Lawn maintenance is often more trouble than it's worth, and that's when everything goes right. When something goes wrong, the results can be disastrous, as one Redditor posting a picture of their neighbor's lawn to the r/lawncare subreddit recently showed.
The poster explained the situation simply, writing: "Neighbor hired a bad lawncare company."
Although we don't know exactly what happened here, the consensus among the lawn care experts in the comments section seems to be that the homeowner (or the company they hired) used an overly aggressive weed killer and also failed to apply it evenly, leaving stripes of dead grass across the lawn.
"I was just thinking 'that looks like they used an old-school Scotts drop spreader!'" one commenter guessed.
"The side-to-side wiggle pattern of it seems like someone spraying from a hand can, waving it back and forth," another replied.
Of course, many would make the case that any weed killer is an overly aggressive weed killer. Products like Scotts, Roundup, and others rely on toxic chemicals to deal with unwanted plants.
However, as we can clearly see from the photo, these chemicals have the propensity to kill not just unwanted plants, but wanted ones as well.
Roundup, in particular, uses a chemical called glyphosate. While Bayer, the company that produces Roundup, says that humans can be safely exposed to glyphosate, evidence indicates otherwise.
After being sued by four plaintiffs who argued that exposure to Roundup had caused illnesses including cancer, Bayer was ordered to pay $1.56 billion in damages in 2023, as Reuters reported.
🗣️ If you were to switch from a grass lawn to a more natural option, which of these factors would be your primary motivation?
🔘 Making it look better 🌱
🔘 Saving money on water and maintenance 💰
🔘 Helping pollinators 🐝
🔘 No way I ever get rid of my lawn 🚫
🗳️ Click your choice to see results and speak your mind
In addition, maintaining a uniform grass lawn requires tons of water, time, and money — and sometimes, even when you spend the money on supposed experts to do the job for you, you get even less than what you paid for.
That's why many homeowners are now opting for native plant lawns instead of grass lawns. Native plants are easier to maintain, more visually interesting, and support your local ecosystem by providing food for native pollinators.
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