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by crossingTime 1552 days ago
"I can't mow this week wife, think of the bees." Thanks science.
1 comments

Bad approach to life. My advice is to either learn to love things that have to be done (and frequently like mowing) or pay someone to do it. Life’s too short.

Lawn is really fascinating when you get into it.

OK, but can't you learn to love bees, too? I am not even half joking.

The fascination with lawns, and everything that comes with it, is something I could never get. Flowers might not be manly enough but why not grow trees and/or produce? Not talking commercial efforts. Just a hobby. One that doesn't involve horrible motorized mowers, water waster, and what have you.

Bees love a good lawn (as in not a monoculture but a mosaic of flowering "weeds")

Also having a space around your house means it can be more easily defended from file

Gardens with flowers and vegetables have the same benefits, but are more work and make the ground unusable for the dogs and their children

Also erosion control. Lawns are great for controlling that.
Growing produce is super hard. It also requires more water than a lawn for similar area. But you can also do both. We have a pretty big vegetable patch too.

But I love a lawn. They’re beautiful and it’s a fun hobby. They also make a great ecosystem for lots of bugs and worms which love organically fertilized earth. Lawns are also a carbon sink depending on how you maintain it. Not to mention they’re great for erosion issues. Not to mention the kids love playing on it.

As for water I live in an area where you can’t really “waste” water. Mowers can be electric as well.

Not when your kid is deathly allergic.
Allergic to what?
Bees
Or affect change to not need it. My advice is to not have a lawn, and instead culture semi-wild patches of flowers by only weeding what is unattractive. No mowing for me, and no high maintenance manicured flower beds, and lots of bees.
Many people are required to have and mow lawns by their HOA or local government. For those people, the choice is mow, move, or eat some fines.

Mowing may also be necessary if you live somewhere with a rodent problem, or particularly if you live somewhere with a rodent and snake problem. You don't want rats nesting right up against your house, nor vipers (attracted to the rats) nipping at your heels every time you go outside to check your mailbox.

Of course there are outside-the-box solutions like surrounding your house with gravel.

I agree, but also have a lawn.

I have a lot of space around the edges that have trees (fruit trees, nut trees and decorative native trees as) I pull out the plants I want to discourage (hemlock, stinging nettle, dock by the roots...) and other plants like ferns, flaxes, butter cups fill in the spaces.

Yep. Bought a house last summer, in process of getting rid of the lawn. Less noise, less work, less chemicals.

I mean what would I do with it? Play croquet?