LANDSCAPING > YAWN CARE
Okay, that being said. People either know to do this, or aren't suitable to maintain a home. And when the topic is about lawn care, we can either make a discussion based on lawn care. But you know what the disconnect is, because this isn't a lawn care forum, the people on the site who do discuss this type of topic as repelled because the world has gone away from this 1960s yards of America BS. People who care are into landscaping, and that's 99% about the removal of lawn, the antithesis of "lawn care", despite it being anti-lawn.
So this question about what to do with lawns....
Level them?
Aerate them?
Re-Sod?
Over-seed?
Run over your yard with a pallet?
Holy shit, you are crazy. You are fucked. And why people agree to live in HOAs that require this, it's because HOAs are naturally predatory,. /Side rant of the topic derail.
The real lawn care, in my opinion, is that you get rid of as much of it as you can. It's a curse, an addiction to something with poor benefits.
How about get rid of THAT much of your lawn, to where you don't need to care for it to this time-and-resource-suck level of commitment. A lawnmower, or a string trimmer tops. Not give it so much space in tools that it's like you have a room-mate that doesn't pay rent..
One of those people who like to go bare foot in your yard? Creeping thyme, creeping charlie, softer and both mildly disinfects your feet as you walk on it bare foot. So someone saying they want something that feels good bare foot, FYI, grass isn't the best solution, and yes, people who maintain a thyme yard on purpose have to aerate and level as well, just not as often. My point is, there are better options.
Care about the environment? Well, this group of religious lawn care people are dumping salts into the soil at an alarming rate(glyphosates the worst), it's fucking with the worlds crops, skyrocketing the demand for agriculture to study how to work around unnecessary problems with their lifes work, opposed to doing something better. I can't stand it. You can always say, 'high-maintenance turf lawn owners are not the worst offenders', but you are a big one. At no point should you ever complain your food is not organic. And it's not something polarizing that you need to pick sides and defend it. Your buddy at Scotts turf will be ok, don't worry. It's not too late, just take a deep breath, proccess what I say, not attack me for who I am. Breathe in, breathe out.
Properties need more shaded elements as well, it's not just about you, the plants and ecosystem needs shade as well. So not everything is just a series of trees for shade. And in turn, you'll find that your allergies start to dwindle, because it turns out, taller plants like to filter the air a shit ton more. Who woulda thunk it.
Better plants to deal with water filtration rates and depth of processioning more micro-toxins.
I can find aesthetic value 100+ ways, a nice lawn isn't the only way, but it's turning out to be the equivilant of a dry-walled garage where you still see the tape and putty, left unfinished, and left to look like the day the house was built(for 20 years). That's what a giant lawn looks like to me.
Unless you grow buffalo grass or a deeper root system grass(tall varieties), but that's not considered real lawn care by most. It's landscaping again. Nobody that grows buffalo grass will complain about little dips in their yard. So logically, this isn't about those varieties. Lawn is not grass, but grass is lawn.
And stop choosing varieties of trees that like to shred sewers and rub up against foundations. I know, people think Silver Maples are beautiful in the autumn with a yard of leaves, that mighty Oak is a tree you can't beat, or certain juniper can create a lot of shade fast. All fine trees, but you're not playing the Sims. They need to be in a fully compatible area. You would think people learned this from all the poor foundations in middle Illinois, but they keep planting incompatible trees in the wrong area. A lot of inexperienced home-owners do this, and some women(not all) are the worst. They treat it like this is shopping for trees, picking something pretty.... home ownership is not shoe shopping.
LANDSCAPING > YAWN CARE
