Aibu to think people in the UK need to start accepting they can’t have green lawns all year?

[BuenaVistaAntisocialClub]

We’re in southern England, it’s been very hot and dry for the last few weeks. Unsurprisingly our lawn is now a yellowy brown colour. I expect when it rains enough later in the year it will return to being more green. But to me this is just how things are at the moment due to the changing climate.

Yet our neighbours on both sides seem to be in a panic about their yellowy brown lawns, and are spending hours each day watering their lawns with hosepipes in an effort to make them more green.

This seems like such a massive waste of water (and of time and effort). Yes I know there’s no hosepipe ban so they’re not doing anything illegal, but it feels like their behaviour is really misguided. The world is heating and the UK’s climate is changing incredibly quickly. Surely everyone is going to have to adapt their mindset, and part of that is accepting that your garden won’t look like it did 40 years ago?

Water is such a scarce resource, some countries already have wars and conflict brewing due to shortages, and these are only going to worsen. To be using so much water to artificially turn lawns in the UK green when we no longer have a climate that naturally supports this seems madness to me.

National Trust is trying to plant 20 million trees by 2030

”We know that trees are our best natural defence against the climate crisis, so we're aiming to plant and establish 20 million of them by 2030.”
www.nationaltrust.org.uk/features/our-tree-planting-ambition

Grass can die, it can only handle 3-4 weeks without water before plant death.
’waste’ is very subjective, I don’t think it’s wasting water to keep plants alive

That's not true - we didn't have rain for weeks in 2018. It rained and the grass turned green. It had not died.

my guineapigs desecrated the grass
the grass recovered

In a lot of areas that is the case. I actually think it's often too difficult to remove or prune trees when they might be dangerous (for individuals - naturally if a developer comes along and wants to cut down thousands of trees to build houses on green field land, that's fine )

I'd like to do with on my back garden but with paths and seating areas rather than a driveway. Would you mind saying which plants you've planted?

Getting carried away with drought proof gardens and forgot to answer the OP. I completely agree with BeunaVista and that watering grass and filling up large paddling/swimming pools is a complete waste of a scarce resource. I'm also in the SE and we havn't had any proper rain for weeks.

Maybe it’s time lawns went out of fashion?

Although really water need not be a scare resource

We still lose a ton through poor pipes

We could do a lot more recycling of water

We need to look into better storage as it's likely we will get a more rain going forward just in less convenient fashion

We need a government to think about infrastructure investment

Think this is more a where you live thing rather than everyone with lawns. My lawn is green and quite lush as we’ve had just enough rain to sustain it.

Large lawn here that’s now totally yellow. Started off using a sprinkler in the first few hot days but continuous hot days like we are having then a sprinkler wouldn’t touch the sides in trying to keep it green so am not wasting water on it. We have been here 20 years and the grass has always recovered from a prolonged dry spell. As other posters have mentioned I’m enjoying not having to cut the grass.

I have to confess though that I have sat in my brown dust bowl of a garden and thought how much more pleasant it would be if I did away with the lawn altogether and put in a swimming pool instead 🏊‍♀️😳 !!

Or golf courses

I’m watering lightly this year as it’s a newly planted lawn, which we worked hard on after removing paving and filthy gravel. Once it’s established, I’ll be letting it take its chances.

We have much more wildlife in our small garden now since replacing paving and gravel with lawn and a wildflower patch.

This^
A lawn within a garden with plants/hedges/trees can be an oasis for local wildlife.

Lawns as in simply grass or just the whole green area thing?

My garden is green. Clover. Indestructible.

I've got a mature birch tree in my garden. Underneath it has been the coolest place for weeks!

I didnt say anything about climate change!!

I was just pointing out that grasses survive for much longer than some posters claim.

Therefore its fine not to water them - thus saving resources (which is good for the environment)

The open space is common land, so although the bits that are used for sport get reseeded, possibly with a robust type (though they're more concerned with wear and tear than drought), the rest is native that has been there for hundreds of years and copes just fine when the clay soil dries out

Look at Chelsea Flower Show for trends - it was all about 'rewilding' this year.

@TrashyPanda Most cricket clubs have - and watering the outfield hasn't been a thing for a long time IMHO. There is usually more than one wicket so you move to the less damaged/less dangerous when you can. Not sure about football but the pitch looked dry for most of the women's quarter finals. Golf is potentially the greatest disaster since it has the biggest footprint, and course designers take out trees - and greens aren't called greens for nothing + they are made with smooth short grass. Bowling greens another - perhaps we should just go for petanque?

Of my grass hasn't been cut for ages and looks in need of it, at what point now the heatwave is over can it be mowed to tidy it up a bit?

@Bubblebubblebah I mean lawns as in a monoculture of grass bordered by fence and a patio. I like the sound of gardens full of (small) native trees and shrubs instead. Nice and cool. Some grass (for the dog to wee on) but not the fashion for a rectangle of all perfect manicured grass.

Grass isn’t a monoculture though. Look at grass seed you can buy in shops. There are about 5 different types of grasses. You can buy different mixes depending on what sort of lawn you want. Hard wearing/ drought resistant/ shade resistant/ posh and fine. If you let a lawn grow you can see the different types of grass. They all have different seed heads. Some may do better than others over time if conditions change. Grass is perennial not annual apart from poa annua which is an annual grass and the one you see popping up in borders where you don’t want it!

The broad leafed weeds seem to be very resilient, they're like little oasis of green in an otherwise prairie-like lawn. My granddaughter has had a great time stepping on the brown clovers, they sound like cornflakes apparently.
My water butt's been empty for weeks!

Ok, so I take it you think that there is only one species of grass on the planet then that inhabits all the countries of the world? Well you are quite mistaken.
Every geographical area has a few native species of grass. The areas prone to drought, have drought resistant grass. U.K. native grass is not drought resistant.

Oh dear I am so sorry to offend you!!! I was unaware I was responding to a lawn expert.

I was under the impression that most people just use standard grass mix in their lawn, and I'm pretty sure that it is much the same in many countries. My drought prone area certainly does not have different grass to other parts of the country, and some parts of this country are very wet. In fact I have just searched on the internet for types of grass used in UK lawns - amazingly they are pretty much the same as we use here. So my original comment still stands.

Your neighbours don’t sound like very experienced gardeners if they don’t know the parched look is totally normal for U.K. summer lawns! Idiots. No, they shouldn’t be hosting them down.