No Lawns

I highly recommend clover yards. Minimal upkeep and they help nature. They also require like 60% less water and stay green longer. Only grow to about 4-6” so you don’t have to mow.

We planted clover; it blooms (great for pollinators), spreads fast, is very comfy to sit on, absorbs shock better when you fall on it, has a max length that's much shorter than grass, so you don't really need to mow the lawn unless you prefer it short and leaves less space for other undesireable plants to grow, while not needing much water to stay green (saving water). It's pretty great honestly!

Little fact: clover is edible, so if you feel like eating clover nectar, you'll be able to. I know some people might find that weird, but it tastes very good, which is why many farmers let their bees collect clover nectar to make their honey (it makes sweet/tangy delicious honey, due to how sweet clover nectar tastes to begin with).

Our first one of the year earlier this week

Native plants ftw! Did anyone look into pocket forests too? I'll try to pitch it on my next community meeting

Is this your yard? No shame! Many people inherit landscapes like this when they move in and haven’t found the time to make a change. Check out the sidebar for resources on how to get started on a more pollinator-friendly landscape!

You don’t have to remove the whole lawn at once if it seems overwhelming. Even a small insect-friendly garden area or changes in how you manage the lawn can make a big difference.

This Xerces Society article also has some basic and easy steps: https://xerces.org/blog/bee-friendlier-with-your-lawncare

The bees are dying because of neonicatinoids in RoundUp presticides.

I remember my old house, i replaced 75% of the lawn with a flower garden and meadow flowers, moss, etc. the HOA was PISSED. I swear HOAs exist only to be miserable killjoys

Several years ago, developers cut down a giant tract of woods practically across the street from my house in order to build a brand new housing community. Cookie cutter homes with early 90's Tim Burton level "perfect lawns" stretching over hundreds of acres.

I started taking my walks down that way, since at a minimum they had sidewalks along the entire stretch making my evening walks a bit safer than trying to navigate the roadsides without them.

A couple of springs after the monstrosity was built, there was a house where about 1/4 of the lawn was covered in the mounds of ground nesting bees. I specifically chose my walking path each day so that I could go by there to witness the spectacular display. It was so neat watching the bees, males hovering over the mound nests fighting off rivals and trying to entice females. The melodious buzz of hundreds of bees dancing around the entrances to their nests was the highlight of my stroll.

Then one day I walked by and the owner of that yard was outside talking to someone from a pest control company about how to get rid of the bees in their yard. I'm not one to intrude on people, but since I was stopped at the intersection due to traffic and I overheard the conversation, I did mention to them that these mounds would be gone in a matter of days regardless of whether they were sprayed or not, and that the bees are non-aggressive natives that wouldn't/couldn't sting you and posed no threat.

A week or so later there was a sign in the yard with some statement that basically said to avoid touching the grass, keep pets and children out, dangerous pesticides had been sprayed.

The optimist in me wants to believe that something I read is true, and it basically stated that traditional pesticides are not usually very effective against ground nesting bees because the adults are short lived anyway, and most of the commonly used pesticides bind to soil and therefore don't usually penetrate deeply enough down into the soil to kill the larva/offspring.

I dead ass had a pest company come to my door and offer to flush my lawn with pesticide to get rid of all the bugs in it. I said "my guy, did you know that global insect populations are crashing and we're heading towards complete ecological collapse? I recognize everyone's gotta get their bread, but this is pretty bad stuff you guys are doing." He seemed interested and moved on. I doubt he quit the company, but a boy can dream.

Edit: no HOA, and my neighbors dgaf, so I can be a proud dandelion enjoyer. Planting tons of natives, we'll see how it goes.