I hate grass. Grass is one of those few plants that I really think are worthless. It has no biological value as far as I can see. Now, there may be some scientist out there studying how grass grows or something in an effort to use biomimicry to make the world better, but until they come out with a study about how we can use grass to better the world I am against it.
You might think I'm crazy, and I admit that I can at times have crazy opinions. But here's why I hate grass. First, I already mentioned the lack of biological value. It is a monoculture. It crowds out or kills everything it can including my vegetable garden and apple trees. I suppose it is really interesting how grass tries to kill trees and thus why we must maintain a huge area of boring mulch around each tree we hold dear to us. But really, that's as far as my interest goes at this point. Stating that it is interesting. Again, this is something for scientists, not designers. At this stage in the game, the behavior of grass is not useful to me as a designer. Secondly, people use harmful chemicals to make sure their grass is weed free. Really? Do we need to do this? It's pure aesthetics for one, and grass IS a weed for another thing. Why are people so obsessed with having a completely weed free lawn to the point of poisoning other species in the process? This just does not make any sense. And in this economy, when everyone's belts are tightening, why would anybody spend good money on weed killer? Lastly, the energy put into cutting, edging and otherwise maintaining a perfectly manicured lawn is unbelievable! Gas powered lawn mowers and edgers used without fail every other week from the last frost to the first snowfall add to our dependence on oil. Electric models help, but electricity costs something too. And I'd rather be spending it running a heat pump to make my office cooler, dangit! Also, if you're doing all this maintenance yourself, then you're not growing your own food or spending time with your family. You're cutting GRASS! It is absolutely absurd to cover all the ground surrounding your house with something that continuously grows at such a rate that you have to cut all of it down by 1/3rd at least every other week so it LOOKS nice.
As a designer, I'd much rather have a yard of thyme. In fact, that's what we plan to replace this horrid grass with as soon as the budget allows. I'm sure the neighbors will be pissed, but honestly I don't care. They piss me off with their daily grass cutting! Geez, if they could only just get together and all cut their grass on the same day at least that would be less annoying if not better for the environment. But no. Thank goodness somebody is cutting their grass right now as I rant. And I'm sure as soon as that person is done, another person will start up their weed whacker to make up for it. I only hope they're consuming enough water to keep from getting heat stroke in this weather!
Save the planet; plant a tree.
You might think I'm crazy, and I admit that I can at times have crazy opinions. But here's why I hate grass. First, I already mentioned the lack of biological value. It is a monoculture. It crowds out or kills everything it can including my vegetable garden and apple trees. I suppose it is really interesting how grass tries to kill trees and thus why we must maintain a huge area of boring mulch around each tree we hold dear to us. But really, that's as far as my interest goes at this point. Stating that it is interesting. Again, this is something for scientists, not designers. At this stage in the game, the behavior of grass is not useful to me as a designer. Secondly, people use harmful chemicals to make sure their grass is weed free. Really? Do we need to do this? It's pure aesthetics for one, and grass IS a weed for another thing. Why are people so obsessed with having a completely weed free lawn to the point of poisoning other species in the process? This just does not make any sense. And in this economy, when everyone's belts are tightening, why would anybody spend good money on weed killer? Lastly, the energy put into cutting, edging and otherwise maintaining a perfectly manicured lawn is unbelievable! Gas powered lawn mowers and edgers used without fail every other week from the last frost to the first snowfall add to our dependence on oil. Electric models help, but electricity costs something too. And I'd rather be spending it running a heat pump to make my office cooler, dangit! Also, if you're doing all this maintenance yourself, then you're not growing your own food or spending time with your family. You're cutting GRASS! It is absolutely absurd to cover all the ground surrounding your house with something that continuously grows at such a rate that you have to cut all of it down by 1/3rd at least every other week so it LOOKS nice.
As a designer, I'd much rather have a yard of thyme. In fact, that's what we plan to replace this horrid grass with as soon as the budget allows. I'm sure the neighbors will be pissed, but honestly I don't care. They piss me off with their daily grass cutting! Geez, if they could only just get together and all cut their grass on the same day at least that would be less annoying if not better for the environment. But no. Thank goodness somebody is cutting their grass right now as I rant. And I'm sure as soon as that person is done, another person will start up their weed whacker to make up for it. I only hope they're consuming enough water to keep from getting heat stroke in this weather!
Save the planet; plant a tree.
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