to not mow my front lawn? Ever?

[FredWorms]

I just don't get this suburban thing about lawn-mowing. I do mine now and again, maybe 2 cuts a year, but I like it long. It harbours frogs and toads and all manner of creatures and I like the look of it too. I have flowers in pots and although my front garden isn't immaculate it's clearly not completely neglected either. It looks tatty, but not in that "old sofa and 3 rusty bikes" sort of way.

A couple of days ago a neighbour had a bit of a grumble about people not cutting their grass, clearly aimed at me, and I've heard other neighbours complain in the past. Why? How does it affect them? Is it because it makes the neighbourhood look run down? (quiet close in a small seaside town).

I genuinely don't get this. I was brought up on a farm, is there something I should know?

I'm not as bothered about long grass as about weeds. We inherited a part paved, part gravelled front garden with tiny flower beds and next doors homage to derelict urban abandonment is full of dandelions, rosebay w-h, cooch (?) grass and this year, a rowan sapling. And other insidious stuff. My garden doesn't look like a romantic meadow when his weeds spread. It looks hideous. His looks worse, but then he never has visitors and won't be selling, probably ever. It's mean spirited of him to let it get like that imo.

"Well we let the dandelions grow as we thought they looked lovely so thye have now sorta taken over the grass"

i bet they are taking over your neighbours grass too...I bet they are really pleased

"Do they think it reflects upon them, or is it because they have to look at it? "

Both

YABU

(long grass harbours mosquitoes too, if you live in an area that gets mozzies).

My garden is unmown because I am lazy

My ladygarden is unkempt because I am lazy

you dont mow dandelions out, you need to weed or use some weedkiller on them so doesn't matter if your lawn mower works or not.

Unkept gardens look a mess and it is just lazyness. If you want somewhere for the bees and insects there are plenty of ways to do it without having a messy weed infested garden.

If you want a meadow with long grass for a front garden you should move to a rural property. Messy front gardens make the surrounding properties look unkempt too. The suburbs is not the place for that. We have neighbours (not elderly or frail) like this; they also have peeling paint on their garage and front door and have left the protective (blue) stickers on their windows..it looks terrible and everyone on our street silently growls at them as they go by.

Badgers.... not at all, several neighbours have put stones on their fronts now that looks really ugly and others still have nice lawns, one has ponds and such stuff in the front. My dandelions look better than all the stones anyday

It helps our gardens are not on top of each other

If you don't maintain a wildflower garden all that happens is the (invasive) grasses take over and you get less flowers. If all you want is grass - fine, great for wildlife to hide in including slugs and snails. If however you do want flowering plants to feed the bees, butterflies and other insects then it will need lots of maintainence till the flowering plants are established. Get yourself off to the library. There is a middle ground between suburban Margo and Gerry and Stig of the Dump.

www.oudolf.com/piet-oudolf

I am eyeing my neighbour's 'wildlife' field at the bottom of my garden. Yes, I love dosing my garden full of Roundup because you're too fecking lazy to deal with the bindweed.

they have nice lawns because they keep dosing with weedkiller to get rid of the dandelions i expect oldraver

it's taken us 2 years to get rid of the ones in our lawn that we inherited - and we see next doors still full of dandelions waving about in the breeze

It's not a wildflower garden, I've never claimed it to be so.

The "seeds blowing in the wind" argument is stark raving bonkers. We live next to a field with lots of mature trees and hedges and verges, you can't stop the seeds blowing from them. Well actually, people do occasionally mow a bit of verge but it just looks silly imo.

"Haven for slugs" = bonkers also. Slugs are everywhere. If I had short grass they'd just hide under pots.

Why is long grass "messy". As hecate says, it's just convention. I suppose people wouldn't like it if I painted my front door in rainbow stripes but I just can't see why. I can't see that it has anything whatsoever to do with anyone else.

The "seeds blowing in the wind" argument is stark raving bonkers. We live next to a field with lots of mature trees and hedges and verges, you can't stop the seeds blowing from them.

It's you who are bonkers. Suburban gardens (as in the OP) are very different to your location.

Badgers I think they have more important things to whittle about than the odd dandelion. I think the 20 odd pine trees shedding needles keep them all on their toes

I also think the seeds blowing in the wind is bonkers.... I've never seen my neighbours do anymore than cut the grass or get their gardner too

YAB lazy U

Sometimes you've just got to fit in a bit. So you're pissed off that your neighbour has pointed out your slovenliness, suck it up. You aren't making the ground into a poppy and cornflower strewn meadow are you?

I can't see that it has anything whatsoever to do with anybody else. If I set fire to my broken down car just in front of your house I doubt you'd be taking the 'eye of the beholder' line.

I don't mind long grass. I mind 'hasn't been cut in a year and is now taking over the surrounding area' grass. And unless it is an actual meadow, or planted deliberately as a wild garden, it will look like a neglected mess.

But cut grass is just a convention. Long grass is actually very lovely, I think.

I agree. But one person's "lovely" long grass is another person's unkempt plot of shyte.

I particularly dislike conventions, as it happens but if you live in suburbia you may as well get used to the fact that your front garden, to some people, will look like an eyesore. But I think you need to have the courage of your convictions here. If you like a wild front garden then stick with it and be prepared for complaints.

Some of you would hate to live next to me. I bought a whole packet of dandelion seeds to sow in my garden this year. I also encourage bindweed and brambles

We have a lot of pets that live on weeds (tortoises and stick insects) and I can't grow enough of them

I thought this thread title was a euphemism.

However, I think the same response applies.

You have your garden however you want..not anyone's else place to comment on how you keep your 'lawn'. If you want to harbour waifs and strays in your 'lawn' who is anyone else to criticise?

If you do decide to give it a tidy up just mind you don't cut yourself

I'd cut it out of pride, don't give a toss what the neighbours think. And people can pass this 'oh it'll look like a meadow' tosh off. It won't in the middle of a suburb, it'll just look scruffy.

How about forgetting the "meadow" idea and just planting lots of low-maintenance plants there? Then you don't need to mow it weekly but it hopefully won't look as messy.

I think YABU, as others have said you're not in the country, you're in suburbia.

I'd be annoyed if my neighbour had a really messy front garden, it reflects badly on the area and is unpleasant to look at. As someone else said, I too wouldn't buy a house next to a really scruffy garden.

I like mine with long grass too but my neighbour told me it was an eyesore I am very tempted to dump rubbish in it myself after his comment.

I thought you might be my next door neighbour, well if you are I do not mind that you don't mow your lawn. I am amazed that some people are so uptight about it. People don't put rubbish in a garden because the garden is untidy, they do it because they are lazy, so if it takes 10 minutes to eat a bag of chips and you live a 10 minute walk from the chip shop the wrappers will be in your garden, regardless of wether you keep it spotless. My neighbour is not lazy, she is just very busy, doing good work. I cut the grass when its needed, weather permitting. My neighbour never cuts hers, so what ?

I wish long grass was the only thing i could see in my neighbours garden. Its a frikking mess, everytime i look out my bedroom window i am comfronted with the view. His weeds are that big now theyre nearly as tall as him and anyone who has the unfortunately need to get to the door some how has to wade through them to get there as the path is blocked.
What i dont understand is how the guy isnt getting stung to death everytime he leaves the house as the majority is nettles.

Unless you are filming a Timotei advert, long grass is unnecessary.

Says she who never ventures in the garden at all.
Dh mows his 110 foot lawn religiously. I prefer concrete.

My neighbour is like you OP, although she has it strimmed once a year. When we moved in I spent ages, and a lot of money, on our front garden. Loads of nice plants, bulbs etc. Waste of time! All of the seeds etc from her garden blow into ours. It's a battle keeping on top of it. The past few months we've been busy with our newborn and it's choked. Have got shears and tried to tidy it up but it's a losing battle.

Its not a suburban thing, I live in the country and I mow the grass verges outside my house. I like things to look neat outside as well as in. It also makes it look inhabited and cared for, which puts off potential burglars.

Yes, it might take away some habitat of some small animals but its next to a busy road anyway. If you live in a new build in a suburban area, its probably already destroyed most of the local habitat that was there before. I wouldn't live in a new build housing estate.