The Origins of America's Toxic Obsession With Lawns
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Why is America so obsessed with lawns and order? Max and Erin get into the weeds of how the founding fathers made cultivating grass an American pastime, why our lawn mania is a creation of corporate marketing, and how it all feeds class anxiety. Why is it so bad for our environment? Does milkweed bring all the bees to the yard? And how much do lawns and instagram face have in common? Listen to this week’s How We Got Here to find out.
SOURCES
The History of the American Lawn
The rise and fall of the American lawn, at least in California - The Washington Post
Grass takes up 2% of the land in the continental US
They Fought the Lawn. And the Lawn’s Done. - The New York Times
The History of the American Lawn
Climate Victory Gardening: How Does It Work? | Green America
Where Lawns Are Outlawed (and Dug Up, and Carted Away)
Lawn wars consume America's neighborhoods
Keeping your lawn cleaner and greener; new law limits fertilizer use - pennlive.com
Why stop mowing your lawn and what happens when you go no-mow - Washington Post
A Brief History of Our Deadly Addiction to Nitrogen Fertilizer – Mother Jones
Grand Prairie Man Served Jail Time For Too Tall Grass - CBS Texas