By Reagan Johnson
The idealized American lawn: bright green and meticulously manicured grass perfectly framing the dream big house and the matching white picket fence. Having this perfect house and yard has historically been a symbol of money, success, and accomplishments.
A study found that in the United States, over 40 million acres of land are covered by lawns, mainly covered in turf grass. The American Dream was created in the 1940s and 50s, so why do we still value pristine yards today?
Photo (left) from Flickr
“Lawns are entirely psychological. There's no reason for them” said Sam Quinn, the Director of Conservation on Private Lands Initiative at State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry (SUNY ESF).
“There are certain activities that you need a lawn for, like a picnic or playing catch, but you don't need a gigantic lawn to do those things," said Quinn. Lawns were created from a holdover of European ideologies; "Let's demonstrate how rich we are by taking lands fully out of production and demonstrate we don't have to grow food here,' which is just silly,” Quinn said.
Though the motivation for a well-manicured lawn has changed since 17th century England, the appeal for the aesthetic stuck. Yards are monocultures, meaning they are mainly composed of one or very few species of turf grass, giving that classic bright green look. These grasses are generally not native species and therefore require a lot of maintenance, such as watering, fertilizer, herbicide treatments, and mowing.
As environmental issues become more prevalent in mainstream news, a common topic of concern is biodiversity loss, causing alternative lawn options to be explored. Biodiversity refers to an environment that hosts and supports a variety of different species and life. “A lawn is basically a desert, it's a very sterile landscape-- a biological wasteland, just a few species, often non-native, and the structure is highly simplified because you mow it,” said Quinn. When environments are more diverse, they can offer a range of environmental benefits. For example, meadows have an incredibly complex root system, almost like a forest, in comparison to turf grasses. Therefore, they are able to sequester carbon and build soil organic matter. They can also transpire water much faster than lawns, which is helpful for stormwater regulation. In addition, meadow lawns "support a home and food for bugs, they provide food for birds and shelter for wildlife in winter, such as little songbirds and small mammals," said Quinn. "For the animals that we don't like to go into our houses, they have a shelter where they’d be screwed if it was just a lawn in an ice storm,” Quinn continues. Biodiversity loss is a chronic issue and not one that can be solved overnight, but by incorporating biodiverse ecosystems into yards, the millions of acres that are monocultures in the U.S. may shrink.
Biodiversity can be included in many different ways, such as gardens, meadows, trees, native species, etc. Biodiversity measures can also be included in a variety of spaces whether it be in a rural community or an urban one, or on a large area of land or a small one.
Where I live in Syracuse, New York, some of my neighbors are incorporating biodiversity measures into their yards, and they all look different. I wanted to learn more about my neighbor's lawns, so I visited them to ask a few questions. The first person I talked to was Laura Kreidler, who had a beautiful garden in her front yard, pictured below. Kriedler has a garden because she enjoys harvesting her own crops, and likes to see flowers and wildlife in her backyard.
I also had the pleasure of speaking to Barry and Ellyn Lentz (pictured below), who focus on bringing nature to their backyard.
I also spoke with the Pierce family about their biodiverse lawn. Compared to the two previous interviews, their yard was more of a meadow with tall grasses and native species. As a family, they enjoy watching the native wildlife use their yard as a habitat. The Pierce's like to keep their yard on the longer side, but it's not without challenges-- they have faced pushback from the city of Syracuse. "Every summer for the last few years, we've gotten a notice from the city that our grass is too long, and it's violating city ordinance and we need to cut it or be fined," said Samantha. "It's annoying. So we cut it just enough that they'll leave us alone."
"But we do tend to let our yard be a little bit shaggy... you get to see what changes throughout the seasons. You know, we got the crocus coming up in the spring and some winter aconite and the bees really appreciate those. Things are flowering and growing and blooming and it looks different all throughout the year."
The Pierce's were the only family I spoke with who had an issue with city ordinances, even though all of the other homes also had tall vegetation. This could be because while their yard does resemble an uncut grass lawn, in reality, their yard is a diverse mixture of native grasses, clover, plantain, and other vegetation. It's taller than turf grass but is not necessarily the most conventional collection of gardening or landscaping species.
These three families are demonstrating accessible ways to increase biodiversity in urban environments. They aren't subscribing to the idea of the perfect lawn and are all finding pleasure in doing so. In addition to the ecological benefits that these families are restoring and reintroducing to their environment, they are also benefitting their community by creating exposure to different lawn types. People in the neighborhood can see what a non-monoculture lawn looks like and become more used to the idea that not every lawn needs to look like the picturesque, manicured lawn from the 50s. These residents are crucial to localized biodiversity efforts because they are normalizing ways to help the environment, even in urban settings. Hopefully, these yards can inspire others to try a more biodiverse style, even if it means planting just a few flowers or abstaining from mowing for a little while. "If communities act together, they can have the same impact as people with huge amounts of land," said Quinn.
Interested in enhancing biodiversity at your home or in your neighborhood? There are many wonderful resources on how to get started, such as works by Doug Tallamy or resources created by the Restoration Science Center at SUNY ESF.