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What do you use your lawn for?
I googled it and couldn't find anything useful.
Can you list any real activities that someone would do on lawn every weekend?
Some people assume once you have kinds they will run around in the backyard lawn. Is it true? Do kids run around pointlessly just because they found a flat grassy surface?
Alternative uses of backyard space would be gardening, paved patios and decks (where adults can walk and sit on chairs without shoes getting dirty after the rain). Currently I have a small patio and a big lawn. Thinking on doubling the patio that would reduce the lawn by 30-40 per cent. It would not be fully reversible, so I don't know whether I would regret loosing lawn space at some point in the future.
Yes, back when I was a kid, we played football on flat green surfaces, or played baseball, or any other various games. After dark, it was Ghost in the Graveyard.
But sadly, kids today have forgotten how to play outside thanks to technology.
What's wrong with kids running in fields of grass? I think they are supposed to.
Don't get me wrong, I love tech. I just wish kids weren't so 'connected' to social media so early on. That ruins their imagination, imho.
Today, as an older fellow, I use my lawn as---not much lawn. Where I live we have a naturally growing 'weed' called pusley (scientific) or 'Florida snow.' It takes over, grows low, and invites multitudes of bee
species, pollen-seeking wasps, and butterflies. Since we live on acreage, it is a field of dreams to wake up and see the pollinator community. (Honeybees, yes!)
This so-called weed is only a weed to people who don't look at it's benefits, it was here before I was, and the bees would certainly agree.
We also use some of our 'lawn' space for sustainable gardening. Research the plants that are good for your climate, that can feed you and the wildlife. You'd be surprised as how much this can enrich your life, and the lives of the animals that were naturally here before us.
We have raised bed gardening, as well as three settings for people to relax and communicate. 4 small ponds for fish and frogs. It's charming to walk around here.
I suspect you being from Cali, are already thinking this way. (I so miss California!)
Last edited by TerraDown; 12-21-2015 at 08:22 PM..
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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We have a large lot, and very large patio and deck in the back. The lawns are on the side and in the front (corner lot). Now that the kids are grown and moved on, both lawns are mostly unused, but worth keeping for the grandkids to play when they come over. Soccer, frisbee, blowing bubbles, football, or just chasing around.
I actually enjoy the mowing since I bought a riding mower.
What do you use your lawn for?
I googled it and couldn't find anything useful.
Can you list any real activities that someone would do on lawn every weekend?
Some people assume once you have kinds they will run around in the backyard lawn. Is it true? Do kids run around pointlessly just because they found a flat grassy surface?
Alternative uses of backyard space would be gardening, paved patios and decks (where adults can walk and sit on chairs without shoes getting dirty after the rain). Currently I have a small patio and a big lawn. Thinking on doubling the patio that would reduce the lawn by 30-40 per cent. It would not be fully reversible, so I don't know whether I would regret loosing lawn space at some point in the future.
We have about 3/4 acre of lawn, it is used to keep the dog happy and the mower batteries charged.
The Truth? The lawns purpose is to look good. Nobody plays on them. No dogs romp around on them. No relaxing hammocks on them. No lawn seats and umbrellas on them. Just 100% pure unadulterated aesthetics.
When the kids were younger, the lawn was used for tag, baseball, football, frisbee, bow and arrows, squirt guns, kiddie pools followed by the slightly bigger pvc pools, a play structure, etc.
Now it's used for dog relief and play time. I also have a garden. Many flowers. A deck.
When the kids were younger, the lawn was used for tag, baseball, football, frisbee, bow and arrows, squirt guns, kiddie pools followed by the slightly bigger pvc pools, a play structure, etc.
Now it's used for dog relief and play time. I also have a garden. Many flowers. A deck.
I love to mow!
Seriously, I am in the "Love to Mow" group although most of my yard is devoted to "garden rooms" with patches of lawn and paths (right now so incredibly spring green because I put in annual rye for the winter. )
I find mowing the grass very relaxing and a very satisfying thing. You go outside, the task has a beginning and an end and there is a rhythmic seasons of life aspect that says "ah, time to mow again." I love the pure simplicity of it all..................
So, all in all, yes, I have a lawn of sorts but it is not just a grass showcase though the annual rye color certainly is. It is an explosion of blooming things; nooks to read or relax in ; a wonderful therapy to cure the more stressful aspects of life which unlike the lawn cannot be addressed so easily.
1. it keeps the area cooler by absorbing heat without reflecting it
2. it is literally restful to the eyes as the wavelenth reflected is in the middle of the visual spectrum
3. it is visually peaceful by being soft and monotonous
4. smells great when mowed
5. a place to wander, play, sit on lawn chairs
6. produces oxygen absorbs carbon dioxide
7. background to showcase items like patios, pottery, pools
8. sound absorber
9. keeps soil in place but lets rain percolate through to the groundwater
10. dogs and kids can run happily through it without obstruction--makes us happy
My lawn pretty much serves as a gigantic main dish for the multiple groundhogs who have decided to move in since my last dog passed away. I should add that we do enjoy watching the groundhogs and have learned a lot about them. Especially the part about needing to watch out for the entrance holes they dig.
My lawn in the back yard is a dog run. I've turned my front and one side yard into garden with a path leading from the driveway, around the side of the house and over to the back gate on that side. The other side yard is all garden with two short paths to accommodate the mailman and me.
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