Bugs, pests, and animals, at least where I live. Unless you build a green house, clear the yard of all other foliage, or somehow fortify your garden, only produce with natural defenses like peppers will make it to harvest. However, I am jealous of my friends on the west coast, who don’t really have to worry about bugs or other critters eating from their fruit trees just passively growing in their yard.
There are places where they have trees all around their houses. Like in California, where they just had been more fuel to the fires.
Why aren’t people everywhere?
We do. Obviously not everyone can But I wager the number of Americans growing something edible on their space is decent. Usually it’s easy stuff to grow, or someone’s favorites.
Thinking about it and counting in my head I actually know dozens of people that grow tomatoes personally. They grow easily in large quantities in relatively small space and all taste better than store bought.
Citrus has been pretty plentiful my entire life too. Lemon trees especially.
Trees (e.g. apple trees or others) provide great shade and help lower the temperature. They are beneficial if you feel that summer heat is getting worse due to climate change. Additionally, if you have issues with heavy rainfall, trees can help by absorbing large amounts of water through their roots. This approach can be applied in most countries.
The 50s happened.
And for whatever the fuck reason, they wanted houses like the ones found in pre-1789 France
My landlord would get a fine from the city and it would be tacked on to my rent.
I can imagine a few reasons.
I have a dog, she needs some running around space in our yard, so we make sure she has it.
Otherwise we do have a raspberry… Thicket? In the corner of our yard, and some smaller raised beds along the edges. Every year the local squirrels steal the veggies we plant, but not the raspberries, no matter what we do.
Every year the local squirrels steal the veggies we plant
This has been my experience as well, along with raccoons decimating all but one season’s attempt at a water garden.
We get them all. Deer, birds, chipmunks. The entire garden needs to be protected by hardware cloth. The chipmunks got through the original chicken wire we had. We had to enclose the top as they climbed over. Plus the small birds eat any berries. A constant battle to be able to harvest anything.
When I first started gardening I had this idealistic view of, “I will just grow a surplus, if the animals take some I will still have enough.” Nope. They eat everything, to the ground. They can do it in one night. There are different pests that specialize in eating the seeds, the roots, the stems, the leaves, and the fruit. Deer will “sample” entire plants just to confirm they don’t like them. Squirrels will take a single bite out of every tomato. Bears will push down an entire fruit tree just to get one fruit. Energy is scarce in nature and these organisms aren’t fucking around.
Took me awhile to finally admit that barriers aren’t just nice, they are required.
Plenty of people have these things called “gardens”. You can grow food right in the ground with them. Fruit baring trees are also a thing people enjoy in thier yard.
Is your entire property filled with bushes or something?
We do tomatoes, tons of peppers, and blackberries. Baby avocado and lime trees aren’t fruiting yet. Someone ate our cucumber plants as soon as they sprouted.
In many cities having a lawn is required. It may be the HOA, or the zoning code
Ok, but why?
Ismt that the universal question with moet things americans do these days? ;-)
Because of 18th century French aristocracy, no shit.
The real answer is because in America rich people buy houses, and then create HOAs in the housing deeds and contracts to force all future owners to maintain the house in a way that will increase the neighborhood property value forever.
HOAs exclusively fight to make houses more and more “valuable” since housing is a financial investment here
Thank you. So not having a proper garden increases the value?
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Most older (white) Americans think having any sort of enjoyment or color in anything is “gay”. Hence why so many American die of heart disease, because eating an apple is basically like giving a blowjob.
This is why: https://youtu.be/EwVovJgwbJQ
Edit: Watch to the end, that’s worst than it initially seems, and it seems bad from the start.
AI summary, for those who can’t watch it right now, like myself:
The video discusses the history of lawns and their impact on American culture:
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Lawns originated in 17th century Europe as a symbol of wealth and status, eventually making their way to America [01:31].
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The invention of the push lawnmower and sprinklers in the 19th century made lawn maintenance more accessible [02:43].
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After World War II, suburban sprawl and consumerism led to lawns becoming a standard feature of the American dream [03:37].
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Homeowners’ associations (HOAs) enforce strict rules about lawn care, contributing to the pressure to maintain a perfect lawn [05:23].
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The lawn care industry has become a massive business, with homeowners spending billions of dollars on products and services [07:14].
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Lawns have negative environmental impacts, including water waste and pesticide runoff [09:11].
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The video suggests alternatives to traditional lawns, such as growing food or native species, xeriscaping, using fake turf or clover, or simply letting the lawn grow naturally [10:13].
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I mean some of us hate grass so much we started a huge reddit community about it that made it’s way too lemmy.
Most people have both. A lawn is good to play on.
