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The devastating cost of America’s favorite plant: A guide to the revolution | Make Thing With Hand (www.youtube.com)
submitted 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) by to c/nolawns@slrpnk.net
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[–] 42 points 2 months ago (24 children)

I've never understood the obsession with the plain grass lawn. Even aside from ecological reasons, I'd rather have native plants just because they look better.

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  • [–] 16 points 2 months ago

    One of my neighbors has a plain grass lawn. And to his credit, he puts in a lot of work into it. I'll see him multiple times a week spending hours maintaining it, buying and spreading mulch, watering, trimming, raking, the works.

    But it just looks so boring and unnatural. I can't imagine why he would put in all that time, money, and effort into something so unremarkable.

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  • [–] 14 points 2 months ago* (10 children)

    Well it started as a wealth symbol because the amount of energy, labor, and money it took to maintain a pure grass lawn was immense. No one ever saw a well manicured, pure grass lawn outside of mansions and palatial estates and such.

    Then we got push mowers and fertilizer and weed killer and sprinklers - everyone could have their own green carpet!

    But yeah, fuck lawns. Might as well just roll out AstroTurf.

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  • [–] 9 points 2 months ago (1 child)

    Having a lawn also showcased one’s status as a wealthy person who didn’t need to grow food crops on their land

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  • [–] 7 points 2 months ago*

    More than that, it showcased status as a wealthy person that could afford to hire servants to care for unproductive grass... or, in some cases, afford to have slaves to care for unproductive grass. It's more impressive than just leaving the dirt bare or letting weeds grow wild, it required intensive inputs to maintain.

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  • [–] 2 points 2 months ago (6 children)

    The solution to lawns isn't plastic.

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  • [–] 5 points 2 months ago* (5 children)

    "Might as well" was meant to indicate that I don't think lawns are different from AstroTurf. Lawns might as well be green concrete.

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  • [–] 2 points 2 months ago (4 children)

    I dunno at least a lawn has little bugs and stuff living in it instead of being a hot plastic outdoor carpet.

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  • [–] 2 points 2 months ago

    I think she's speaking from the perspective of a dedicated pristine pure-grass lawn owner, they don't care if it has little bugs on it or if its soft to walk on because bugs and walking on it ruins the "perfection." She's not like suggesting astroturf or concrete as a viable alternative

    We're part of the solarpunk community so I'd bet money all of us are solidly Astroturf-haters. I love me some little bugs, especially a nice backyard that has a mix of different plants, like clover and sorrel, maybe some patches of moss in the shady areas... bees hanging out on the dandelions and violets, big grass spiders zipping away from your feet, little leaf hoppers springing into the air... that's the good shit man

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  • [–] 1 point 2 months ago* (1 child)

    It can also be much softer than most Astro turf.

    Cool grass to nap in is underrated when talking about killing lawns. We have a decent wildflower garden, but we still keep some lawn for the kids and dogs, and because barefoot walking in decent grass is pretty nice.

    I should probably add that we live in an area where grass grows natively, and don’t water it with anything but the occasional dehumidifier bucket full of water. If we have a drought, it turns to straw and we live with it.

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  • [–] 1 point 2 months ago

    Well remember, this is in the context of talking about pure grass lawns.

    Your kids and dogs don't care if your lawn has clover and dandelions in it, but so many people will spray down their lawn with pesticides to remove "weeds" and maintain perfect green concrete.

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  • [–] 2 points 2 months ago

    Right yeah like if all you care about is having a pristine swath of short grass spikey shit in front of your house... you could save a lot of effort if it was just plastic, what's the point of spending hours and hours of labor just so you can have some green stuff that you never touch, never use for any purpose, and I guess just maybe... look at?

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  • [–] 7 points 2 months ago

    The one redeeming feature in my eyes is that my dog exclusively loves to shit on grass lawns. Whenever she has diarrhea she seems to choose the most pristine monoculture lawn and dumps all over it in a way that leaves a massive brown stain. It’s rather hilarious.

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  • [–] 6 points 2 months ago (9 children)

    As a counter argument, lawns are a resilient, walkable surface that’s pleasant to sit or walk on. It’s great for children and pets. I haven’t come across a lawn alternative that is suitable for the load of dogs and children. But I don’t spray, and I do not use a gasoline mower.

    I have my lawn bordered with a mix of native and nonnative ornamental plants and trees, forming about 30% of the available land.

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  • [–] 11 points 2 months ago (4 children)

    The problem is with lawns that aren't used except to serve abstract purposes, such as signaling status, adhering to socially conditioned ideas of beauty, or holdovers from the colonial impulse to terraform.

    For example, I've lived in my home for nearly two decades and have not once seen any neighbor use their front lawn other than to mow it. Many are the same way with their backyards. Blocks and blocks of this type of land use, all over my city. This is what the nolawns movement is about.

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  • [–] 6 points 2 months ago (3 children)

    When's the last time you sat or laid in your lawn?

    I lie in my clover yard frequently with my dog. Way less poky than grass.

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  • [–] 2 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (2 children)

    My definition of lawn includes clover I just don’t want it to be a monoculture. Some of the no lawns people are adamant about not having grass at all and plant thyme and other plants that handle a bit of abuse but not dogs playing ball.

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  • [–] 2 points 2 months ago*

    There are native grasses too. My clover mix that I made, which i finished off this year so I dont remember what it was, was just a blended native grass and dutch clover. Ive hella violets too that just grow. And, its fun, I realized ive three types of clover in my yard, the white, the purple, and a native yellow!

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