The Case Against Front Lawns

Christopher Borelli writes a long feature devoted to debunking the mythos of the American front lawn.

"The American front lawn, the postage stamp of grass spread before a set-back house, the stage upon which you display status, the frame inside which you project taste, that one-time signifier of leisure that came to suck up leisure time, is increasingly seen as a waste," writes Borelli.

In response to that premise, Borelli presents the following "modest proposal":

Since we’re already questioning the foundations of our nation, toppling monuments to institutions that no longer work for many, how about rethinking another cultural icon?

The front lawn.

As evidence in the argument against front lawns, Borelli cites the huge amount of time that goes into lawns, the falling popularity of front lawns, the obsolete cultural meaning of lawns (by way of an example from The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald), and the wastefulness of lawns.