What do you think of 'eco-friendly' homes? (green-houses lol)

[cecilia97]

That is a great point. I think of all the waste that I personally contribute, and maybe I do feel guilty. I guess I never thought about it much, but since researching a bit more, it really has made me want to at least stop being so wasteful!

I love the solar panel idea…

That is what I try to do, too. Instead of paying extra for so-called green stuff that I don’t really know the “greeness” of (because a lot of it is hype, just like another poster pointed out) I just try to consume less…I don’t drink from plastic bottles anymore, recycle them if I have to, reuse my plastic bags from the grocery, etc. Simple stuff that everybody does. But I’m just not willing to throw money after the environment yet, I guess.

 

[cecilia97]

it is if you live in my nutball subdivision! lol

My goodness…here it matts up to about 6 inches off the sidewalk, seriously! You’ve got to mow it high or you’ll get Bermuda. When I lived in Illinois I was so confused by the 1 inch tall bluegrass that you hardly had to edge at the concrete.

 

[whatevergirl]

Quite frankly, the grass looks bad here. I mean, we have tried everything, but it’s sod, not even grass in these ‘master’ communities…It feels quite rough to walk on too…like up north, one could walk in the grass barefoot, and it was lovely and soft…not here though.

 

[cecilia97]

Quite frankly, the grass looks bad here. I mean, we have tried everything, but it’s sod, not even grass in these ‘master’ communities…It feels quite rough to walk on too…like up north, one could walk in the grass barefoot, and it was lovely and soft…not here though.

If you have st augustine, it will feel different. It’s never soft like bluegrass or fescue, no matter what you do. But you would laugh at what happens to those grasses here! Burnt to a crispy.

I remember how soft and lovely the grass was in Illinois. It’s all what you grow up with…I don’t miss it a bit now that I’m back home. Texans don’t walk on grass to feel it…we wear boots to keep the snake bite away.

Augustine will NOT look good if you have to keep it too short. It is a runner grass, not a seed grass. Sod, whatever …it doesn’t make a difference because Augustine grows from runners. I have seen it literally run across and over a sidewalk.

Not sure where you are, but it’s big in Florida and Texas…no other landscape grass will grow well in Houston. If your HOA is insisting on short mowing, they are part of the problem. St. Austine will get so dense that it actually shades itself to conserve water…and kill weeds and Bermuda grass. Without that shade, the grass is working against itself.

That’s another green thing that we can all do easily. Plant the right stuff for the region so it doesn’t need extra water and care with gas powered machinery.

 

[dulcissima]

Wow, Cecilia, you are a grass expert. I am impressed.

Well, this has nothing to do with home construction, but one “green” thing I do is I mow my lawn with a non-powered push mower. I love the whir-whir, clip-clip-clip sound. I seriously love to mow the lawn. It is my me time. I have the soft grass here, and I know it is not advised, but I love to mow the lawn barefoot.

Back in Maryland I had an acre of lawn, not the soft beautiful kind of grass, but what was probably reall just mowed meadow with maybe some grass seed thrown in. I used a lawn tractor there, plus a powered push mower to do all of the tricky bits. I guess there my garden was still “greeen” even with the lawn tractor if you take into consideration that I didn’t need to water it. Here I have calculated that I spend $30/month watering my garden.

 

[cecilia97]

Wow, Cecilia, you are a grass expert. I am impressed.

Well, this has nothing to do with home construction, but one “green” thing I do is I mow my lawn with a non-powered push mower. I love the whir-whir, clip-clip-clip sound. I seriously love to mow the lawn. It is my me time. I have the soft grass here, and I know it is not advised, but I love to mow the lawn barefoot.

Back in Maryland I had an acre of lawn, not the soft beautiful kind of grass, but what was probably reall just mowed meadow with maybe some grass seed thrown in. I used a lawn tractor there, plus a powered push mower to do all of the tricky bits. I guess there my garden was still “greeen” even with the lawn tractor if you take into consideration that I didn’t need to water it. Here I have calculated that I spend $30/month watering my garden.

Ha ha…more like a grass nerd. I really would plant all flowerbeds (use less water than grass and I don’t have kids) but my HOA will not allow it. I hate grass.

One horticulture class at the local junior college or a home landscaping class through your local country extension service gives a lifetime of grass nerd fodder. I highly recommend.

 

[dulcissima]

. I really would plant all flowerbeds (use less water than grass and I don’t have kids) but my HOA will not allow it.

I was telling my nextdoor neighbor who was out weeding his “dirt” that is where a front lawn should be that he should plant all vegetables in his front yard since we don’t live in an HOA neighborhood. He said that might not be a bad idea. We live in a quirky eclectic sort of a neighborhood where people have chickens, goats, and even a pony on not very big lots. So, we can pretty much do whatever we want.

I planeted a few veggies in the back with my 5 yo and now he is thinking he wants to open a farmer’s market. Pretty grandiose plans.

 

[cecilia97]

I was telling my nextdoor neighbor who was out weeding his “dirt” that is where a front lawn should be that he should plant all vegetables in his front yard since we don’t live in an HOA neighborhood. He said that might not be a bad idea. We live in a quirky eclectic sort of a neighborhood where people have chickens, goats, and even a pony on not very big lots. So, we can pretty much do whatever we want.

I planeted a few veggies in the back with my 5 yo and now he is thinking he wants to open a farmer’s market. Pretty grandiose plans.

That’s GREEN!

 

[psr13]

Wait, grass is supposed to be soft? I seriously had no idea.