Environment
Uncovering the Seeds of a Post-Lawn Future
Two artists are on a mission to replace the monoculture of the turf lawn with “leafy green goodness” from seeds that lie dormant in the soil.
The many problems with the great American lawn are well documented: Lawns guzzle water, promote the use of fertilizers that contaminate water, lower biodiversity, and are labor-intensive, despite producing no food for humans and little for wildlife. (They also have an uncanny ability to spark tension between neighbors.)
Many lawns are what’s known as a monoculture, in which one plant is exclusively cultivated. Those plants are often non-native turfgrasses such as Bermuda grass from Africa and centipede grass from Asia, which require care to maintain. These offer few benefits to animal species, whereas “weeds” like dandelions and clover are major resources for bees and other pollinators.