Meeting the menace posed by our lawns?

It is all well and good to stop mowing our lawns . But our politicians and laws are significantly behind the times.

[Richard K]

Hm.... cut my 1 acre lot with a push-reel mower..... get my 7 year old daughter and 4 year old son involved..... great ideas! I don't know why I didn't think of that.

I'll get right on that.

[Gus Smegma]

Great idea! And within 6 months we will have a faltering lawn care inustry crying aloud for a government bailout!

[Douger]

"The tall grass provided additional habitat for wildlife..."

Yeah. Ticks, fleas, and snakes.

"The writer is a student at the University of Maryland, College Park."

Which means he knows it all...

[Mike Calo]

Douger, lighten up - the man is expressing his opinion, and the fact that he is a student does nothing to diminish the value of that opinion.

The taglines that list peoples' credentials are, in fact, added by the editors - not by the letter writers. For all we know Grant may well be majoring in either horticultutre or landscape architecture, which would in fact mean that - while he may not "know it all" - he probably DOES know more about the subject than the average homeowner does.

[kdogg36]

Douger wrote:

"The tall grass provided additional habitat for wildlife..."
Yeah. Ticks, fleas, and snakes.
"The writer is a student at the University of Maryland, College Park."
Which means he knows it all...

Here's what he should have told his local officials: "I won't be cutting the grass, because it's my property and I like it that way. I'm a gun owner, and, as I said, I won't be cutting it, and no one from the government will be cutting it either."

[Not in the least confused]

Gus Smegma wrote:

Great idea! And within 6 months we will have a faltering lawn care inustry crying aloud for a government bailout!

No, they'll just go back south of the border.

[Harford6732Reade r]

Funny replies! And add to the mix, your local county inspectors will be paying you a visit with a FINE to pay. You can't win, so just mow, and be done with it. But you could ease off on the Chem-Lawn.

[Nicole]

Something to think about, while letting your grass grow certainly does encourage "wild life," I don't think that works so well in Baltimore City. The last thing we need are back yards infested with rats and garbage. Mowing keeps vermin populations down, and we all know vermin carry disease. I for one, can do without that kind of "natural splendor." So I think I'll keep my well-manicured lawn, thank you very much.

[Debbie]

Starting alst year, I'm spending extra on no-mow grass seed. Eventually it will take over and I will only have to cut the grass a couple of times a year. It's not cheap, but it's better for the environment.

[concerned non lawyer]

The chemicals to keep all these nice lawns look green are the main culprits in harming, say, the bay, rivers and swamps (excuse me - wetlands) I think about that all summer when I have to pay dearly for dteamed crabs.

[VoteEarlyVoteOft en]

kdogg36 wrote:

<quoted text>
Here's what he should have told his local officials: "I won't be cutting the grass, because it's my property and I like it that way. I'm a gun owner, and, as I said, I won't be cutting it, and no one from the government will be cutting it either."

If he wanted to go to jail, that's exactly what he should have said.

I'm all for personal property rights, probably more so than most, but when you live in a neighborhood, you need to have a minimum level of lawn care. It's only fair to your neighbors.

An overgrown lawn will contain rats, mice, snakes, burrowing animals, fleas, and ticks. If you could constrain those critters to your yard, then go for it, but you can't, so don't let your laziness impact others' attempts at living vermin free.

Or, move your lazy butt to the rural area and purchase a lot in the middle of a cornfield.

[Not in the least confused]

VoteEarlyVoteOften wrote:

<quoted text>
Or, move your lazy butt to the rural area and purchase a lot in the middle of a cornfield.

Don't send hiim to us, we don't want him anywhere near our cornfields.

[kdogg36]

I see your point, and acknowledge that an unmown lawn can impinge on the property rights of neighbors.

I guess property owners should save their ammunition for eminent-domain thuggery.

VoteEarlyVoteOften wrote:

<quoted text>
If he wanted to go to jail, that's exactly what he should have said.
I'm all for personal property rights, probably more so than most, but when you live in a neighborhood, you need to have a minimum level of lawn care. It's only fair to your neighbors.
An overgrown lawn will contain rats, mice, snakes, burrowing animals, fleas, and ticks. If you could constrain those critters to your yard, then go for it, but you can't, so don't let your laziness impact others' attempts at living vermin free.
Or, move your lazy butt to the rural area and purchase a lot in the middle of a cornfield.

[hypocrit]

Christ, thats the sob from my neighborhood
what a damn mess that was! I hope they fined the ba**ard
I dont care about green when it includes rats in my neighborhood

[Matt]

Are we missing the whole point here? A healthy well-maintained lawn is a GOOD thing. Research has proven that eight average -sized healthy lawns have the cooling effect of 70 tons of air conditioning, keep in mind your a/c averages 3-4 tons capacity. A single 10,000 sq. ft. lawn can absorb 6,000 gallons of rainwater without noticeable runoff, in a time where groundwater is an increasing concern that's a significant number. Grass also helps to clean the air we breathe, it is estimated that lawns trap some 12 MILLION TONS of dust and dirt from the air annually. For example, one acre of grass absorbs hundreds of pounds of fossil-fuel created sulfur-dioxide in a single year. A well maintained lawn and landscape increase property value 10-15% and will lower your summertime air conditioning bills.Do the research, find out for yourself.