Please watch the latest <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDVcfSYcxc0" rel="nofollow">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDVcfSYcxc0. It's an interview with an old botanist, who shares his wisdom and philosophy, remains engaged after decades of witnessing first hand America's nature getting destroyed.
2 main points:
- destroyed old-growth forests, grassland, remnant prairies takes millennia to be back to what they were, not decades. Insects and other pollinators don't just reappear
- water availability for plants comes in many forms, all of which disappear with tillage.
Joey is an acquired taste, but if you look past the strong and odd personality (the persona?), his channel is a gold mine. But this time he was (rightfully) impressed by Gerry (Gerould) Wilhelm's wealth of knowledge.
I'm reminded of an article I read once, it seems to have gone offline, an interview with indie game dev Jason Rohrer. He said the city took him to court for not mowing his lawn. He ended up winning under the 1st amendment (the lawn was "free expression" or something...)[0]
I thought that was really interesting (and obviously wouldn't work in other countries).
The other day I walked around the neighborhood and found this massive patch of grass and weeds that had been mowed, and scorched by the sun, so it was just mostly dead. Barely 5 minutes away, the city had fenced out special plots and paid to have a bunch of weeds instlled, to help the bees. Comedy.
[0] Edit: Yeah it's deleted. I found backups though!
> I thought that was really interesting (and obviously wouldn't work in other countries).
I don't know about other countries, but in Poland you're just not required to cut down your lawn at all, unless it's a fire hazard (you have a lot of dead and dried up plants).
Not just HOAs. Talk grass allows insects and vermin to move more freely. In cities, this contributes to their spread, so some places have city-wide ordinances that require lawn maintenance.
Most city code about lawns mandates cutting them if you have one. If you don’t want to maintain a lawn by keeping it trimmed, rip it out. It’s a non-native monoculture, allowing it to grow un-maintained is uh, stupid. Rip the sod out and plant clover, problem solved.
My city also requires “noxious weeds” to be removed, which is a state requirement that the city inherited/adopted: <a href="https://www.mda.state.mn.us/minnesota-noxious-weed-list" rel="nofollow">https://www.mda.state.mn.us/minnesota-noxious-weed-list It’s comprised of invasive species like Japanese knotweed and buckthorn and others I am unfamiliar with.
That being said, city code in my city would allow you to replace a grass law with clover or native plants/grasses or landscaping or wooded areas, etc. The code simply says “If you have a grass lawn you must cut it if the grass generates seeds or is 8” long.”
jojocool0501 · · focus · HN ↗
Please watch the latest <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDVcfSYcxc0" rel="nofollow">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDVcfSYcxc0. It's an interview with an old botanist, who shares his wisdom and philosophy, remains engaged after decades of witnessing first hand America's nature getting destroyed. 2 main points: - destroyed old-growth forests, grassland, remnant prairies takes millennia to be back to what they were, not decades. Insects and other pollinators don't just reappear - water availability for plants comes in many forms, all of which disappear with tillage.
Joey is an acquired taste, but if you look past the strong and odd personality (the persona?), his channel is a gold mine. But this time he was (rightfully) impressed by Gerry (Gerould) Wilhelm's wealth of knowledge.
andai · · focus · HN ↗
I'm reminded of an article I read once, it seems to have gone offline, an interview with indie game dev Jason Rohrer. He said the city took him to court for not mowing his lawn. He ended up winning under the 1st amendment (the lawn was "free expression" or something...)[0]
I thought that was really interesting (and obviously wouldn't work in other countries).
The other day I walked around the neighborhood and found this massive patch of grass and weeds that had been mowed, and scorched by the sun, so it was just mostly dead. Barely 5 minutes away, the city had fenced out special plots and paid to have a bunch of weeds instlled, to help the bees. Comedy.
[0] Edit: Yeah it's deleted. I found backups though!
<a href="https://archive.ph/j9025" rel="nofollow">https://archive.ph/j9025
<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20150315123808/https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/a5303/future-of-video-game-design-1208/" rel="nofollow">https://web.archive.org/web/20150315123808/https://www.esqui...
badpun · · focus · HN ↗
I don't know about other countries, but in Poland you're just not required to cut down your lawn at all, unless it's a fire hazard (you have a lot of dead and dried up plants).
graemep · · focus · HN ↗
Here in the UK there are no usually legal requirements, but it might be a social problem as your neighbours will not like it.
voakbasda · · focus · HN ↗
nsvd2 · · focus · HN ↗
quickthrowman · · focus · HN ↗
My city also requires “noxious weeds” to be removed, which is a state requirement that the city inherited/adopted: <a href="https://www.mda.state.mn.us/minnesota-noxious-weed-list" rel="nofollow">https://www.mda.state.mn.us/minnesota-noxious-weed-list It’s comprised of invasive species like Japanese knotweed and buckthorn and others I am unfamiliar with.
That being said, city code in my city would allow you to replace a grass law with clover or native plants/grasses or landscaping or wooded areas, etc. The code simply says “If you have a grass lawn you must cut it if the grass generates seeds or is 8” long.”