In the environmental face-off between homeowners, the grass isn’t always greener
The latest Hatfield and McCoy-style standoff involves homeowners who are enthralled to the so-called “splendor in the grass” and those who have let their lawns go au naturel in an effort to aid the environment. This means no chemically induced lawns but instead native plants that attract animals.
Needless to say, not everyone is enamored of the call of the wild, as a recent battle between members of a Maryland homeowners’ association demonstrated.
In one corner, Jeff and Janet Crouch, who are among what The National Wildlife Federation calls the 50% increase in people creating wildlife gardens since Covid. In another corner, next-door neighbor Daniel O’Rourke, whose pristine lawn is among those that make up one-third of the United States’ 135 million acres of residential landscaping, The New York Times article notes.
O’Rourke contended that the Crouches’ “jungle” attracted bats, deer, snakes and rodents as well as butterflies and other pollinators, making it hard for him to enjoy his emerald expanse. Their homeowners’ association sent the Crouches a cease-and-desist letter, which they decided to fight with a lawsuit.
In a country in which as much as 78% of the land is in private hands, such disputes are nothing new. One neighbor decides to let the backyard go wild, and another puts up a fence or a border of arborvitaes to block that view and/or keep out critters. What is new is our growing awareness of the environmental harm in chemically created lawns and in the watering and use of gas blowers and mowers to maintain them. And yet, the heart wants what it wants. Not everyone is in love with roaming creatures. Flitting butterflies? Yes. Bats, snakes, field mice, even rats and deer that invite coyotes? Not so much.
What to do? Here’s where our skill and experience at the Morano Group comes into play. We’re passionate about the environment. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have switched earlier in the year to a fleet of lithium-ion battery-operated mowers and blowers. But we also pride ourselves in working with our clients to achieve the results they want. We know that some will always want an unencumbered green lawn. But we also know that not every area of the garden is conducive to grass. Shade plants may be better suited to sections in which sunlight doesn’t penetrate. Hardy bushes and pachysandras may be the solutions for sloping regions that are harder to mow.
In the end, the Crouches compromised, too, adding grass borders of sustainable, low-maintenance Pennsylvania sledge to their wildlife garden. But they succeeded in keeping almost all of it intact and inspiring a new Maryland law that limits the effect that homeowners’ associations can have on environmental gardens.
The Crouches spent $60,000 on lawyers’ fees. But perhaps that money might’ve been better spent on a more elaborate plan for the garden. Thought, design, execution and maintenance go a long way in making an environmental garden that is also aesthetic.
As you plan for the garden of your dreams in 2023, we’re here to assist you and we wish you all the best for a happy, healthy new year.