It has been said that with maturity comes wisdom, and one Redditor has proven that is absolutely the case when it comes to smart landscaping choices.
"Come with me on a tour of the anti-lawns of my mature neighborhood!" the user wrote in a post in an anti-lawns subreddit.
The poster included a series of eight photos of beautiful, native plant lawns, ending with their own. One photo showed a yard with a rabbit enjoying it.
The OP explained in a comment that a "mature neighborhood" consists of older homes, mostly between 60 and 120 years old. They say there are tons of mature trees to match the mature homes and a thriving wildlife population, including squirrels, bats, and foxes.
"I never see landscaping companies like I do in the sub burbs, and very few lawns are weed free and manicured," they wrote. "I would say the lawns are 60% occasionally mowed weeds+grass+dirt, 35% anti-lawns as I have documented in this post, and 5% are manicured weed-free lawns."
Aside from being gorgeous and fun to look at, as evidenced by the photos, this type of landscaping saves homeowners money and benefits the environment. Manicured grass lawns require loads of water, maintenance, and often toxic pesticides to keep them in tip-top shape.
Native plants are adapted to the local region, so they require little to no water or pesticides. Further, as the OP pointed out, they provide food and shelter to wildlife in the area, including vital pollinators like bats and bees, creating a thriving ecosystem.
Monoculture grass lawns, on the other hand, provide none of this. Homeowners can reap these benefits even if they only rewild or switch to a natural lawn like clover or buffalo grass in a small section of their yard.
Other users were just as delighted by the OP's neighborhood yards as the OP was.
🗣️ 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
"Love them all, what a great neighborhood!" wrote one.
"So cool!" another agreed. "Goals."
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