We've Moved
Dandelions
I was driving home from work the other day and had to stop the car to take of picture of this guy's lawn. He must be the most hated person in the neighborhood but to you Mr. Dandelion Farmer, I say, you're awesome!
Now here's a guy who probably hasn't used a lawn chemical in years and that's a good thing in my book. Most of my neighbors are retirees with lawns so green that it looks like someone painted them. If a stray leaf should blow into their yard, they're outside within minutes to pick it up.
Crews come every week to cut, spray, feed and blow all the debris off their outdoor green carpets. Having a "perfect" lawn was something that's important to that generation but thankfully the tradition is fading away.
And because I don't want to be considered the lazy Joe on the block, I'm out there working hard to get my organic lawn to look pretty good. That's my goal, just pretty good. As long as it's green and cut nicely, I'm happy. Thankfully, I have tons of clover mixed in my lawn that covers the looking green criteria. And it holds up better to my kids food traffic too.
But this Dandelion Farmer guy doesn't mind being the lazy Joe on his block. And in fact, in my imagination, I see him as being proud of it. Maybe his entire basement is filled with wine making equipment and he's producing homemade dandelion wine by the barrel. And that's a lot more exciting that having a boring lawn.
9 Comments:
Yes, I agree that the dandelion is undervalued. The greens are good in a salad, you can make a tea from the roots and the petals are great for making wine. This is not how I would describe a "weed".
Peggy,
Not irking the neighbors is my reality too. But their unnaturally green lawns irk me. Doesn't anyone worry about irking me?
:)
I'm getting ready to officially compost (not moving my fall clippings from last year doesn't count) and I've been finding lots of good information on your blog. I do have a question about temperature that I'm hoping you can answer. Does it need to be about a certain degree for the materials to break down? I live in WI and I'm not sure if it will work if I leave my bin out in the winter (bringing it inside isn't an option).
Thanks!
I too find the unnaturally green lawns irksome. We call them "rugs on drugs"
Eric
Here's hoping I have the guts one day to have nothing but vegetables in my front yard. And moss. :)
Wild Canary