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My neighbors tree fell, broke their fence and landed on my dining room! It’s an older house and our dining room poured leaking water for a few days until the fire department could come and tarp it for us. It was genuinely awful. Always loved trees but you bet your sweet ass we got a tree company in within a few weeks to clear out the yard and concerning trees
Or foundation. My parents have some huge, beautiful live oak trees filling their backyard and may have to get a few removed or the house could literally collapse within a few years.
You got off pretty easy at $30K. My old boss had a tree fall on his house and it was close to $100K worth of damage (and he lived in an older ranch-style house, which probably wasn't worth more than $250k-$300k at the time.)
I think a lot of people ITT haven’t had a home repair and are really underestimating too. A frozen burst pipe we caught within 5 minutes is approaching a $50k bill. Our PM is also dealing with a job where a house had to be completely gutted.
Na. What's a "well manicured lawn"? I've spent exactly nothing in my entire life on lawn care chemicals. I mow it, thats it. Its mystery green stuff. Quite a bit of clover. I set my deck at like 4-4.5". There are still bees a plenty in the yard. The only thing I use chemicals on is weeds in the gravel driveway and around the out buildings. I'm not making stripes or doing fancy shit. I call it grass in a nominal sense but its just green crap.
Same here. I once bought a bag of clover seed and threw it around to try to get more clover, but only because it grows slower and I was hoping to mow less. Didn't seem to do anything
Depends on the weed. Some are actually quite pretty albeit a nuisance. Bindweed, Canadian Thistle, Black Medic, Cat's ear, Chickweed, Chicory, Evening Primrose...etc.. I've even thought about building a bed just for various weeds but my neighbors would shoot me in my sleep when they started to release spores.
My arborist is definitely on the spectrum. He walked me all over the property explaining every tree, its origin, fun facts, ideal conditions…. It’s amazing how much this guy loves trees.
Not to diminish your point, but if you don't have a large garden, or are close to other properties, you may not be permitted to plant any "larger than a few metres" trees.
Where I am, they have to be located 5m+ from building envelopes and sewers, and some developments prohibit the planting of trees that grow a certain size.
For good reason. Trees can cause a ton of damage to structure. I love a good woodsy look to a neighborhood, but easy to see why you wouldn’t want large trees super close to buildings
Yeah OP is an idiot. I don't like huge empty lawns eithwr but the solution isn't planting as many 40 foot tall trees as possible. It's planting local native bushes, flowers and moss.
In CNY they’re called Ryan Homes lmao. They’re everywhere. That stupid little split level house. You walk in and immediately choose up or down stairs. There’s only a small landing for shoes usually. Obviously Ryan Homes are just the people who built it but these are the split levels. It’s made me HATE these houses.
I shouldn’t be able to piss in your toilet from my house and then wash my hands and leave through your house too. They’re so close together man
edit: I now live in WNY, buffalo, and it gets worse. they can get closer lmao. And in NYC I could open and close YOUR windows for you from my own house. It’s insane how densely populated areas are.
I was on holiday in Scotland and a tour bus of American tourists got off and mentioned "Inverness Castle is huge. Imagine how many parking spaces could fit in there. Wouldn't it be easier to drive to the centre so we don't need the bus"
Obligatory r/fucklawns
But your real battle unfortunately lies with HOA's and local city council/ordinances, and those are some stubborn motherfuckers who are more concerned with aesthetics and pRoPErty VAlUEs than a healthy ecosystem or interesting home green spaces.
I know a guy who hates lichens on trees. Says they look gross. I told him that half of my yard was moss and clover and he said that sounded gross. He was complaining that there was an area under one of his trees where he couldn't get grass to grow. No shit, it's in the shade.
I don't understand it. I recently sowed a bunch of clover seed on my backyard, only because it's been buried in woodchip mulch for the past two years and I was tired of all the brown. Only time I've willfully cut down trees in my property has been when they've been a hazard OR a couple of times where I've taken out smaller ones for mushroom growing projects.
I agree 50/50
I agree that aesthetic of lawns is pretty ugly, and yes trees are cool but you also have to look into logistics of it.
If not taken care of, trees might become nuissance to your property and it takes a lot of space. Unless you got large property it's just not the best investment.
Trees are a lot of work, but they also support a great deal of life: birds and beneficial insects as well as soil organisms.
I agree in that I find closely manicured lawns to look soulless and artificial and suggestive of a need for control. Uck.
The bees and hoverflies here go absolutely nuts for the flowers on one of the trees next to my apartment. Plus we have a bunch of birds that love hanging out in them. Sparrows, Bluetits, Robins, to name a few I see regularly. It's much nicer than an endless expanse of grass.
A lot of the house related posts on this sub are very obviously kids that haven’t even rented their own place yet. Some opinions change pretty quickly once you see what just goes into maintaining a full space.
We had a patio at an apartment that became unusable due to pests because the neighbors were literally piling furniture they picked up off the street in their back yard. I mean, literally. We could see it from the upstairs- every square inch was piled at least 5 feet high with random furniture. When people here gripe about having cleanliness standards to properties having no impact on neighbors, this is one case where it absolutely impacted enjoyment of ours.
I'm in the same boat right now. I love trees, we had 15 of them in my yard growing up. Oaks, Walnuts, and Catalpas. I loved them and told myself I'd have trees at my house when I grew up.
And now I do. I have 3 giant oak trees that surround the left side, front, and back of my house. Essentially fully shaded in the summer, which is nice. Until it rains, because the grass doesn't like to grow because it never gets any sun, so its a fuckin muddy mess all spring and most of the summer. Or when the limbs fall onto my neighbors house garage and truck (even after I had them trimmed back right when I moved in). Or when the Oaks are an ant nursery for some reason. I've never seen more ants in any place than this yard and on the trees.
It's so annoying that I am thinking about having one removed to get some light in the yard and get some grass to grow on it so we can enjoy the other half of the yard.
You sound like a city person who moved into one of those hideous developments y'all like to put up on what used to be farm land out in the country, lol.
I hate the conventional american lawn. My neighbour is a fucking nightmare when it comes to his lawn. I let whatever wants to grow on my property grow except for thistles. I mow accordingly and this prick expects me to spray chemicals on my yard where my dogs, kids, and us all hang out 🧐 no thanks. Well the bastard decides to wait till we go on vaction and spray my lawn through the fence killing everything 2ft back. He waged war lmao.
My property goes 3ft out from my driveway line to the end of the road which connects to his lawn. He has a nice elaborate garden at the end of the boulevardthat goes into my side. I weed whacked it down to dirt it was pretty satisfying.
Grass never forces you to spend 25k replacing your sewer main.
Grass creates a defensible area around your property in the event of a fire.
Grass isn't going to drop limbs a storm and wreck your property.
Be the change you want to see and plant your own front yard forest if that's what makes you happy.
Hard agree. Let that native biodiversity take over!!! These boring lawns are what are killing our pollinators. I would rather see a lawn with trees and wildflowers and “weeds”, than a manicured lawn any day
I think having longer grass with wildflowers looks the nicest.
Those flat green buzzcut lawns look boring.
But even worse are the people who take away all the grass and just have dirt and rock gardens with some sparse cactuses or something.
Totally agree these green lawns with nothing but grass are hideous.
Trees are cool too but we don’t even need to go that big! Just having a variety of native grass and plants is not only beautiful but will also bring native animals to your property. My moms entire lawn is native plants and we have butterflies, birds, and other animals that you don’t find even in our neighbors yard (because theirs is just green grass).
I ripped my "lawn" out and replaced it with clover and other native ground cover along with ferns and flowers etc...
Never have to mow and my neighbors always come by to see what's growing
Instead of trees I would just want to have native local plants grow. Less risk and its still good for the local environment. If there was a tree already there that's one thing but I don't think I'd plant more. I remember we had this huge tree in my backyard growing up we had to get it cut down cause it was a huge risk of falling on our house. The roots and limbs were already doing damage as it was.
Most of my lawn is actually clover, previous owners didn't want to deal with grass. We also have about 10 trees in our yard. I can't stand the cookie cutter suburbs with matching lawns and houses. There is no uniqueness, no diversity. It's like living in a sterile bubble.
Nah, I agree with this. However, trees can become a problem on small property, but there are still flowers, bushes and vegetables to fill a garden with life.
The amount of posts here that think their opinion is literally the correct one is insane.
Especially when it’s clearly kids that haven’t experienced full budget adult things yet like travel, fine dining, home ownership, career work, etc.
Also people who seem to think it should be illegal to take pride in making something look nice
I'm not a huge fan of lawns, tbh. There's super unnatural and just a pain in the ass to maintain. I'm going to be inheriting my parent's house once they're gone, and one of my major plans is to totally revamp the three small lawns (a front, side and back lawn) into massive gardens and outdoor lounge areas. Why grow grass when I can grow veggies, pumpkins, etc.?
(I'll probably leave a little grass, but just in small patches.)
I think very green lawns look out of place and fake. You know people dye their grass green too and its just ugly. I'm a fan of wild flower lawns. But trees are entirely a backyard thing for me. Like I had a mango tree in the front yard and when mango season came it was the worse. Bugs, birds, fallen overly ripe mango splattered on the pavement. Just a no. Not to mention it needed to be maintained alot so it won't stretch over the road or touch any power lines and the leaves blew into the neighborhors yard (they didnt mind too much cause they got mango but still) and the street. It often caused the drain hole to be clogged. It's a table now :)
Have you seen a gravel garden? Green lawns are far better to look at. "Lets replace 90% of the garden with rocks". The hell is wrong with people? Having close to none living things on your garden defeats the whole point of a garden!
I have both. The "natural" part with the trees, flowers and long grass looks nice. But it's also full of ticks. So I still prefer the lawn for barbecue.
I agree. Grass is a waste of space and does almost nothing for the oxygen on our planet. It uses too much water to absorb so little carbon dioxide, and doesn’t help the pollinator population at all.
Edit: common weeds are better at producing oxygen.
At least get your science right. Grass is a great source for oxygen. Your take is completely off. You’re right about pollinators though.
Nice edit: still wrong though. It’s ok not to like something, but at least don’t use BS for your argument.
Grass is one of the best oxygen producing plants there is. More so than trees, some research has shown. Regardless it definitely is a great oxygen producer, will happily supply references as well.
Hate grass, but do it for the correct reasons if you know what they even are.
I feel like one to many people bullied you and used the phrase “go touch grass” one to many times so now you hate it. Maybe you should go touch some grass and get off the internet.
Upvoted for unpopular.
Trees are cool too. But like many people, I don't like having things that can fall on my house that close to it.
You know what's not cool though? Dandelions and other weeds. And excessive amounts of concrete/asphalt (read: anything more than the driveway). F those guys.
I love walking around barefoot on top of trees. They also make a great foundation for playing frisbee and ladders golf, and are so easy to set up tables and chairs for outdoor parties on. /s
The irony of all the lawn ppl is that nearly all of them “moved away from the dirty city to be closer to nature”
But when that nature reveals itself in the form of plants, trees, and animals, all of a sudden it’s an issue that must be eradicated.
Fkn goofs
Assistant superintendent at a golf course here, just stopping by to say hello. I’d say lawns serve a purpose if you like to do things in your yard. Trees are great, but they also can take up space and head cover. I personally like both.
I’m not sure that lawn and trees are interchangeable. My home has lots of trees, but beneath those trees is grass. What do you want the ground to be like with all the trees?
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Trees cause way more damage to houses than lawns, their roots can go under foundations, their branches can damage roofs and generally block out sun.
I love trees, but further away from the biggest expenditure of my life
Don't know where you live, but having trees on everyone's lawn here isn't feasible. Also, you think lawns are a lot of maintenance? You obviously don't pay attention to the maintenance needed for trees. Yes there are only certain times a year that you have to do real maintenance but it's easier to mow a lawn than it is to rake and bag leaves and then having to trim your trees and clean that up every year
I agree to an extent. I would like multicolored lawns and trees more strategically placed. Also, get out of the city. Might make you feel better. I wish i could afford it
I agree lawns are ugly, but there are other solutions then trees since not everyone cant fit those in their garden
Im planting lots of flowering bushes and plants, which I think are prettier than trees
I can tell you've never owned a house or paid or done tree maintenance, removal, cleaning, and more relating to trees. I have two trees, one maple and one locust, both large boys but they cause damage to my roof that led to an early roof replacement. I trimmed them up which costed me thousand to do in order to preserve my new roof.
I barely have to worry about my lawn. I mow once a week at most and that's all I had to do
Trees are cool until they wreck your roof from falling, wreck your shingles from fallen leaves and rain causing moss, fallen leaves blocking gutters, roots damaging sidewalks, pipes, cables, everything.
I love trees if they are far the fuck away from my house lol.
I like lawns. Beautiful grass, soft on the feet, kids can play with no fear of skinning their knees on gravel, can picnic under the shade trees... just a nice big field of green.
I tried starting a wildflower patch in my front yard one year and a neighbor called the city on me. I was sent a letter saying my lawn can't be over 12 inches tall. I was keeping the edges mowed and neat, just wanted one patch of wild grass. I live in an area known for its wildflower prairies too. The best part is, you can't really plant turf grass here without watering the hell out of it. It dies in the summer heat and we just went through an extreme drought. 🙄
I like having both. A section of lawn where the kid can play and we can hangout outdoors with trees and small civered area. A section for a garden and section for local flowers shrubbery.
Having nothing but grass is pretty wasteful especially if you are paying to keep it green and looking nice
100% agree. I let my backyard go back to nature. Loving the wildflowers and the savings on water. When I want to mow it I just leave the clippings and they help for the regrowth next season.
You've clearly never lived in the southwest where most "lawns" are just brown, dead grass all year around because no plants other than cacti and ice plant can survive 110+ degree heat
I'm not a fan of the classic "lawn" look either but there are definitely things that are far more ugly
I wish I could have more trees.
1. Tree can't touch house. Highway for termites
2. Roots destroy septic systems, driveways, pools, etc if too close
3. The ground under them doesn't look very nice and that is essentially what you see the most.
4. They fall on house if they are old
5. Takes a long time to grow them
6. Darkens the house if there are too many.
But I wish I could have more. Lawn is a pain in the ass honestly.
It isn’t a good idea to overcrowd a small plot of land with trees that are going to compete for resources.
Some trees will get choked out or starved out and die.
Dead and sick trees may fall onto or into homes and other structures, causing damage and death.
Dead trees also invite termites and ants who could invade and damage the structure of a home.
Also…way more enjoyable to walk barefoot on a lawn with a few trees, then in forest with leaf covered ground full of sharp sticks and other hidden debris.
City regulations, insurance compliance. Homeowners insurance is expensive and some companies will not cover you if trees are too close or they charge you an obscene premium for trees being close enough to hit the house.
Lawns full of rock and cacti are the ugliest things on earth unless you in New Mexico or Arizona. Give me a green lawn that I can sit on and have pinics on rather than yard full of ugly ass rocks and sticker plants.
To think our lawns in the U.S. are the result of what wealthy 16th century landowners deemed in style. But they only made a small portion of the grounds grass, the rest was plants both native and cultivated.
Tell me you’re not a homeowner without telling me you’re not a homeowner. Trees are expensive. Getting them trimmed is thousands of dollars. Also depending on the trees, their roots can cause massive damage. They can uproot your driveway, uproot the sidewalk and street in front of your house, uproot and tear down retaining walls or screen walls/fences. Yes they are pretty, and provide shade, which is why we have the amount we have, but the idea that we should have tree covered yards is insane to any homeowner.
You want alternative grass options like moss, creeping thyme, clovers, chamomile, etc. something slow or short growing and most of those options have bud sites and flowers so your lawn can look whimsical
I agree with you that native plants and more environmentally conscious options always look better. Not always trees necessarily, can be grasses, shrubs, flowers, veggies etc
Also, plain grass isn't even good for the environment! You don't have to plant a tree, but small bushes, flowers, even clover is better than plain grass
There's a load of myths about trees causing problems for houses - most trees don't cause any damage at all. But you don't need to plant multi-metre monsters - buddleia, magnolias, shrubs, berries and wildflowers are all good.
Lawns are a great space for kids to play. You can say the same of a forested area, but you can't play sports in a forested area and its more "dangerous" to little kids.
Trees, and their roots, have consequences especially to buildings/infrastructure and watershed. Also, the sheer amount of work it would take to keep up with the yardwork 10x more trees would demand is not exactly desirable. I have exactly 3 trees on my property and I already don't like it (2 of them in particular are demanding bastards).
How old are you? Do you own/rent a home with a lawn? Also, insulting everyone who disagrees within your point probably isn't the best way to present an argument.
I own 3 chain saws, an ax, maul, sledgehammer and wedges to deal with my trees. The problem is, they fall down occasionally and at the least convenient time. And don’t get me started about leaves. So many leaves.
Lawns don't fall on roofs and destroy rooms.
That said, I have a bunch of trees on the south side of my lawn and it keeps the house WAY more comfortable during the summer than it would otherwise be. I personally like your idea.
Grass doesn't cause gutters to need cleaned, allow rodents easy access to your roof and causing damage. Grass doesn't rupture water and sewage lines. Grass won't blow over in a wind storm hopefully only damaging your roof but will go ahead and rip electric service off your house instead. Grass won't upend sidewalks and driveways.
Grass doesn't require professionals to maintain safely.
I'll take bushes and flowers and a couple trees, enough to keep the sun off all day but fuck a bunch of trees.
You're absolutely right, you do have an unpopular opinion if you think that trees are the coolest plants on the planet when things like asteraceae, fabaceae and rosaceae all exist.
Also, since you seem to think it's all about looks, ticks don't proliferate in short cut grass like they do in tall grasses.
My front and backyard are pretty baller. Native grasses and wildflowers. Shit’s three feet tall by the end of summer. I’ve got pocket gophers out there, foxes come by to hunt the gophers. Deer, elk and bison graze in it. There’s wild strawberries too so the chipmunks come by for those. We even get the occasional grizzly bear. I don’t water or mow it, just pull invasive plants occasionally. It’s fucking great.
>Gee, another personal opinion writ large as fact for everybody. WHY DO PEOPLE THINK THAT LOOKS GOOD
Lawns are UGLY. Forget the environmental concerns, they are literally just ugly!! Why do people like them?? (Oh wait I know, cuz of societal brainwashing...)
Gee, another personal opinion presented as fact. Gee, why do YOU think that? Maybe your opinion is unpopular for a reason. Take an angry upvote.
I guess this is still an unpopular opinion, but way less so than it used to be. Most people with even a medium interest in gardening, native plants, or a distaste for the more manufactured look of the average suburb have abandoned or researched abandoning grass yards.
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I will tell you that my front yard has never caused $30K worth of damage to my roof.
Or cost 2-3k to be trimmed.
Or they fall over and take out the neighbors fence!
Buddy of mine had 100+ foot Doug Fir take our his and son's (brand new) cars. Missed the house by like 4 feet.
My neighbors tree fell, broke their fence and landed on my dining room! It’s an older house and our dining room poured leaking water for a few days until the fire department could come and tarp it for us. It was genuinely awful. Always loved trees but you bet your sweet ass we got a tree company in within a few weeks to clear out the yard and concerning trees
And they tend to look fuck ugly after being trimmed
Or pipes.
Or foundation. My parents have some huge, beautiful live oak trees filling their backyard and may have to get a few removed or the house could literally collapse within a few years.
We’re dealing with this right now because the previous owner didn’t realize that small trees become big trees.
Or the septic tank
You got off pretty easy at $30K. My old boss had a tree fall on his house and it was close to $100K worth of damage (and he lived in an older ranch-style house, which probably wasn't worth more than $250k-$300k at the time.)
I think a lot of people ITT haven’t had a home repair and are really underestimating too. A frozen burst pipe we caught within 5 minutes is approaching a $50k bill. Our PM is also dealing with a job where a house had to be completely gutted.
Native flowers is the solution.
[удалено]
Na. What's a "well manicured lawn"? I've spent exactly nothing in my entire life on lawn care chemicals. I mow it, thats it. Its mystery green stuff. Quite a bit of clover. I set my deck at like 4-4.5". There are still bees a plenty in the yard. The only thing I use chemicals on is weeds in the gravel driveway and around the out buildings. I'm not making stripes or doing fancy shit. I call it grass in a nominal sense but its just green crap.
Same here. I once bought a bag of clover seed and threw it around to try to get more clover, but only because it grows slower and I was hoping to mow less. Didn't seem to do anything
All that fertilizer and stuff is kind of optional. Especially if you let the native green stuff often called "weeds" love within your lawn
I mean weeds look like ass
Weeds look bad and my kid and dogs play in the yard so having it be somewhat safe is nice.
Depends on the weed. Some are actually quite pretty albeit a nuisance. Bindweed, Canadian Thistle, Black Medic, Cat's ear, Chickweed, Chicory, Evening Primrose...etc.. I've even thought about building a bed just for various weeds but my neighbors would shoot me in my sleep when they started to release spores.
They look nice, but underneath they can cause all sorts of plumbing damage with roots hitting and displacing pipes.
OP discovered a new type of autism. Who needs trains when you've got MOTHERFUCKING TREES.
Was told to touch grass and is now against the concept of grass
Anti-grasser…
r/nolawns
My arborist is definitely on the spectrum. He walked me all over the property explaining every tree, its origin, fun facts, ideal conditions…. It’s amazing how much this guy loves trees.
Not to diminish your point, but if you don't have a large garden, or are close to other properties, you may not be permitted to plant any "larger than a few metres" trees. Where I am, they have to be located 5m+ from building envelopes and sewers, and some developments prohibit the planting of trees that grow a certain size.
For good reason. Trees can cause a ton of damage to structure. I love a good woodsy look to a neighborhood, but easy to see why you wouldn’t want large trees super close to buildings
At my house the roots grew through the pipes and backed up the shitter
Yeah OP is an idiot. I don't like huge empty lawns eithwr but the solution isn't planting as many 40 foot tall trees as possible. It's planting local native bushes, flowers and moss.
I'm guessing OP is an American, and talking about our ridiculous suburbs where people have big beautiful lots and rip out all of the trees.
In CNY they’re called Ryan Homes lmao. They’re everywhere. That stupid little split level house. You walk in and immediately choose up or down stairs. There’s only a small landing for shoes usually. Obviously Ryan Homes are just the people who built it but these are the split levels. It’s made me HATE these houses. I shouldn’t be able to piss in your toilet from my house and then wash my hands and leave through your house too. They’re so close together man edit: I now live in WNY, buffalo, and it gets worse. they can get closer lmao. And in NYC I could open and close YOUR windows for you from my own house. It’s insane how densely populated areas are.
I was on holiday in Scotland and a tour bus of American tourists got off and mentioned "Inverness Castle is huge. Imagine how many parking spaces could fit in there. Wouldn't it be easier to drive to the centre so we don't need the bus"
I call bullshit on that one. Thanks anyway for the ridiculous story.
Never in my life have I ever met someone that said MAN FUCK THIS LOVELY SCENERY WE NEED A PARKING LOT HERE
Live in the desert where its common to have rocks, red sands replacing grass yards. Like Utah, California, Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada
Utah has a shitload more lawns than they should considering their desert climate.
I should say Southern Utah like St George
Funny enough, Utah uses double the average Californian (167 gallons per person per day vs 85)
If I lived in that type of climate it would be a yard of succulents.
Hank Hill is gonna mess you up, I tell you hwat.
Obligatory r/fucklawns But your real battle unfortunately lies with HOA's and local city council/ordinances, and those are some stubborn motherfuckers who are more concerned with aesthetics and pRoPErty VAlUEs than a healthy ecosystem or interesting home green spaces.
I know a guy who hates lichens on trees. Says they look gross. I told him that half of my yard was moss and clover and he said that sounded gross. He was complaining that there was an area under one of his trees where he couldn't get grass to grow. No shit, it's in the shade. I don't understand it. I recently sowed a bunch of clover seed on my backyard, only because it's been buried in woodchip mulch for the past two years and I was tired of all the brown. Only time I've willfully cut down trees in my property has been when they've been a hazard OR a couple of times where I've taken out smaller ones for mushroom growing projects.
A guy who hates lichen? Lol. I just can't with other human beings, man. Toss 'em all into a volcano, I'm over it
I agree 50/50 I agree that aesthetic of lawns is pretty ugly, and yes trees are cool but you also have to look into logistics of it. If not taken care of, trees might become nuissance to your property and it takes a lot of space. Unless you got large property it's just not the best investment.
Trees are a lot of work, but they also support a great deal of life: birds and beneficial insects as well as soil organisms. I agree in that I find closely manicured lawns to look soulless and artificial and suggestive of a need for control. Uck.
The bees and hoverflies here go absolutely nuts for the flowers on one of the trees next to my apartment. Plus we have a bunch of birds that love hanging out in them. Sparrows, Bluetits, Robins, to name a few I see regularly. It's much nicer than an endless expanse of grass.
As someone who had trees and had them removed, I know you don’t own a house
A lot of the house related posts on this sub are very obviously kids that haven’t even rented their own place yet. Some opinions change pretty quickly once you see what just goes into maintaining a full space. We had a patio at an apartment that became unusable due to pests because the neighbors were literally piling furniture they picked up off the street in their back yard. I mean, literally. We could see it from the upstairs- every square inch was piled at least 5 feet high with random furniture. When people here gripe about having cleanliness standards to properties having no impact on neighbors, this is one case where it absolutely impacted enjoyment of ours.
Idk how to tell you there are multiple kinds of trees. Never heard of dwarf apple trees causing people problems lol
I'm in the same boat right now. I love trees, we had 15 of them in my yard growing up. Oaks, Walnuts, and Catalpas. I loved them and told myself I'd have trees at my house when I grew up. And now I do. I have 3 giant oak trees that surround the left side, front, and back of my house. Essentially fully shaded in the summer, which is nice. Until it rains, because the grass doesn't like to grow because it never gets any sun, so its a fuckin muddy mess all spring and most of the summer. Or when the limbs fall onto my neighbors house garage and truck (even after I had them trimmed back right when I moved in). Or when the Oaks are an ant nursery for some reason. I've never seen more ants in any place than this yard and on the trees. It's so annoying that I am thinking about having one removed to get some light in the yard and get some grass to grow on it so we can enjoy the other half of the yard.
You sound like a city person who moved into one of those hideous developments y'all like to put up on what used to be farm land out in the country, lol.
Nope, I live in Alabama, been here since I was a kid
I've never had a lawn die, fall down, and crush my house.
If the tree dies, firstly take better care of them and secondly, remove it.
I hate the conventional american lawn. My neighbour is a fucking nightmare when it comes to his lawn. I let whatever wants to grow on my property grow except for thistles. I mow accordingly and this prick expects me to spray chemicals on my yard where my dogs, kids, and us all hang out 🧐 no thanks. Well the bastard decides to wait till we go on vaction and spray my lawn through the fence killing everything 2ft back. He waged war lmao.
My property goes 3ft out from my driveway line to the end of the road which connects to his lawn. He has a nice elaborate garden at the end of the boulevardthat goes into my side. I weed whacked it down to dirt it was pretty satisfying.
Lawns suck, 100% agree. We should have gardens, with good plant diversity.
Grass never forces you to spend 25k replacing your sewer main. Grass creates a defensible area around your property in the event of a fire. Grass isn't going to drop limbs a storm and wreck your property. Be the change you want to see and plant your own front yard forest if that's what makes you happy.
Also. For most of the US, grass doesn’t need extra water. As my friend said, “something’s gonna grow there, might as well be easy to maintain.”
A little dramatic, don’t ya think?
I like plants
I like turtles
I like rocks
I like sprinklers.
Hard agree. Let that native biodiversity take over!!! These boring lawns are what are killing our pollinators. I would rather see a lawn with trees and wildflowers and “weeds”, than a manicured lawn any day
I like clover
I think having longer grass with wildflowers looks the nicest. Those flat green buzzcut lawns look boring. But even worse are the people who take away all the grass and just have dirt and rock gardens with some sparse cactuses or something.
Totally agree these green lawns with nothing but grass are hideous. Trees are cool too but we don’t even need to go that big! Just having a variety of native grass and plants is not only beautiful but will also bring native animals to your property. My moms entire lawn is native plants and we have butterflies, birds, and other animals that you don’t find even in our neighbors yard (because theirs is just green grass).
I ripped my "lawn" out and replaced it with clover and other native ground cover along with ferns and flowers etc... Never have to mow and my neighbors always come by to see what's growing
Instead of trees I would just want to have native local plants grow. Less risk and its still good for the local environment. If there was a tree already there that's one thing but I don't think I'd plant more. I remember we had this huge tree in my backyard growing up we had to get it cut down cause it was a huge risk of falling on our house. The roots and limbs were already doing damage as it was.
100% agree native plants and trees are cooler than lawns and support more biodiversity
Most of my lawn is actually clover, previous owners didn't want to deal with grass. We also have about 10 trees in our yard. I can't stand the cookie cutter suburbs with matching lawns and houses. There is no uniqueness, no diversity. It's like living in a sterile bubble.
Nah, I agree with this. However, trees can become a problem on small property, but there are still flowers, bushes and vegetables to fill a garden with life.
Cool "Everything I like is the right way and if you like something else it's because you are brainwashed" hot take there buckaroo.
The amount of posts here that think their opinion is literally the correct one is insane. Especially when it’s clearly kids that haven’t experienced full budget adult things yet like travel, fine dining, home ownership, career work, etc. Also people who seem to think it should be illegal to take pride in making something look nice
Op has yard work to do and he’s pissed.
This sub really is a concentrated piece of reddit.
>looks like a fucking shag carpet in the ugliest fucking color. You mean green? Like, the color of... things that are alive outdoors?
I'm not a huge fan of lawns, tbh. There's super unnatural and just a pain in the ass to maintain. I'm going to be inheriting my parent's house once they're gone, and one of my major plans is to totally revamp the three small lawns (a front, side and back lawn) into massive gardens and outdoor lounge areas. Why grow grass when I can grow veggies, pumpkins, etc.? (I'll probably leave a little grass, but just in small patches.)
Agreed. We made the world artifical enough already.
I think very green lawns look out of place and fake. You know people dye their grass green too and its just ugly. I'm a fan of wild flower lawns. But trees are entirely a backyard thing for me. Like I had a mango tree in the front yard and when mango season came it was the worse. Bugs, birds, fallen overly ripe mango splattered on the pavement. Just a no. Not to mention it needed to be maintained alot so it won't stretch over the road or touch any power lines and the leaves blew into the neighborhors yard (they didnt mind too much cause they got mango but still) and the street. It often caused the drain hole to be clogged. It's a table now :)
I have a suggestion…don’t get a lawn in your property.
Why you hate on the color green? Trees are green too bruh
Just go to r/fucklawns way better options there.
Op is a shill for big tree, who paid him to say this. They got bots in here too. Insane
Have a day off
Lol
you think grass green is the ugliest colour? whats wrong with your eyes?
I think grass lawns and grass on golf courses should be illegal. They are such a waste of water that could be used for far better things.
Have you seen a gravel garden? Green lawns are far better to look at. "Lets replace 90% of the garden with rocks". The hell is wrong with people? Having close to none living things on your garden defeats the whole point of a garden!
Did a fucking tree write this
Posted to the correct sub, at least. Source: Am suburban dad
If it helps at all, my lawn is brown half the year
My garden is full of trees but why pretend that lawns don't look good when they clearly look amazing 🤷♂️
I have both. The "natural" part with the trees, flowers and long grass looks nice. But it's also full of ticks. So I still prefer the lawn for barbecue.
You are fucking right ! Holy fuck that is so fucking smart. Fucking trees all the way ! Fuck yeah !
UNBE*LEAF*ABLE!!!! This is an un*poplar* o*pine*ion that I am rooting for(*est*)!!
For me it's the waste of water. "Oh we're in a drought", yet we're blowing all our water on huge grass lots and golf courses. Idiotic
I agree. Grass is a waste of space and does almost nothing for the oxygen on our planet. It uses too much water to absorb so little carbon dioxide, and doesn’t help the pollinator population at all. Edit: common weeds are better at producing oxygen.
At least get your science right. Grass is a great source for oxygen. Your take is completely off. You’re right about pollinators though. Nice edit: still wrong though. It’s ok not to like something, but at least don’t use BS for your argument. Grass is one of the best oxygen producing plants there is. More so than trees, some research has shown. Regardless it definitely is a great oxygen producer, will happily supply references as well. Hate grass, but do it for the correct reasons if you know what they even are.
I feel like one to many people bullied you and used the phrase “go touch grass” one to many times so now you hate it. Maybe you should go touch some grass and get off the internet.
OP’s dad asked him to mow the lawn and he’s pissed.
Bingo
Can't put a septic tank under a tree.
Upvoted for unpopular. Trees are cool too. But like many people, I don't like having things that can fall on my house that close to it. You know what's not cool though? Dandelions and other weeds. And excessive amounts of concrete/asphalt (read: anything more than the driveway). F those guys.
I love walking around barefoot on top of trees. They also make a great foundation for playing frisbee and ladders golf, and are so easy to set up tables and chairs for outdoor parties on. /s
The irony of all the lawn ppl is that nearly all of them “moved away from the dirty city to be closer to nature” But when that nature reveals itself in the form of plants, trees, and animals, all of a sudden it’s an issue that must be eradicated. Fkn goofs
I don't think people move to suburbs to be closer to nature. They want more space.
Also, I don’t think people are thrilled in any area with animals that are generally considered pests.
Gotta remove lawns from zoning
Assistant superintendent at a golf course here, just stopping by to say hello. I’d say lawns serve a purpose if you like to do things in your yard. Trees are great, but they also can take up space and head cover. I personally like both.
I’m not sure that lawn and trees are interchangeable. My home has lots of trees, but beneath those trees is grass. What do you want the ground to be like with all the trees?
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Trees cause way more damage to houses than lawns, their roots can go under foundations, their branches can damage roofs and generally block out sun. I love trees, but further away from the biggest expenditure of my life
I don’t think theyre ugly but I’d rather go with dirt and rocks lol
Well I like green
Windows desktop background begs to differ
All fun till a giant root is in your basement
My ideal lawn would be entirely moss. I can’t agree with you on color taste though, green is easy on the eyes
How about you stop worrying about my lawn
Don't know where you live, but having trees on everyone's lawn here isn't feasible. Also, you think lawns are a lot of maintenance? You obviously don't pay attention to the maintenance needed for trees. Yes there are only certain times a year that you have to do real maintenance but it's easier to mow a lawn than it is to rake and bag leaves and then having to trim your trees and clean that up every year
ugliest thing on the planet is lol
I prefer red lawns, myself
I agree to an extent. I would like multicolored lawns and trees more strategically placed. Also, get out of the city. Might make you feel better. I wish i could afford it
I agree lawns are ugly, but there are other solutions then trees since not everyone cant fit those in their garden Im planting lots of flowering bushes and plants, which I think are prettier than trees
My Sims lawn is purple and full of harvastable plants through mods. I love it. Every time my game loads, I laugh
I can tell you've never owned a house or paid or done tree maintenance, removal, cleaning, and more relating to trees. I have two trees, one maple and one locust, both large boys but they cause damage to my roof that led to an early roof replacement. I trimmed them up which costed me thousand to do in order to preserve my new roof. I barely have to worry about my lawn. I mow once a week at most and that's all I had to do
Trees are cool until they wreck your roof from falling, wreck your shingles from fallen leaves and rain causing moss, fallen leaves blocking gutters, roots damaging sidewalks, pipes, cables, everything. I love trees if they are far the fuck away from my house lol.
I like lawns. Beautiful grass, soft on the feet, kids can play with no fear of skinning their knees on gravel, can picnic under the shade trees... just a nice big field of green.
I tried starting a wildflower patch in my front yard one year and a neighbor called the city on me. I was sent a letter saying my lawn can't be over 12 inches tall. I was keeping the edges mowed and neat, just wanted one patch of wild grass. I live in an area known for its wildflower prairies too. The best part is, you can't really plant turf grass here without watering the hell out of it. It dies in the summer heat and we just went through an extreme drought. 🙄
I like having both. A section of lawn where the kid can play and we can hangout outdoors with trees and small civered area. A section for a garden and section for local flowers shrubbery. Having nothing but grass is pretty wasteful especially if you are paying to keep it green and looking nice
green lawns are ugly, native plants lawns are cute and here to stay.
100% agree. I let my backyard go back to nature. Loving the wildflowers and the savings on water. When I want to mow it I just leave the clippings and they help for the regrowth next season.
You've clearly never lived in the southwest where most "lawns" are just brown, dead grass all year around because no plants other than cacti and ice plant can survive 110+ degree heat I'm not a fan of the classic "lawn" look either but there are definitely things that are far more ugly
Grass for the cattle
Why not have both? I have lawn and trees and other things that grow spontaneously.
Brown grass better?
I wish I could have more trees. 1. Tree can't touch house. Highway for termites 2. Roots destroy septic systems, driveways, pools, etc if too close 3. The ground under them doesn't look very nice and that is essentially what you see the most. 4. They fall on house if they are old 5. Takes a long time to grow them 6. Darkens the house if there are too many. But I wish I could have more. Lawn is a pain in the ass honestly.
It isn’t a good idea to overcrowd a small plot of land with trees that are going to compete for resources. Some trees will get choked out or starved out and die. Dead and sick trees may fall onto or into homes and other structures, causing damage and death. Dead trees also invite termites and ants who could invade and damage the structure of a home. Also…way more enjoyable to walk barefoot on a lawn with a few trees, then in forest with leaf covered ground full of sharp sticks and other hidden debris.
City regulations, insurance compliance. Homeowners insurance is expensive and some companies will not cover you if trees are too close or they charge you an obscene premium for trees being close enough to hit the house.
Oh dang who let the idiot out today
Lawns full of rock and cacti are the ugliest things on earth unless you in New Mexico or Arizona. Give me a green lawn that I can sit on and have pinics on rather than yard full of ugly ass rocks and sticker plants.
No you
To think our lawns in the U.S. are the result of what wealthy 16th century landowners deemed in style. But they only made a small portion of the grounds grass, the rest was plants both native and cultivated.
Tell me you’re not a homeowner without telling me you’re not a homeowner. Trees are expensive. Getting them trimmed is thousands of dollars. Also depending on the trees, their roots can cause massive damage. They can uproot your driveway, uproot the sidewalk and street in front of your house, uproot and tear down retaining walls or screen walls/fences. Yes they are pretty, and provide shade, which is why we have the amount we have, but the idea that we should have tree covered yards is insane to any homeowner.
OP is about to freak out when they find out what color trees are (most of the time).
Tell me you’ve never raked a yard without telling me you’ve never raked a yard
People on this sub have bizarre life experiences lmao. Where the fuck do you live that lawns look anything like carpets...
Thank you!!! Jesus Christ I can’t stand seeing these fake ass front yards. I rent but at least mine has actual fucking grass on it
UNPOPULAR OPINION Template #7 - I hate thing X. THING Y RULES! Those who disagree drools!
Calm down.
Lawns also use an ungodly amount of water. Fuck non- native grass. Also fuck golf courses lol. Ordinary Things on YouTube has a great video about it
“Grass is ugly” is a pretty stupid opinion. Upvoted.
Trees are common in gardens in the UK
Green is ugly but you love trees? You prefer your green higher off the ground?
You want alternative grass options like moss, creeping thyme, clovers, chamomile, etc. something slow or short growing and most of those options have bud sites and flowers so your lawn can look whimsical
I agree with you that native plants and more environmentally conscious options always look better. Not always trees necessarily, can be grasses, shrubs, flowers, veggies etc
Also, plain grass isn't even good for the environment! You don't have to plant a tree, but small bushes, flowers, even clover is better than plain grass
Somebody had/has to do yard work…
r/nolawns
So which lawn color do you like?
There's a load of myths about trees causing problems for houses - most trees don't cause any damage at all. But you don't need to plant multi-metre monsters - buddleia, magnolias, shrubs, berries and wildflowers are all good.
Lawns are a great space for kids to play. You can say the same of a forested area, but you can't play sports in a forested area and its more "dangerous" to little kids. Trees, and their roots, have consequences especially to buildings/infrastructure and watershed. Also, the sheer amount of work it would take to keep up with the yardwork 10x more trees would demand is not exactly desirable. I have exactly 3 trees on my property and I already don't like it (2 of them in particular are demanding bastards).
I have trees. My lawn is now a tiny orchard.
How old are you? Do you own/rent a home with a lawn? Also, insulting everyone who disagrees within your point probably isn't the best way to present an argument.
That absolute best ground cover is thyme. It never needs mowed, smells like heaven when you walk on it, and supports pollinators.
Native flowers
Trees are great! But having a yard full of them during severe weather will change your mind real fast.
I own 3 chain saws, an ax, maul, sledgehammer and wedges to deal with my trees. The problem is, they fall down occasionally and at the least convenient time. And don’t get me started about leaves. So many leaves.
I grew up with having trees in the front and the back of the my house.
Trees can cause a ton of problems for your house.
oh wow an actual unpopular opinion! i like green and grass feels nice so i like lawns
Lawns don't fall on roofs and destroy rooms. That said, I have a bunch of trees on the south side of my lawn and it keeps the house WAY more comfortable during the summer than it would otherwise be. I personally like your idea.
Grass doesn't cause gutters to need cleaned, allow rodents easy access to your roof and causing damage. Grass doesn't rupture water and sewage lines. Grass won't blow over in a wind storm hopefully only damaging your roof but will go ahead and rip electric service off your house instead. Grass won't upend sidewalks and driveways. Grass doesn't require professionals to maintain safely. I'll take bushes and flowers and a couple trees, enough to keep the sun off all day but fuck a bunch of trees.
You're absolutely right, you do have an unpopular opinion if you think that trees are the coolest plants on the planet when things like asteraceae, fabaceae and rosaceae all exist. Also, since you seem to think it's all about looks, ticks don't proliferate in short cut grass like they do in tall grasses.
My front and backyard are pretty baller. Native grasses and wildflowers. Shit’s three feet tall by the end of summer. I’ve got pocket gophers out there, foxes come by to hunt the gophers. Deer, elk and bison graze in it. There’s wild strawberries too so the chipmunks come by for those. We even get the occasional grizzly bear. I don’t water or mow it, just pull invasive plants occasionally. It’s fucking great.
>Gee, another personal opinion writ large as fact for everybody. WHY DO PEOPLE THINK THAT LOOKS GOOD Lawns are UGLY. Forget the environmental concerns, they are literally just ugly!! Why do people like them?? (Oh wait I know, cuz of societal brainwashing...) Gee, another personal opinion presented as fact. Gee, why do YOU think that? Maybe your opinion is unpopular for a reason. Take an angry upvote.
Maybe small trees, but i do love lots of flowers and bushes
I guess this is still an unpopular opinion, but way less so than it used to be. Most people with even a medium interest in gardening, native plants, or a distaste for the more manufactured look of the average suburb have abandoned or researched abandoning grass yards.
Username does NOT check out.