Why you shouldn't mow your lawn.

 The smell of smoke and hot dogs fills the air. The grass is unnaturally green, but patches of it are yellow and dry. On the pavement of the sidewalk you see a dried-up worm. Welcome to the suburbs!

Short green lawns are common throughout America. But the hard truth is that they are terrible for the environment. This is because they lack biodiversity, and focus on having a clean and put-together aesthetic. In other words, lawns look fake. In this article, I will be discussing the reasons why you should not mow your lawn.







Mowing your lawn gets rid of native flora.
There are different types of plants everywhere. Literally everywhere! It's amazing how many varieties of plants we have on this planet. I'm sure you've noticed some of these plants growing in your own yard. And I'm sure that you, like most people, thought of them as a nuisance. Most people think of weeds and flowers as a bad thing, but why? What is the difference between these two flowers?:

The only difference is that the second flower is a weed. But how is something classified as a weed? The definition of weed is "A wild plant growing where it is not wanted and in competition with cultivated plants." A weed is simply a plant that grew by itself, and is unwanted by people. A weed is not classified scientifically. If everyone one day said "Dandelions are cool" they would no longer be weeds. Isn't that odd? We have all for some reason collectively decided that if a plant grows without our help, it is bad. We have decided that nature's gifts are bad! 
All this to say that mowing your lawn gets rid of all of the "weeds" in it, including wildflowers! And as we have just discussed, "weeds" are cool!

Lawn mowers produce greenhouse gasses.
Much like cars, lawn mowers have motors, powered by gasoline. According to a study done by Edmund's, found that a leaf blower emits 13.5 times more carbon monoxide than a Ford Raptor.










This statistic isn't for a lawn mower, it's for a leaf blower. But it gives you a good idea of the amount of pollution lawn-care causes.

It get's rid of potential homes for small animals and bugs.
Butterflies, frogs, squirrels, chipmunks, and lizards. They're all cute, small, harmless animals that can't live in empty yards. A frog living in a mowed lawn is like a person living in a house that is just a floor, with no roof, walls, furniture, or food. It would absolutely suck. And personally, I wouldn't want to live in that house. So why would an animal? If you mow your lawn, you take away homes from small animals and insects. It's like deforestation, but on a smaller scale.

Is it worth it?
No! It really isn't. A lawn can look put-together and be safe while still being bio-diverse. Stepping stones and pathways will provide a place to walk, and wildflowers will make your yard look beautiful. If you want to have a bio-diverse lawn, it's only a matter of research, and a bit of creative landscaping.





In summary:
Mowing your lawn isn't good for the environment, and isn't worth the time and effort. 
Location: Missouri, USA

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