Not everything advertised to help your lawn will give you the desired result, as one homeowner recently discovered after making a huge mistake.
A homeowner in Pella, Iowa, took to the subreddit r/landscaping to share the “embarrassing mistake” he made with his home three years ago that he’s still struggling with.
The Reddit user revealed that as a “young homeowner who had never had any experience with gardens,” he felt overwhelmed one day when he was shopping for weed killer.
They decided to buy Roundup, a popular chemical that kills weeds and tough grass. The homeowner wanted to get rid of weeds and crabgrass, so he thought it would work perfectly. However, he found that the chemical destroyed the regular grass in his yard.
“It stayed green for a couple of weeks and I thought I was lucky,” he said. “But within a couple of days, it went from green to crispy brown.”
The owner explained that while some of the grass grew back, it took a while to get the lawn back to lush, green.
“After three years, I’m tired of cutting dirt and weeds,” they said, adding that they have put down more dirt and plan to put in grass to get things back to normal.
While a homeowner works to renovate the lawn, there are other options he or she can take to encourage a thriving garden that will yield economic and environmental benefits. Grass alternatives such as clover, xeriscaping or native plant variants can cost around $100 to plant, but can double that figure in annual savings.
Natural lawns are less likely to attract weeds, allowing homeowners to protect themselves and their wallets from herbicides and pesticides, which often contain toxic chemicals that can irritate skin and eyes.
If you have a lawn, what aspect of it do you value most?
This is what it looks like
This is how my family uses it
It’s a pleasure to mow the lawn
It is cheap to maintain
Click on your choice to see the results and express your opinion
These alternatives require much less water to maintain, allowing you to conserve water that might be needed elsewhere. Natural lawns can also serve as a refuge for wildlife, including pollinators like bees and butterflies, helping to foster a healthier ecosystem in your neighborhood.
Many other owners offered words of wisdom for the sign.
“As long as you’ve learned from your mistakes, that’s the main thing and you’ll be more proud of it now,” wrote one Reddit user.
“Ugh! Mistakes happen, but that one sure would hurt,” said another. “I don’t know much about grass, but ‘Grandpa’s weed whacker’ is a great tool for pulling out weeds. I look forward to seeing the end results.”
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