One Redditor said they were "pushing it as far as the HOA will go" by installing lavish garden beds along the edges of their driveway.
"I made the border beds for the driveway," said the original poster when they shared the project on r/NoLawns. "My plan is to slowly expand them till the lawn is gone but leave a strip to haul the garbage cans."
The Redditor attached three photos of their gorgeous garden bed. While the plants in the pictures are low-growing, they more than make up for it with lush, colorful blossoms.
"It's a mix of native and non-native," the original poster explained in a comment. "It's butterfly garden with some edibles too."
As the name implies, a butterfly garden attracts and feeds pollinators, especially butterflies. This is wonderful if you enjoy watching wildlife, but it's also good for gardens and the planet. Pollinators help fertilize plants so they can grow seeds and so that fruits and vegetables can develop correctly.
Also, gardens full of native flowers use less water than a traditional lawn.
The original poster was smart about their non-native plants. Butterfly milkweed can become invasive in some areas, but here, it was kept separate from the surrounding soil by placing it in a pot. That's an essential technique for growing plants like mint that spread wildly when left unchecked.
Commenters appreciated the garden and wanted to see more like it.
🗣️ If you were to switch from a grass lawn to a more natural option, which of these factors would be your primary motivation?
🔘 Making it look better 🌱
🔘 Saving money on water and maintenance 💰
🔘 Helping pollinators 🐝
🔘 No way I ever get rid of my lawn 🚫
🗳️ Click your choice to see results and speak your mind
"Now take it a step farther and contact your state representatives so that they can pass a law similar to the one passed in Maryland that bans HOAs from doing anything about people growing pollinator friendly plants on their own property," said one user.
The original poster didn't seem to have any concrete plans in that direction, but the Maryland law being referenced was the work of gardeners similar to this one — so anything is possible.
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