My old neighborhood in South Tampa was inundated with bluebloods and sprawling estates. The air was thick with the scent of jasmine and the rattling sound of cicadas.
On any given day, around 7 PM, you could walk through it and hear the rhythmic sputter of sprinklers doing their evening dance on mint green lawns, which were always freshly cut, drawing perfect contrast to the white homes and black luxury cars in every driveway.
There was one neighbor, who was the only man with a smaller house than mine. We called him “the holdout” until the title was generously passed down to me. His house was dilapidated and out-of-place among these McMansions on every street and corner. The grass in his lawn was overgrown and patchy. Broken machinery littered the side of his house, with an overturned mower, disregarded and left with its sharp bowels exposed to the sky.
His once white fence was now a grey hue with several of the planks turned sideways and falling forward. His grass had a dozen types of weeds and grasses in it alone, all of different shades. They unapologetically grew to make the lawn resemble a small meadow.
He was not a popular neighbor, and was the subject of much complaining amongst the bluebloods. But, alas, there was little that could be done. No ordinances were broken. There was no HOA in place.
And the irony is that — perhaps unintentionally — this man was on moral footing quite higher than our own. His lawn may have been the most generous addition to mother nature for miles around.
Our lawns are a problematic device in everyday living. Here’s why you should consider rewilding.
The origins of America’s obsession with green cut lawns
The American lawn — and specifically — the front lawn has a special purpose in suburban life. It’s a way of expressing your shared community, of doing a courtesy to your neighbors and letting them know you care about aesthetics as well. It’s a symbolic component of the American dream.
Prior to this, the only people who had lawns were in medieval times, when lords and bureaucrats had servants who manually cut their grass with scythes and scissors. Yes, imagine servants on their hands and knees, cutting grass manually like new marine recruits being punished for not making their beds. It was extraordinarily expensive.
The other hurdle was one of time constraints. Until 1938, many Americans worked more than eight hours a day and largely worked half days on Saturdays. But then the Fair Labor Relations act was passed by congress, which freed up more time for everyone.
Then, in post World War 2, we saw the arrival of widespread suburban construction, and the mass birth of Baby Boomers. We saw the arrival of a new american dream, where everyone owned a home and car, and kept a manicured front lawn. Prior to this, many lawns were just kept as they naturally grew.
We saw an incredible surge in mass marketing of lawn mowers, pesticides, lawn services, and endless services that have consequences.
The problem with mowing and maintaining a front lawn
You might wonder, as I did, how lawns can be so problematic for the environment. After all, it’s grass, right? It must be a carbon sink of some type? Yes — but not nearly enough of one given the context.
Angiosperms are flowering plants, which cover most of the planets land surface. These include deciduous trees and fruiting plants, and of course, grass, all of which are important for biodiversity, carbon capture, and the overall health of nature. Each serves a purpose in supporting other wildlife and maintaining ecological balance.
When you maintain a lawn, you typically remove that diversity and have a single type of grass that is consistently cut short. For example, here in Florida, St. Augustine grass is very popular because it deals well with constant sun exposure (and conversely, does poorly with cold weather, hence it isn’t popular up north). But this comes at the cost of dozens of other grasses that are common in the state.
Additionally, the use of pesticides crushes the floral availability for insects like bees, which are so critical. These pesticides also disrupt the reproductive capacity of bees and devastate invertebrate species, further disrupting the food chain.
Unfortunately, it gets worse. Lawn care equipment use contributes 10–18% of non-transportation gasoline emissions. Specifically, these lawn mowers are burning roughly 800 million gallons of gas per year, and are extremely inefficient while doing so. Mowing one hectare (2.47 acres) for one year is the carbon emission equivalent of a jet flying halfway around the world.
And the problem is — we also have roughly 800 million acres of lawn in the United States. My parents have a large property in the country and require giant industrial scale mowers to mow it, with twin blades spinning underneath it.
And then there’s the issue of water consumption — which isn’t in infinite supply in all areas.
For example, in dry areas like Arizona, there are huge water shortages in major cities. And the water required to maintain a bunch of green lawns comes from the diversion of water from local rivers, which has lasting biological and economic consequences.
All of this irrigated water has to go through a chemical treatment process prior to being sprayed on the lawn as well — which further contributes to carbon emissions. Fortunately, many homes have learned to stick with a desert style lawn, with rocks and cactuses instead.
Some parting thoughts and tips
My opinion on lawns have changed dramatically in recent years. Where I once saw myself as a champion of green, freshly cut grass. I soon felt mowing was a war between me and nature, returning each week to cleave these blades, which carried so much promise and willingness to offer replenishment to the damage we (humans) already cause.
The rhythmic hum of my mower began to sound more like a spinning blade of doom, eradicating all the promise and potential of its next victims.
This grass, if left alone, wouldn’t be problematic in any substantive sense. You might see a few more bees than usual — and that’s OK. They won’t hurt you.
There are deliberate and thoughtful ways of rewilding your property, and allowing new plants and grasses to grow in. This doesn’t always need to result in absolute chaos in your front lawn either.
I’d recommend you look up plants and grasses that are native to your region. Consider the perks and benefits of them, and plugging them into your lawn. Be careful of unintentionally purchasing invasive plant species (which Home Depot and other locations often carry in spades).
Consider grasses and plants that will be best suited to your environment, and the amount of sun exposure and remember the water requirements involved. You can always start small, with just a local plant or two, and see how it goes.
One of the amazing perks is that one day you’ll see pollinators and other small critters perusing through this new grass and flowering plants you’ve provided. Birds, bees, butterflies, and other species will thrive and they won’t become the menace they’ve been depicted as by lawn care companies.
Doing so can help contribute to wildlife’s recovery. You can rest easy knowing that you’ve done your part to help mitigate climate change by reducing your carbon footprint. You’ll also know you aren’t causing harm and suffering to local species.
You’ll also spare yourself from the headache and cost of maintaining a grass lawn, and spraying chemicals all over it, and potentially exposing yourself to the harms that accompany them as well.
Just say no to the spinning blade of death.