Buzz
Maintaining a lawn has never been more challenging, and without immediate, drastic climate actions, it will only get tougher. This might sound extreme, but have you thought about just letting it go?
This isn't a joke. Lawns defy logic and our environment would thrive without them. Ecologically, they're disastrous; socially, they're even more problematic. If you own a lawn, consider allowing it to naturally fade away. Here's the reasoning behind this and steps to follow.
Lawns offer aesthetic appeal, but this beauty comes at a cost
The primary issue with lawns lies in their appearance—or rather, the unrealistic standards we hold for them. As ecologist Loren B. Byrne noted in a 2005 study on lawn aesthetics, the perfect lawn is envisioned as uniformly cut, monocultured, free of weeds or diseases, and perpetually green.
This description underscores the absurdity of lawns as an ideal. Achieving green, dense, weed-free grass demands excessive resources: water, fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides, energy, and manual labor. Larger lawns amplify these demands exponentially. When you factor in golf courses, parks, sports fields, and campuses, the resource consumption becomes staggering. How much do American lawns truly consume?
The exact number of lawns remains unknown (but it’s massive)
Interestingly, no one knows the precise extent of lawn coverage in the U.S. The most recent attempt to measure it was in 2005, when Cristina Milesi and her team at NASA Ames Research Center created a formula using “impervious surface area” (like pavement) to estimate lawn coverage. By analyzing aerial photos of 13 urban areas, they correlated pavement with lawn space and extrapolated the data nationwide.
While this method isn’t flawless, it was groundbreaking at the time and remains our sole reference. The results were astonishing, as highlighted in a 2005 NASA blog post:
Even using conservative estimates,” Milesi explains, “I calculate that lawns in the U.S. cover three times the area of irrigated cornfields.” This suggests that lawns—spanning residential, commercial, golf courses, and more—might be the largest irrigated crop in the country by area, encompassing roughly 128,000 square kilometers.
To put it in perspective, 128,000 square kilometers translates to approximately 31.6 million acres or 49,000 square miles. That’s an enormous amount of lawn space.
Lawns are frequently mandatory
One of the most surprising and troubling facts about lawns is that many people are legally required to maintain them—even if they prefer alternatives like gardens. Homeowner association (HOA) rules and local lawn ordinances dictate not only grass length and color but also what can be planted. Breaking these rules can lead to fines, and if unpaid, you might even face losing your home.
However, HOA regulations and “weed laws” (which may sound absurd but are very real) go beyond grass maintenance. They serve as a tool to control neighborhood aesthetics and, by extension, who can live there. Lawns play a significant role in this, as they are closely tied to single-family zoning—a practice originally designed to prevent Black families from moving into predominantly white areas.
How to eliminate your lawn
The upside of lawns is that transforming them into something more beneficial is both simple and enjoyable. A great starting point is to plant anything other than grass: trees, bushes, flowers, vegetables, fruits, or whatever suits your preference. State university extension programs offer excellent guidance on native plants for your area, while the National Wildlife Federation’s (NWF) Garden For Wildlife program provides broader advice. Remember, you can still keep some grass if desired—adding diverse plants can improve its health with minimal effort.
If these changes might trigger HOA fines, there are still ways to adapt. First, recognize that brown grass is natural and not a crisis. Second, minimize your lawn’s environmental footprint: water it less, let it grow taller to strengthen roots, and use clippings as mulch. Opt for manual tools like rakes and push mowers instead of gas-powered equipment.
Lastly, use your homeowner status to push for better policies: join your HOA board, attend town halls to voice concerns, or support local anti-lawn initiatives. While current laws lag behind, progress is possible. For example, in June 2021, Nevada outlawed certain “non-functional turf” to save water, effective in 2027 (though golf courses and single-family homes are exempt). This could signal a shift toward more sustainable practices.
