It would be totally horrible if your HOA St Augustine yard of b@tchgrass happened to turn brown for a bit. And OH NO I can't use my sprinkler system?!??! What is this, Russia? Yall are a massive part of the problem re: water in Texas. Yall and every ****ing golfcourse.
I lol’d at this. I get the stink eye from some of my neighbors for how little I care about my yard. Grass will always grow back. I’m a country boy at heart and didn’t even have a paved driveway until I was 17.
I used to hate the Bermuda grass we have at our current house but have grown to like it. Needs less watering than St. Augustine and I don't have to mow it as much. The bad part is that it's more of a creeper grass so it keeps going into the mulch area, but I've learned to accept that. It also feels like it goes from green to brown much faster, and back from brown to green much faster, but I don't know if that's actually the case.
Your cows are warming the planet with their farts. I think I will make a reservation for 18 at the country club....
St Augustine has no business in prolonged dry climates. The amount of water needed is absurd and if it does dry out, cinch bugs are a major problem. It works well in Florida due to the constant rain all summer long but yet morons still run their sprinkler system all summer long.
I personally hate lawns and the required upkeep. Somehow, the American dream is synonymous with having and maintaining a nice yard. I haven't put chemicals or fertiilzers in my yard for years. My grass seems to do okay without all that stuff aside from going through a weeds period every spring...which I just keep the lawn mowed until most of them died and/or pick them out by hand. Just imagine how much better off the environment would be not to mention the water savings if we didn't have all these f-ing lawns to take care of. It's kind of funny that they are literally running out of water out west and some people are still more concerned about their lawns getting enough water. Hello? I wouldn't want just a bunch of plants in my yard or even rocks...because then you would still have to use chemicals to keep weeds away. But, what do you put there? I guess you can't put concrete because concrete has it's own environmental impact. Is fake grass the answer? Can we all just have fake lawns with no environmental impact?
Fake grass is outdoor carpet so it will require cleaning and maintenance. More than you are doing with your current lawn. Xeriscaping is the solution for low water usage. there is no zero maintenance property ownership solution. Even if you have an empty field it needs mowing and brush/fenceline maintenance. It sounds like you aren't watering or doing much maintenance and still have complaints. Most residential herbicides are not soil active and have no environmental impact.
I don't have any complaints other than the amount of impact and resources it takes for the country to maintain their pristine yards. This idea that we can continue to have pristine yards at the expense of the planet is unsustainable imo. We are already seeing how the climate and drought is impacting this. I would say we're lucky here in Texas to not be experiencing water shortages but it could have just as well been us impacted like the West. I hope they get some good rainfall soon for the sake of their yards.
Most people are sold irrigation systems and needlessly dump water on a lawn if it needs it or not. This is from upselling by new construction or HOA demands or landscaping companies pushing it. The Bermuda grass we have in Texas is extremely drought resistant. Even if it experiences die off, if well established the recovery is almost instant. The amount of water needed to keep a Bermuda lawn going is almost what you want to keep your foundation stable. Up north they have the real water hogs of grasses. Don't even get me started on Trees. Those are REQUIRED by many planners, to have a front yard tree for some reason.
Everywhere I see here in North Texas is St. Augustine and not Bermuda...so that's part of the problem.
Wth. Where do you live? North Texas is mostly Bermuda. Then everybody realizes the varieties of Bermuda used 20-25 years ago suck because HOA's and cities said "sure, plant those large oak trees on your 60' lots! Hell, plant two!", and now the trees are so big, the Bermuda starts dying out due to lack of light/lack of pruning. So then they go and get some hideous St. Augustine because it miraculously can grow in the dark! Nowadays I see a lot more people switching to stuff like Celebration Bermuda, St. Augustine, and Zoysia around here when they re-sod. Of course you still have the geniuses planting stuff like pecan trees and large oaks on 50' lots.
My grass in Florida will turn brown and some plants will die if the irrigation doesn't regularly run (about every other day) even with the evening rain.
I was one of those homeowner's who had purchased the home without any consideration of the planted trees including two oaks, two other big trees, and another oak right on edge of my property. They got huge and I had to get rid of all four of them...two in front and two in back. Reeked havoc on the grass toward the end. The two in front were planted side-by-side and grew into each other. Whomever planted these trees per previous owner was a d**f**k for selection and location planted imo. Not to mention I picked up a ton of acorns. My subdivision doesn't have a HOA. Pretty sure everyone has St. Augustine around here.
this is now a landscaping thread. tiftuf bermuda for full sun emerald zoysia for shade. kill all trees
