- Feb 5, 2002
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I was shocked to learn that my cousins in a suburban community were fined by their homeowners association (HOA) for having clover in their lawn. Doing a little research I discovered this is not unusual; in fact many HOA’s have rules that forbid a wide array of beneficial species including native grasses and wildflowers.
Allow me to be direct: I think the contemporary approach to lawns as instantiated in the dominant practices of our ‘lawncare’ constitutes a crisis. Why? At issue here is much more than lawns—as important as they are. What we call ‘lawns’ can and should be an important part of most homes, and how we treat them is a key expression of how we understand our home and our relation to the natural world.
Home is the place to relate meaningfully to the natural world. Home is where living in a responsible and stewardly way has its main instance. Consider the great possibility that opens before us.
We can treat our lawn as our own ‘steading.’ Whether quite small or relatively large it is place where, recognizing that we humans always live from and on the earth, we receive and cultivate the gift of our own little piece of the earth. This approach bears fruit in multiple concrete manifestations, such as treating the soil as a living thing that we nourish because it nourishes us; landscaping for beauty, productivity, and conservation; avoiding products that poison living things; encouraging wildlife; contemplating the wonders and order of the natural world.
Continued below.
life-craft.org
Allow me to be direct: I think the contemporary approach to lawns as instantiated in the dominant practices of our ‘lawncare’ constitutes a crisis. Why? At issue here is much more than lawns—as important as they are. What we call ‘lawns’ can and should be an important part of most homes, and how we treat them is a key expression of how we understand our home and our relation to the natural world.
Home is the place to relate meaningfully to the natural world. Home is where living in a responsible and stewardly way has its main instance. Consider the great possibility that opens before us.
We can treat our lawn as our own ‘steading.’ Whether quite small or relatively large it is place where, recognizing that we humans always live from and on the earth, we receive and cultivate the gift of our own little piece of the earth. This approach bears fruit in multiple concrete manifestations, such as treating the soil as a living thing that we nourish because it nourishes us; landscaping for beauty, productivity, and conservation; avoiding products that poison living things; encouraging wildlife; contemplating the wonders and order of the natural world.
Continued below.
Reconsider Your Lawn Today - LifeCraft
I was shocked to learn that my cousins in a suburban community were fined by their homeowners association (HOA) for having clover in their lawn. Doing a little research I discovered this is not unusual; in fact many HOA’s have rules that forbid a wide array of beneficial species including native...
life-craft.org
