Leave My Lawn Alone, Please: Why Turf Isn't the Enemy

By Andrew Messinger

Ella Gatfield’s Viewpoint [“The Grass Is Not Greener,” Residence, October 9] regarding the American lawn was incredibly one-sided and made it appear that the only and necessary alternatives might be meadows and fields of wildflowers.

This is not the case.

Among the people I have worked with on the East End, many don’t want carpets of weed-free bluegrass — and many more don’t use chemicals on their lawns, only small amounts of organic fertilizer. Unlike chemical fertilizers, organic lawn fertilizer used in moderation is broken down by soil microbes and does not readily leach into our groundwater and become a pollutant.

She would lead us to believe that as a result of lawns, homeowners spend hours and hours working on them. I rarely spend more than an hour a week on mine and that’s only when I must mow twice a week due to copious rain. Otherwise, I spend 40 minutes a week tops on my lawn, not including the weeds that I casually pull as I notice them.

Some of the comments, especially the broad swipes about weeds doused with chemicals — only to be walked upon with bare feet — and millions of mowers revving up only hold a grain of truth. According to the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, over 65 percent of outdoor power equipment and 65 percent of all lawn mowers sold are electric, or battery operated. Yes, my lawn tractor is gas-driven and loud. I will gladly buy a new electric one when I can afford it, and when safe and reliable ones are available. And despite Gatfield’s view, in virtually all areas of the state, chemical inputs to public parks and parkland are banned by state and local laws, a small item that Gatfield failed to note.

It’s as much a social and cultural issue as it is an environmental one, but to simply say lawns are bad is far from the truth. I have managed properties for some of the wealthiest people in this country and several on the East End. I cannot change the minds or culture set of the uber-rich who add fertilizers and pesticides to their lush lawns, then go back to their homes in Manhattan. I cannot change the thinking that revolves around their private acreage, and when I try to speak sense to and with them, I get political comments in return — suggesting that my stressing for more ecological landscapes, especially among the dunes and bays, are the views of a socialist.

In my column in this newspaper, I have always emphasized how harmful these crew-cut seas of green are to each and every one of us. More than 20 years ago, I wrote about the toxic heavy metals that were showing up in many lawn fertilizers and noted the 2001 book “Fateful Harvest” by Duff Wilson, which delves into this in detail.

But I have also openly admitted that I love my lawn. Yes, I am one of those who loves the feel of soft grass on the soles of my feet. On a warm spring day, I can often be found lying on my lawn catching a bit of sun, or sitting in my canvas sling chair gazing across the mix of bluegrasses, fescues and ryes as I watch Mother Nature’s various creatures enjoy the lawn and gardens.

I read, though. I do my environmental stewardship and I pay attention to my lawn. I also tremble when I read pieces about how we should allow our lawns to revert to nature with meadows of natives and wildflowers — which, if you study the history of these projects, show that the large percentage of them fail. More importantly, they result in increases in ticks that will crawl up your legs and sleeves seeking a blood meal while potentially giving you one of several diseases that they carry. I’ve had two of these diseases. They are not fun. They can leave you debilitated and, if not caught in time, they can even do long-term permanent damage to your body and mind. And you can get any of them again from just another tick bite.

Also, add on the rodents that love these meadows and the fact that most of our local predators, who would manage these rodents, have been decimated by us and our pets. These rodents also carry various diseases that we can catch and, in the case of the white footed mouse or deer mouse, this rodent is a primary transporter of deer ticks, the kind that feed on us and get us sick.

There is a middle ground, though. You can have both your meadows, wildflowers and lawn. Wild areas need to be away from living and recreation spaces to avoid the interaction with those insects and their relatives, including mosquitoes, who may bite us for their blood meal. Keep these wilder areas away from your home and play areas, and teach your children to walk through these areas on paths that allow them to enjoy and observe without making physical contact with the stems and shoots where ticks lie in wait.

As for lawns? I can only tell you about mine and hope I set the right example. I live on a 1-acre lot. There are garden beds on each side, one being 150 feet long and the other shorter. Up the middle of the lot is my double-sided English style border that’s 120 feet long, ranging from 8 to 15 feet wide. Other than the house and unpaved driveway, there is lawn.

And while there are those who would lead us to believe that this lawn is a creation from hell, it’s quite an amazing feature. Rabbits and groundhogs love to graze on the blades of grass. Voles and shrews are regularly seen crossing the lawn, headed for the flower beds, and the red foxes pass through managing the rodents. Several species of bees and a number of other insects can always be seen on the patches of white clover that bloom most of the growing season. A range of birds feed on the insects that live in, on and under the turf, as do hundreds of species of insects and organisms that thrive in the grass roots and below.

Yes, I use a gas-guzzling mower to cut the lawn, but the balance is that every single blade of grass is sliced and diced by the mulching blades and deck that return the clippings to the soil where it becomes fertilizer. As a result, I use only organic fertilizer in tiny amounts and only twice a year. I don’t use herbicides other than the occasional horticultural vinegar and I have never, ever used a fungicide.

Part of the secret is that I carefully chose what grass seed I use — and once a year, I do a light overseeding. This overseeding results in a dense turf that naturally chokes out weeds. They do show up, though, and most are removed with a hand-held weeder. When and if crabgrass shows up, I simply bend down and pull it out. The grass seed I use are varieties known for drought resistance (I don’t have an irrigation system) and disease resistance. Some of the grass varieties are endophytic and can fight off both diseases and insects.

The lawn does brown from time to time during droughts, and it comes back with the rains. When I see a flock of grackles or several crows pecking away at a small area, I know they’ve hit paydirt in the form of insects, which they feed on until they can’t find more — meaning I won’t, either.

There are also some cultural tricks. I don’t grow any plants near the lawn that attract rose chaffers or Japanese and Asiatic beetles. When these insects mature, they drop to the ground, lay eggs and those eggs develop into larvae (white grubs) that feed on grass roots. This has never been an issue. My roses are in the gardens away from the lawn and my various varieties of perennial and shrub hibiscus, which are often beetle magnets, have similar protections. Would these cultural steps be obvious if you looked at the property? No, not at all.

So, please leave my lawn alone and stop trying to tell people it’s the bane of our existence. We’ve correctly banned the use of highly polluting phosphorus in lawn fertilizers, something Gatfield conveniently failed to note. Organic fertilizers used on nutrient-stingy turfgrass lawns can be ecologically tolerated when you consider the food web that healthy turf can provide to other organisms.

If you really want to make your mark, find a way to open the minds of those who truly pollute and contaminate our soils and groundwater. You know where they live. But good luck convincing these titans who can buy gallons of drinking water in plastic bottles and apply tons of pollutants while they pay for their cancer care and cognitive issues that may or may not be the result of their environmental insensitivity.

Caring for the land we live in and on is more than having one bin for recyclables and another for filling with our plastics that go to the old coal mines in Pennsylvania.