So, I grew up in a nice neighborhood on the north side of Bloomington. It has nice, older houses, manicured lawns, and is obviously well cared for and maintained by its residents. I think there is even a neighborhood association that sets standards for lawn maintenance and general upkeep of the individual houses. All in all, it was a very nice neighborhood to grow up in. Occasionally, when I go home to visit with my family, I’ll take my parents’ dog out for a walk. I enjoy taking that time to pause and enjoy the day, appreciate the nice weather and light breezes, and admire the natural world around me. As I walk, I notice a house’s newly painted door, a freshly manicured flower garden, or a unique flagstone path leading up to a doorway. It seems like every house provides its own touch to the overall picture of the neighborhood.
But then, there’s this one house. Amidst the manicured lawns, shady trees, and coiffed shrubs, sits the black sheep of the neighborhood. The house whose yard seems to follow no rules or laws except those of nature. A huge ink stain on an otherwise crisp, white dress shirt. The moldy spot on a big, juicy apple. The unsightly piece of lettuce sticking out of a nice, white smile…. Okay, I guess I’ve made my point. The house I am referring to is all but engulfed by the masses upon masses of overgrown trees, shrubs, plants, weeds, and grasses that encroach it on all sides. It’s like the cute, quaint little cottage deep in the woods in familiar fairy tales, except…. not cute. Or quaint. In fact, you can barely even see the house itself. This house is simply lost in the woods. You look at this house on its corner lot, compare it to its’ neighbors (with their mown lawns, neatly raked leaves, and mulched flower beds), and you wonder if the owners have gone completely AWOL. Certainly the neighborhood association would not allow such an atrociously-kept lawn to exist in their neighborhood? Yet over the years it has remained as it is, maybe even grown a bit wilder, so obviously the neighborhood association has disbanded. I constantly hear my parents complaining about this eyesore, and can only imagine what other parents and retired residents may be saying. The poor neighbor on the left has been forced to put up a fence in the side yard, just to block from view the jungle that exists next door. What can the homeowners of this Yeti house be thinking??
All of this I ponder each time I pass this house on my dog-walking excursions. Each time, I pause in wonder as I notice another ghastly element of the lawn I hadn’t seen last time. Until, one day as I was passing, I noticed a sign posted to the side of the driveway, nearly invisible beneath the leaves of the massive, over-arching tree in the front of the yard. It is a sign that proclaims this property to be an official “backyard habitat”, certified by the city of Bloomington. This surprises me. To think that this house has been made to look this way ON PURPOSE? Not just neglected and forgotten, but actually cultivated to be this way? But as I re-examine the lot through newly-informed eyes, I see purposeful elements instead of scattered and misshapen plants. The shrubs and small trees placed haphazardly around the yard are actually structures providing shelter for squirrels, rabbits, birds, and chipmunks. The weird, large stones situated at the edge of the property act as a water-break, channeling storm water more effectively into the drain at the edge of the street. The unattractive arrangement of flowering plants, upon closer inspection, plays host to bees, butterflies, and other insects who seem to be in perfect bliss in their surroundings. “Aha!” I say to myself, as I realize that this is a perfect example of the backyard habitats that I’ve learned about in my Roseland reading for this week. Of course, *my* backyard habitat would not be quite as “messy” as I perceive this one to be, but it is just that perception that kept me from really seeing what was right in front of me the whole time.
In conjunction with the numerous examples of greening efforts given in our Roseland reading this week, I found this video online, which gives another real-world example of a bigger greening initiative undertaken by a community:
If I were gonna be a bird, I would totally be the bird in minute 1:15… just sayin’. This video reinforces the importance of taking action in your local community, and doing something NOW with what resources you have available to you. Whether your ambition is to start your own backyard habitat, green roof, sustainable garden, or Japanese bathhouse, the key is to reach out and become *involved*, rather than just think (as I often had before taking this course), “Oh, it would be nice to someday participate in a tree planting…” DO IT. As Roseland says, “Getting involved brings you closer to the natural environment and strengthens communities by creating opportunities to know your neighbors. Plant a tree! Restore a stream!” (pg. 48). Not only will this serve to ease your sustainability-minded conscience (oh eco despaaaaiiir!), but it will provide opportunities to increase your social capital, offer your own unique perspectives and knowledge, share the green love, and perhaps take it further. Challenge your existing perceptions. See what you’ve always seen from a newer, “greener”, perspective. Maybe this is not quite as much of a challenge for those of us in this class now as perhaps it was before, but taking these new perspectives and ideas and “growing” them by putting them into action and sharing them with others, is surely a huge step in the right direction…
Interesting. I vaguely recall a similar house where I grew up back in the day. To this day, I don't know if it looked "unkempt" on purpose, as this house clearly was, or if the owners just didn't give a crap. I now hope it was was the former. Regardless, I remember having the same thoughts about that house that you do: ugly, etc. But maybe it served a different purpose for someone who had a different conception of beauty. Take a quick look at this: http://bloomington.in.gov/documents/viewDocument.php?document_id=3017. I didn't realize that Bloomington had an official program like this, or that others like it existed throughout the Midwest. I think it's a good idea. You say, however, that your backyard habitat wouldn't be as "messy". But maybe messy is the point. I don't what "method" was used to create this yard, but if the owner just let nature take its course, maybe messing with it at all would make it less "natural".
ReplyDeleteYour post made me think about neighborhoods, mostly subdivisions I'm guessing, that have rules. The one that sticks out most in my mind is the "no hanging laundry outside" rule. This rule encourages people to use a clothes dryer much more often than necessary, and I have read that the dryer is the least energy efficient appliance in the house. All in the name of "prettiness". I am curious about other rules that may have an indirect affect on the environment, but I am unable to find anything on the web addressing this during my quick search. I love the idea of a yard full of trees and other wild vegetation. When I first skimmed through your post, I first thought the sign posted said "On Purpose" and I thought it was awesome.
ReplyDeleteFirst off: My favorite part of the video was when the guy was pushing the stroller down the path with a dog inside. That part was pretty special.
ReplyDeleteAnyways, I think this raises an interesting topic. I also grew up in a neighborhood with green lawns that were fertilized regularly and watered daily, trees were planted lining the roads and all the natural habitat have been removed. However, this only accounts for half of the neighborhood.
The other half of the neighborhood does not pay the same dues to the neighborhood association. Thus, their lawns aren't watered and their grass not cut. And in many people's opinion their lawns looks distinctly worse than the other part of the neighborhood.
I think before we begin to see a change in people's behaviors, education will have to take place. It has been ingrained into our heads that a healthy lawn is one that is green with short grass that children can run around in. And honestly, I have very fond memories growing up playing in my well-kept backyard.
Prior to moving to Bloomington, I owned a house (still do, if anyone would like to buy it for a bargain price) on the east side of Indianapolis. The house is in one of those neighborhoods which no longer has a residential association, annual dues or bylaws about the appearances of properties. It's the type of place you might buy a "starter" home in.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, nothing thrilled me greater that to be driving through the neighborhood on my way home from work one day and to see someone outside building big planter boxes in what used to be their front yard. Over the course of the next month or so, I observed (in my daily passings) that they continued to dig up and "destroy" their front lawn as they continued to develop their own little urban farm. Now their yard looks less like a front yard and more like a decent sized garden and they regularly put their surplus produce, that they can't consume quickly enough, on a table by their driveway for other people in the neighborhood to take (leaving money for the produce is optional).
What's unfortunate is that by doing this to their yard, they probably actually decreased the value of their home, even though they increased its productivity.
Excellent post that makes you think! I loved to read about the progression of your thoughts...
ReplyDeleteNow lets take the personal lawn conversation one step further to the local park. My very first project out of landscape architecture school involved working with IUPUC, a college in Columbus to develop their master plan. Having high hopes and dreams of designing projects that benefit the environment, I designed a wildflower garden in the center of campus. And, then reality hit. 6 years later the wildflower meadow has been removed and replaced with a building and manicured green lawn. A loss but, I learned...
Until people truly understand the purpose of the "wild mess" they never appreciate the mess. But, once you understand the ecological benefits of the landscape you begin to see things differently. The way longer grasses blow in the wind, or the many many textures of the plants that inhabit the area. If you take a minute to listen and watch, the mess comes alive!
The meadow disappeared because of a variety of political reasons and campus growth issues. But, lesson learned is that the most important thing we need to do is create awareness and teach people the many benefits of the mess. Then, hopefully, someday the messes will stay around.
This post made me smile. It just goes to show how differently this class makes you think about everyday things. I, for one, would gladly have an "eyesore" in the name of nature. My stepfather, on the other hand, mows as a stress reliever and washes his car at least twice a month in the driveway. I completely agree with other commentators, awareness is needed in situations like these. There is a discord between the generally perceived "healthiness" and sustainability.
ReplyDeleteKeelyn,
ReplyDeleteNice piece of story telling with a twist! Stories are very influential and memorable.
Our university president's events director has a program called "Lawns for Life" that is gaining ground around Bloomington. http://www.bloomingtonalternative.com/node/10671
I have not yet convinced my wife to allow me to dig up the front (south sloping) lawn of our house to devote to raised bed gardening, but she is slowly softening to the idea. We can plant flowers when it is time to sell the place.