We need a federal law against requiring grass lawns. People need to be legally protected when they want to replace with native/edible plants.
this post was submitted on 01 May 2025
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No Lawns
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I don't know how to tell you gently.
When I moved in, I told my neighbor I only mow my yard once every 2 weeks. Something I read that said it would help the bees. He’s done the same to match. We also have lightning bugs now, which I didn’t notice the first year.
I aim for once every 2 years lol.
I think my neighbor doesn't like me, but I got butterflies for days
Are you supposed to do it more? When I lived with my parents and had access to a yard that's about how much we did it (cause it was annoying to do it more)
Much, much less. The city I live in wants to promote biodiversity and has adapted their mowing schedule for this. Large parts of public greenery are only mowed once or twice per year. Other parts 6 times a year. Some parts are mowed 20 times a year, e.g. fields for kids to play on, or where it would be a safety issue (e.g. high growth blocking view around a corner), but that’s just a small portion.
Also in some parts they only partially mow, to create spaces where there are different heights of greenery. They also sowed a lot of mixed flowers, which looks really nice.
Some people mow twice a week. Lawn is basically their hobby.
Is your neighbor Hank Hill by any chance?
If Hank Hill was my neighbor he would probably ask if he could take care of my yard just so he wouldn't have to look at it.
I usually have to mow once a week when we're not in drought, otherwise the lawn gets too high, but during the heat of summer I don't have to mow at all because the grass goes dormant.
what exactly is "too high"? because if you mowed once a week here you'd be tilling the fucking soil
Too high for me is when even at the tallest setting my lawn mower struggles to cut which is probably like 6+ inches as a guess. Usually the first mow in the spring is difficult if I attempt "no mow may".
I don't understand how you'd ever be 'tilling the soil' unless you don't know how to adjust your mower height, maybe you could elaborate?
What zone are you in?
My grass is ready to be cut by march and now mow may only results in not waist high grass IF I mow it April 30th
Your experience relative to my experience can show how the other persons experience can be so drastically different too
5a. Grass grows like crazy from May into July. August it usually goes dormant because I don't have irrigation and then I don't have to mow until it cools down again.
Probably why. Here in canada, same as this guy, literally have to mow it every week or it gets too long and the mower stops working well.
5 inches at a minimum, at least in most spots
Before I bought a house, I only knew once a week when I was growing up. Seemed to be based on the neighborhood (upper Midwest).
That is actually kind of beautiful. Unless you are on the ground of course
We mow just often enough to stop the township from sending angry letters. So about once a month of that.
The city I used to work for tried banning mowing certain times of year, and had to back down due to all the lawsuits coming in.
My current city is trying to ban leaf blowers (they're terrible in like 8 different ways), but that's also very difficult.
Township here just doesn't want a shaggy lawn. It still takes them awhile to send the letters. In summer we get it mowed once a month (or once they send a warning), winter we just don't mow. It doesn't grow enough.
Mines currently wildflowers, bunnies and at least one mole.
My yard is a hot mess and the fireflies have started showing up.
Also rabbits, and there’s a fox den nearby and they show up occasionally.
I don’t like the fox because it took a huge hairy musty shit in my window well, it was putrid. I don’t know if he pooped into the well like an outhouse, or popped with his little head poking out.
Shit on the entrance to his burrow to assert dominance
Your house gets to have a yard?
these houses were bought in times when housing was affordable
You guys get to have a house?
So lawns are the reason people don't vote. They are distracted by mowing. And the ruling class likes it. I get it.
It's easy, just live where no one else wants to live and then just be permanently broke.
Direct link to the Maryland bill passed: https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/2021RS/bills/hb/hb0322f.pdf
MD HB322 is the GOAT.
Basically every stupid rule my HoA has to enforce a “super short cut grass lawn” was invalidated by that.
Now I have a pollinator sanctuary in my front yard.
Fuck grass.
I've been considering a local wildflower mix to take over a section of mine- good for the bugs, less stupid expanse for me to mow.
I'm going with wild clover and flowers I think, clover loves it here and is all over the place anyway. Never gotta mow it.
I just gotta get off my ass and find the time...
We have white clover and if unchecked it grows above your shoes and leaves walking paths.
I still prefer it to grass but I do mow it occasionally. It bounces back quickly and seems happy.
It’s very fluffy in the summer which is a great vibe for the lawn.
I highly reccomend using native species. They are better for pollinators
That's all I'm using :)
I used to love sitting out back and watching them in the old house I was in. Now I'm an apartment dweller and the only bugs I see outside regularly are paper wasps.
It's No-Mow-May.
Tell the HOAs to get stuffed and put the mower away for a few weeks.
I've already seen quite a few mason bees buzzing around in my yard.
That looks nothing like my yard but still don't see as many LBs as I used to. People blame yards like the one here and pesticides, but I don't know. I felt like in the 80s and 90s there was an even bigger obsession with manicured yards and people found the most toxic stuff they could get their hands on to spray around their homes. Still had tons of lightening bugs then.
There are a lot of factors. I've heard light contamination is harmful for lightbug populations. And the modern LED streetlights are much brighter than in the 90s
Is that from a robot mower?
The type of morons with gardens like these would see that as a good thing