The History of the Lawn and How to Move On
Oh the grass lawn. :). Such a funny bastion of the past that many of us still cling to. The history of the lawn is actually quite interesting and KNOWING where it came from (in the same way knowing HOW your meat is made) may make it easier to ditch. So let’s talk the HISTORY of the grass lawn so you all can sound smart at cocktail parties. ??
Grass lawns weren’t even a THING until the 19th century. Until then, people couldn’t afford to maintain a lawn because cutting that dang grass was SUCH hard work (one had to use shears or a scythe). The only people that could afford lawns were the upper classes so lawns became status symbols of the rich. A few things changed all this and made lawns widespread across society:
1. The lawnmower was invented in 1830 making cutting grass way faster.
2. Congress passed the “Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938” mandating the 40 hour workweek freeing up a LOT more time to maintain said lawn.
3. The GI bill made it possible for vets to afford housing.
4. Catering to this demand, cheap mass-produced housing (the suburbs!) took off and lawns were STANDARD in these homes.
And then more silliness ensued. Family’s moving into neighborhoods would be REQUIRED to “match” their lawn to everyone else’s or they could be fined. These conditions fostered a stigma about NOT having a grass lawn and have made it ever more difficult to snap out of.
And though HAVING a grass lawn is certainly more forgivable if you have kids (that get good use of it!), for many of us, a lawn is STRICTLY aesthetic. And that’s a bummer from an ecological standpoint. Grass of course grows NATURALLY, but there are a DIVERSITY of other crops and flowers that accompany that grass in the wild. In home plots, those crops are often killed (often with artificial chemical weed killers) to maintain that “clean” look. In many climates, grass can’t grow without heavy irrigation and that’s a bummer because water is already scarce. Last, to maintain grass (that might not otherwise naturally grow there), many use chemical fertilizers, leading to water runoff which is a triple bummer.
So what can be done instead? Grow an EDIBLE garden. Heck, if you’re going to use water, you might as well use it for food. Also, look up the NATIVE PLANTS in your area. As their name implies, native plants grow NATURALLY in your climate and usually don’t require much water at all. They are WAY EASIER to maintain than a lawn, look GORGEOUS and are INCREDIBLE to the local ecology. They prevent #erosion, attract pollinators and serve lots of other earth-centered functions. Last but not least, you can get creative with stones or other cool alternatives.
And listen. If this makes you defensive, know that you’re not AUTOMATICALLY a jerk for having a lawn! Lots of families have young kids that get good use out of that lawn. But when those kids get older and that lawn is just for looks you mayyyy wanna change it up to something more 2018.