Homeowner seeks advice for smarter approaches for daunting three-hour lawn chore: 'Our property is extremely bumpy'

A homeowner turned to the r/NoLawns subreddit for advice on what to do with their expansive backyard to reduce the time they spend mowing.

In the post, the homeowner explained that mowing and weed whacking their yard takes around three hours, a considerable amount of time that they would rather spend doing other things.

The photos show that the property in upstate New York has a large, uneven yard with a big pond and is bordered by a thick forest that ends abruptly at the property line. The homeowner said that they wanted some ideas for what to do with the space to reduce maintenance, writing, "I have a disdain for mowing. It makes it worse that our property is extremely bumpy, so I have to mow on our tractor extremely slow."

The majority of the commenters urged the homeowner to consider rewilding their yard by planting native plants and trees. Others suggested not mowing it and seeing what grows, and a few suggested using part of the area to grow fruits and vegetables. 

Rewilding your yard is the process of restoring it to its natural ecosystem without the use of toxic pesticides, per the University of Florida. This can have several positive benefits. For example, studies have shown that spending time in nature can help lower blood pressure and stress hormone levels, boost your immune system, and reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression.

Native lawns are also much easier and cheaper to maintain than monoculture lawns. The plants, shrubs, and trees native to your local area are adapted to the soil and weather conditions, so you don't need to spend hours watering and applying expensive fertilizers.

Rewilding your yard also helps support local wildlife populations, including pollinators, which are essential for food production. You don't even need to rewild your entire yard to reap these benefits. One study showed that creating a 4-square-meter wildflower "mini-meadow" was enough to increase the number of pollinators seen in the garden.

"Grow some native wild flowers and become a haven for the bees or plant a ton of native hard woods and create your own little forest," one commenter wrote.

Another told the original poster that the list of what they could do is endless, writing, "Get creative, you have a beautiful giant blank canvas."

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.

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