I grew up in a home with a huge back yard that was filled with gardens, pathways, and a small grove of vine maples (Acer circinatum), so I don’t understand the concept of a lawn; to me, it is an over-manicured, outdoor carpet.

I like grasses, but I think they should be allowed to grow to their instinctive length; in a natural setting, in a garden, lining a walkway, or growing from a crack in the sidewalk.

And I love a field of dandelions, which are surely an archenemy of the lawn fancier.

 

The Dandelion

O dandelion, rich and haughty,

King of village flowers!

Each day is coronation time,

You have no humble hours.

I like to see you bring a troop

To beat the blue-grass spears,

To scorn the lawn-mower that would be

Like fate’s triumphant shears.

Your yellow heads are cut away,

It seems your reign is o’er.

By noon you raise a sea of stars

More golden than before.

by Vachel Lindsay