Word: lawns
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 1990-1999
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...Lawn is the curse of suburban man, his bizarre fetish, the great green god he sprays to. Lawn must be barbered to the satisfaction of one's neighbors, or it earns their dirty looks and, in some tightly strung communities, a summons from city hall. The ideal lawn is featureless, a living imitation of Astroturf. Striving to achieve it soaks up water, money and weekend goof-off time in fantastic quantities...
Never mind that trying to grow grass in hot, cold or arid regions is almost as silly as trying to grow kelp. Americans have belawned 25 million to 30 million acres, an area larger than Virginia. Lawn is our connection to the English manor houses to which most of us cannot trace our ancestors; it is the decent, respectably dull necktie we knot around our houses...
...this really a surprise? -- lawn owners are hearing from environmental activists what common sense has been telling them for some time. The herbicides and insecticides they spread on their lawns are poisons. They can be deadly, the charge goes, not only to the noxious bugs and broad-leaf weeds they are supposed to kill but also to useful bugs, to the earthworms that aerate the soil and to pets and people. Do-it-yourselfers don't read warning labels or take precautions to protect themselves, and they use up to six times as much pesticide per acre as farmers...
Children are especially vulnerable to the junk that your neighbor's lawn service fogs around or to the "completely safe for humans" stuff that you bought at the hardware store. Lawn poisons can cause headaches, dizziness, eye problems, mental disorientation and lasting damage to the nervous system. Cancer is also a possibility, since some pesticides contain known carcinogens. Of course, your lawn looks great...
...good grass. On my lawn, I can throw a frisbee around, chase the dog or just sit and stare...