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Praised by advocates for their beauty and central role in American history, derided by critics for their environmental impacts, lawns – the largest irrigated crop, by area, in the U.S. – occupy a singular place in the American psyche.
Lawns, which occupy 40 million acres in the U.S. and consume around 9 billion gallons of water daily, entered the American consciousness early, with resplendent expanses in Britain and elsewhere in Europe inspiring many former colonists. Estates like the White House and Mount Vernon helped popularize the lawn in American culture.
In the post-World War II era, boosted by a robust economy and political policies that encouraged homeownership, lawns “became a measure of civic responsibility. The perfect, uninterrupted green of suburban landscapes came to represent the ideal community. The lawn had become by now more than just a part of the home; it is a visible expression of adherence to community norms and values,” says the National Wildlife Federation.
Environmental concerns
Starting in the 1920s, various chemicals became commonly used as pesticides. Over time, many were linked to declining bird populations, poisoned wildlife and cancer in humans. These ongoing concerns, along with the expense and greenhouse gas emissions associated with maintenance, high water use and displacement of native wildlife and plants, have led some observers to call for traditional lawns to be downplayed, if not abolished, as a landscaping option.
Lawn advocates cite a multitude of benefits, including visual appeal, erosion prevention, water filtration, habitats for some species, summer air temperature reduction, recreational space, noise and glare absorption, and rainwater drainage management. They also extol lawns’ superiority to artificial grass, which presents “an even bigger list of problems, from the chemicals used in their production, to the micro-plastic pollution, to the water use to keep them clean,” according to Janet Manning, a scientist with the Royal Horticultural Society, Great Britain’s leading gardening charity.
Some experts believe emphasizing native drought-resistant plants over traditional turfgrass represents the best path forward. The debate will likely continue as pressures on natural resources grow.
“The fact is that there’s still very little research on lawns as an ecosystem, and we urgently need more, because even the proposed alternatives can require intense management,” Maria Ignatieva, professor of landscape architecture at the University of Western Australia, said in 2018. “It’s going to take time to change attitudes as to what we should expect from a lawn, or even what a lawn is for.”
“It isn’t about getting rid of lawns, as there seems to be a movement now saying we must do, but about changing our approach to them and our expectations of how they look,” Manning adds.
