moss and mildew, and gutter cleanings. I loved living with trees over the house but ultimately decided I’d rather live with a bit more clearing.

Re: No Mow May, Low Mow Spring

#74

Post by ethbr0 »

Tagbert wrote: post #64
bluefirebrand wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's not a sufficient reason to have bylaws and HOAs that enforce front lawns. Which is amazingly common.

The lawns aren’t the reason for the HOAs. The HOAs are intended to try to protect the investment value of the homes by enforcing a level of maintenance in all of the properties. Not saying they are a net good but it doesn’t start with the lawns.

In my experience there are effectively no HOAs that don't legislate lawns (and usually landscaping with them).

They may not be the reason, but HOAs are absolutely the cause of outdated, environmentally unsustainable, bullshit lawn requirements.

Re: No Mow May, Low Mow Spring

#75

Post by chao- »

Dylan16807 wrote: post #61
roflyear wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Takes a lot of time to maintain. Or like $300/m.

What kind of lawn needs that, rather than 1-2 hours of mowing per month? (I'm assuming an area where grass actually fits the environment. If grass won't just grow then that's a problem that doesn't need more explanation.)

The HOA in the neighborhood I grew up in mandated grass from a narrow list of types, and live oak trees. That's fine for about 15 years, give or take, but then the trees start to kill the grasses below them. This wasn't a groundbreaking horticultural discovery, but the rules were written that way nonetheless.

It took years for the neighborhood to convince the HOA to allow other kinds of ground cover (jasmine, frog fruit, etc.). In the mean time, people were paying yearly to resod with new grass, or have to pay fines that cost more than just paying for new sod.

Re: No Mow May, Low Mow Spring

#76

Post by rqtwteye »

ethbr0 wrote: post #72
giantg2 wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Similar for mosquitoes in FL

People are insane about lawns in Florida. Sandy soil that's so nutrient-deficient that you can't grow anything without chemical fertilizer. And then the damn St. Augustine that everyone obsesses about (a) still needs watering during the summer if it rains too little & (b) gets aggressively eaten by fungus if it rains too much. It's seemingly not uncommon for people to resod their lawn every few years. And they replan…

I remember visiting people in Vero Beach and they told me that I shouldn't step barefoot on their lawn and not let my dog on it because they sprayed it so much.

Re: No Mow May, Low Mow Spring

#79

Post by EngManagerIsMe »

Killing your lawn is the best thing you can do. There are SO much better things to do with the space than host a lawn (which is effectively a desert).

If you need something green to walk on there are plenty of herbal/clover mixes that produce flowers for insect life. Alternatively you can build raised beds and plant flowers and vegetables. Or native wildflowers. Or trees.

Getting rid of my lawn was the best decision I've made w.r.t. to my land.

Re: No Mow May, Low Mow Spring

#80

Post by EngManagerIsMe »

thenerdhead wrote: post #34

Yeah let’s not look at farmers, politicians, or Aggie corporations. Let’s make you feel bad about bees while we give more water to those using majority of the limited resources to begin with.

One, we can do both.

Two, lawns are the biggest agricultural crop in the US. Especially when you consider sod and seed.

Lawns are basically wastelands, supporting little to no biodiversity. Removing them does material good to the surrounding area.

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