December 14, 2022 story in the New York Times
This Maryland couple fought HOA rules requiring them to grow lawn and it resulted in a new state law forbidding HOAs from doing that. Their long battle ended in October of last year with the passage of the law and got some attention then, including an interview in Washington Gardener Magazine, but this week the New York Times discovered the story and it’s getting picked up everywhere. (Including in the U.K.)
I posted the story on GardenRant’s Facebook page and got some interesting comments:
Susan Harris I hope those of us using native plants will continue to bear in mind aesthetics and not just plant anything “native” and let it get out of control and spread “because I’m allowed to”. We have a reputation at stake in creating “ecosystems” that are pleasing as well as healthy.
He continued later:
I’m commenting that we “native lovers” shouldn’t go overboard now that this little victory has been won. We should be careful to make it look groomed and deliberate, not neglected.
A professional gardener wrote:
Agree. In unskilled hands a native garden can turn into an unruly weed patch in no time. This issue will be walking a fine line.
Post-Lawn Gardens
I agree, too! But first, the battle and the new law is about lawnless yards, not the origin of the plants used to replace the lawn. And getting rid of lawn – like any perceived improvement in a garden’s sustainability – is easily conflated with the use of native plants.
But lawns can be replaced with all sorts of plants, paths, patios and structures – not just meadows. Obviously! They can look just as good as yards with lawn – often better. Former GardenRanter Evelyn Hadden wrote a whole book on the subject.
The front yard of the HOA-fighting couple in Maryland proves the point. It’s designed and tended. It apparently drove their (truly awful) next-door neighbor crazy but I’d posit that to normal people, it looks damn good.
From the Facebook account of Janet and Jeff Crouch
My own front yards in Maryland are two more lawnless examples:
Former front yard in Takoma Park, Md.
Above, I replaced an oval patch of lawn with a variety of short, sun-loving groundcovers that succeeded to wildly varying degrees. Even if these plants were taller, the geometric design and crossing pavers makes the garden look designed and tended.
My current front yard in Greenbelt, Md.
My current front yard, which was all-lawn when I moved here 11 years ago, does have taller plants – including Joe Pye Weed – but the overall effect is still cared-for and deliberate.
Most Infuriating Bits in the New York Times story
The HOA (in Columbia, Md.) told the Crouches that “their plantings not only violated the bylaws, but were eyesores that hurt property values. ‘Your yard is not the place for such a habitat. ‘
The neighbor’s letter complained that the Crouches’ yard “was overgrown with weeds, figurines and barrels filled with rainwater,” which the couple contested. The neighbor claimed he “couldn’t enjoy his own property due to the ‘mess of a jungle’ next door.” Oy!
What the New Law Says
In the NYT piece the Maryland law is called “the “first in the country to limit homeowner association control over eco-friendly yards.” And “the measure gained bipartisan support, passed with near unanimity, and became law in October 2021.” It’s described as “forbidding homeowner associations from banning pollinator plants or rain gardens, or from requiring property owners to plant turf grass.”
But let’s read it ourselves. Link
It says restrictions on land use “may not impose or act to impose unreasonable limitations on low-impact landscaping,” “provided that the owner maintains and regularly tends to the low-impact landscaping.” Emphasis added.
It defines “unreasonable limitation” as one that “significantly increases the cost of low-impact landscaping, significantly decreases the efficiency of low-impact landscaping, or requires cultivated vegetation to consist in whole or in part of turf grass.”
Low-impact landscaping” means “techniques that conserve water, lower maintenance costs, provide pollution prevention, and create habitat for wildlife.” It further says it includes “bio-habitat gardens and other features designed to attract wildlife; and pollinator gardens and other features designed to attract pollinator species.”
It explicitly says the law does not “prohibit reasonable design and aesthetic guidelines regarding the type, number, and location of low-impact landscaping features.” It also doesn’t apply to properties “eligible for inclusion in the Maryland Register of Historic Properties.”
Not Just HOAs – Cities, Too
And above is an example of a wildlife-friendly front yard that HOAs in Maryland are probably still allowed to outlaw – because it doesn’t seem to be “maintained” and “regularly tended.” At least that’s what the City of Greenbelt cited it for. Note the National Wildlife Federation certification sign? Apparently that’s not enough to skirt enforcement of laws requiring upkeep of private yards.
I’m told that the citation by the city led to the homeowner creating an edge of Pink Muhly Grass along the street, a design feature that I agree helps make the yard look more tended.
Note here that it isn’t just the (seemingly universally hated) HOAs that require private yards to be “tended.” Though I imagine if you’re a strict libertarian about the use of private property, you aren’t happy about that.
I like Rules that Make Sense
Eleven years ago I moved into a my co-op about 20 miles south of the Crouches in Greenbelt, Md. I knew it had many, many pages of rules but I made sure it didn’t require lawns, and it doesn’t. It does require that ground be covered to prevent erosion and that the whole yard be (minimally) maintained.
And I’m glad it does! It’s not just about property values, though if I were selling my townhouse any time soon I’d care more about that. No, it’s the basic fact that unkempt gardens, especially ones without lawn, can make properties look abandoned. They can be sorry sights to see across the street or on your daily walk.
Okay, free-the-garden libertarians, go ahead and call me pragmatic, a compromisor or some other term I probably don’t like as much. I’m okay with it.
I was thinking it was all totally incomprehensible to a Brit. But I remembered we do have limitations on the height of hedges. And Conservation Areas with some decrees – though not sure they’re about gardens.
Someday someone must tell us how on earth these laws and demands arose in the USA without provoking civil war?
Anne: possibly the whole concept of HOAs is an outcome of the Civil War [Anyone made a study of this?] It has been documented that old communities with these associations can have covenants (?) that prohibit house sales to people of color, ostensibly to protect real estate values. I note that this language is now actually illegal. It perhaps follows that specific language about the look of the landscaping, again with a view to protect house values, isn’t / wasn’t such a hard pill to swallow. For those who choose to live in a neighborhood with an HOA… Yes, very different culturally from the UK!
Much more prevalent in urban and suburban areas Ann, but is rapidly growing throughout the USA as people trade liberty for security and have less connection to their outside spaces generally. Fear of one’s neighbor is capitalized upon by these associations – and the UK is not immune. I used to work for a large trust in the UK that held many properties in London. When the freeholds became available in some areas, the trust wasted no time in fear-mongering the new freeholders to become part of an trust-directed association that would ‘protect’ their properties with a long list of covenants. They signed on quickly after fighting so hard to obtain the freeholds. I found the whole thing bizarre. Michael and I could never bear the idea of an HOA, and have avoided them since moving to the East Coast 20 years ago. – MW
Twenty-five years ago every house on our street had a grass lawn that stretched from each house to the road. I had just completed my master gardener certification and was full of new ideas and ready to re-landscape our property.
We didn’t check the borough zoning codes and went ahead to plant a small copse of trees, shrubs, and perennials bordering the street (there aren’t any sidewalks in our neighborhood) and along one side of our driveway. The borough manager stopped by to warn us that the ten feet of our property bordering the road was a borough “right of way” and was required to be planted in turf grass. However, since this “requirement” was not documented anywhere in the borough code, we were permitted to keep our new little woodland “temporarily” until when and if, the borough decided to put in sidewalks.
Fortunately, the borough budget was not sufficient to provide for sidewalk construction and we now have a small “woodland garden” consisting of river bitches, Fothergilla, winterberry hollies, Heuchera, woodland phlox, native ginger, ferns, sedges, etc. screening our house from the road. This garden reduced the size of our front lawn by 50%.
We’ve received many compliments from neighbors and several have copied this idea for their front yards in recent years. The irony is that a new tree ordinance was just passed into law and now we are not permitted to trim or remove any of the trees growing in the “right-of-way” in front of our house (in the area was supposed to be restricted to turf grass) without Borough permission!
Public road right of way., Or maybe a utility easement somewhere on your property, you can plant in it, some folks even build in it. But when the time comes to repair that sewer line or widen that road, your plants are toast. And they can brushhog it too.
Great story!
I have been a private gardener for people who can’t take care of their own gardens and a creator and caretaker of a large Children’s Garden at a Maryland environmental center and worked as native plant promoter and gardener for many years and I have come to one conclusion that seems pertinent to this discussion. It is hard for many of us gardeners to fathom, perhaps, but many people are actually afraid of plants. They are afraid of what might lurk within gardens and afraid that a plant might reach out and touch them as they pass by. And many are afraid of the pollinators who visit or live in many of our gardens.
So, sadly, yes it makes sense to me that HOA’s and city councils and next door neighbors are sensitive to how yards are managed. All the more reason to keep our front yards (or whatever others can see) looking tended and cared for, which doesn’t mean manicured. Simple practices like keeping tall plants from spilling over into paths (I am guilty here and have to trim when visitors come by!) create a more comfortable experience for viewers and visitors. As does creating and maintaining a definitive edge that gives the impression that the garden isn’t sneaking out of bounds and about to run amok in the neighborhood. I feel like these are simple measures that enhance others openness, acceptance, and enjoyment of what we work so hard to create.
So true!
Architectural restrictions in many new neighbourhoods state what is and isn’t allowed including house colours, siding, structures and plantings. All to preserve the look of sameness. How boring! In our first home we turned the front crummy lawn into a beautiful ornamental garden, and an integrated edible garden along the side driveway, with narrow lawn paths. In less than a year everyone on our street had done something more decorative with their fronts inspiring a garden tour of the street’s gardens a few years later. This coming together allowed us to get to know our neighbours better and inspire a sense of community. All good.
Agree, that neatness in a native plant garden in the front yard is essential.
Deer decimated our traditional rose garden that bordered the NW side of our driveway. We replaced the rose garden with a “traditional style” perennial garden composed of 75% native plants. The plants are arranged in drifts of color in a 15’ x 60’ border. We use hidden plant supports to keep everything tidy. Neat edging helps.
Growing native plants in a traditionally styled and well maintained garden is a successful way to encourage people to include native plants in their home landscape. Inviting neighbors over for an evening “cocktail walk” through the garden is educational and fun.
Many. many years ago before habitat gardens were fashionable, a master gardener in our group was constantly complaining about the township citing his yard for uncontrolled weeds and ordering him to mow. He claimed he was providing wildlife habitat. He went to court many times over it. I had some sympathy for him and his wife until I drove him home one day.
His yard was a disaster. First, there was a large yawning hole, maybe 12 feet by 16 feet, in the middle. Six foot thistles grew up along the sides of the house and partially obstructed the door. There was no obvious path to the door. Basically he just quit mowing and let anything grow. Grass 4 feet high, sapling trees, ragweed, nettles, thistles, a weedy mess with kids faded toys scattered among it. He periodically transplanted things from “the wild” into it. He had a big hand painted sign stating this was native habitat stuck by the road.
He actually asked me as he got out of the car how I liked his native habitat. I asked about the hole and got his answer that when he got around to it, it would be a pond. I decided to be blunt. I told him he needed to mow, clear a path to the door, pick up the junk and fill in the hole. I asked him why he was taking a gardening course if he didn’t want to garden and told him he needed to look at some at some real native habitat gardens. And I told him I understood why the township was ticketing him. He wasn’t happy with my response.
I guess people do have the right to garden as they see fit or rather to maintain their property, because this isn’t gardening. But if they live in any kind of incorporated area they have to realize they are going to be battling with someone over a weedy mess. Native gardens can look good but I’ve seen a lot that are just people too lazy to do any maintenance and think they can put up a sign and take the easy road.
And what’s partly to blame is misinformation/overmarketing of native plants as care-free. I especially blame the message that native perennials borders, meadows etc are less work than lawn. (The typical, good-enough lawn, not golf course quality.)
Agree! – MW
It seems people either love my native garden or don’t. 6 years ago I had my lawn removed and planted native plants. I admit it got a little unruly as bushes grew and joe pye weed grew over 6 feet tall. Through the years I’ve moved plants around and tried different ones better suited for a small yard. All it takes is one neighbor to say she looks forward to seeing what pops up next! The two houses across the street from me have added natives and removed some lawn. We have fun trading plants and sharing seeds.
No one has to buy into a neighborhood that has an HOA. If you want the freedom to have what you consider a wildlife /eco friendly yard purchase accordingly. I know people who are absolutely miserable about their HOA but when asked why they chose to purchase there, knowing there is an HOA they cant explain it. Now it is true that even without an HOA there are other possible zoning and similar restrictions associated with living in urban areas. Those who cant tolerate those rules need to consider moving to a rural area.
I’m wondering where the kids are in these neighborhoods. I’ve never lived in a place with an HOA, but in the suburban neighborhood where I grew up, people paid close attention to what the neighbors were doing with their yards. Guess where we kids played? In the not-neglected-but-scruffiest-looking yard on the street. The lawn and shrubs were mowed and watered, but there were a few weeds and bare patches in the lawn and some shrubs that needed pruned. We didn’t care, because at least no grownup was going to come out and yell at us for climbing a tree or hiding in the shrubs during hide and seek. So, where do the kids play?
Typically in back yards, not front. I’ve read about some planned communities in Europe that site homes close to the street so that front yards are tiny, providing as much back-yard space as possibl8e for family uses. Large front yards are such a wasite.
Surprising to see this new Maryland HOA law cited by NYT as “first in the country” since we’ve had a similar law in Texas for nearly 10 years. It’s working well as I know gardeners who have reduced their lawn as a result. HOAs can require advanced approval of plans but cannot prevent replacing lawn with perennial beds. Now the rules focus more on keeping things neat.
Shirley, the NYT can’t be expected to travel over all that fly-over country to report on good things happening in Texas. 😉 😉 Good for you! – MW
Susan – such a great post! So balanced — and you brought up so many good points – particularly the conflation of ‘native plants’ with ‘wildlife friendly’, ‘sustainable’ and, I’ll add, ‘no maintenance’. I’m right where you are on this. A “Wildlife Friendly” sign does not a garden make, and I think that neighborhoods can have reasonable expectations of people keeping their front yards neat, without laying out exactly how it is to be accomplished. It’s such a shame that common sense covenants could not be enacted before thousands were spent on lawyer fees. -MW
I am glad I live in a part of MD where I can grow my grass 15ft tall if I choose to and put 15 broken tractors on my back acreage.