Episode Details

Why is America so obsessed with lawns and order? Max and Erin get into the weeds of how the founding fathers made cultivating grass an American pastime, why our lawn mania is a creation of corporate marketing, and how it all feeds class anxiety. Why is it so bad for our environment? Does milkweed bring all the bees to the yard? And how much do lawns and instagram face have in common? Listen to this week’s How We Got Here to find out.  SOURCESThe History of the American LawnThe rise and fall of the American lawn, at least in California - The Washington PostUSDA ERS - WheatGrass takes up 2% of the land in the continental USThey Fought the Lawn. And the Lawn’s Done. - The New York TimesThe History of the American LawnClimate Victory Gardening: How Does It Work? | Green AmericaWhere Lawns Are Outlawed (and Dug Up, and Carted Away)Lawn wars consume America's neighborhoodsLawn ConversionKeeping your lawn cleaner and greener; new law limits fertilizer use - pennlive.comWhy stop mowing your lawn and what happens when you go no-mow - Washington PostA Brief History of Our Deadly Addiction to Nitrogen Fertilizer – Mother JonesGrand Prairie Man Served Jail Time For Too Tall Grass - CBS TexasSingle Mother 'Arrested for Grass' After Not MowingSheep Graze on the White House Lawn