Lawns of Fox Run
A tiny sub-section of a neighborhood in Apopka, FL. Abundant insight into the curious relationship between people and their lawns
About Apopka, FL
A growing town in the outskirts of Orlando, Apopka has a rich social, economic, and ecological history. It is home to Lake Apopka (the fourth largest lake in the state), beautiful nature trails, and scenic springs. Apopka, the romanticized small town, has seen its direction and way of life change as more chain stores and new people enter the town. In present day, Apopka has many neighborhoods, and a noteworthy degree of diversity in the people who inhabit them.
Fun fact: due to its numerous Greenhouse nurseries, Apopka has long been called the ‘Indoor Foliage Capital of the World’.
Overview of Themes
This section analyzes the interviews and summarizes the most recurrent ideas from the conversations.
Individual Experiences
This section includes excerpts from the interviews and pictures from the related lawns. For the cases in which the interviewee preferred to not share images, or shared very few, I've accompanied the excerpts with Google Earth images of my neighborhood.
Lawn #1: balanced and beloved
This interviewee speaks about why and how he takes care of his lawn, reflecting on his environmental responsibilities and the influence that his early experiences with lawn-care had in how he engages with his lawn today.
Thoughts and Questions: here, a political dimension is added to the conversation. What does it mean for a homeowners' association to have such a strong say on the way people can design their homes and spaces? Why is this interference with personal freedoms not as demonized as having to wear a mask in a public space? | In a separate note, there's also an awareness that the choices made at home impact the environment we live in, which is conveyed through his use of Lake Apopka as an example. More information on Lake Apopka: https://fleetfarming.org/the-history-of-agriculture-on-lake-apopka-birds-alligators-farm-workers/
Lawn #2: disciplined and proud
In a lighthearted manner, the second interviewee shared crucial moments from his childhood that resulted in a life-long interest in lawn-care. Among many other things, he speaks about the relationship between a house and a lawn, and about the places where weeds can exist.
Thoughts and Questions: this neighbor suggests that our lawns are reflections of our character. When does that stop? It seems like our private property can be directly associated with us - can we also be held accountable for how public and shared spaces look? | Besides the appearance, that the plant couldn't be easily identified rendered it a weed. It's interesting that the unknown is easily categorized as undesirable, too.
Lawn #3: bare minimum and impersonal
This neighbor is a renter. She shares her opinions on the environment's wellbeing and the ways she engages with nature, while shedding some light on why she doesn't really have a relationship with her lawn. A considerable amount of people rent a house in this neighborhood, which is why their perspectives were deemed valuable contributions.
Thoughts and Questions: throughout the interview, there was a verbalized disenchantment with how planned out and unnatural the green parts of our neighborhoods seem to be. How wild does the world around us have to be for it to count as nature? Why is it that the human touch renders a space less natural when humans are part of nature, too? For more on this conversation, check out this ted-talk: https://www.ted.com/talks/emma_marris_nature_is_everywhere_we_just_need_to_learn_to_see_it?language=en
Lawn #4: obliging and undemanding
The simple, yet presentable, lawn tells the story of a neighbor who is not very fond of gardening herself, but who is committed to enhancing the appearance of the spaces visible to those around her. She speaks about the persevering plants she is fond of, and shares her recently developed environmental concerns.
Thoughts and questions: how easy is it to abandon pesticides and herbicides and chemicals when it comes to lawn-care? To what extent are these environmentally harmful approaches unavoidable? What does being a good neighbor mean, and why do we tend to think about our responsibilities towards a community only in the immediate context? Who do we care about in our community? Why have we normalized excluding non-human biota from our conceptions of community?
Lawn #5: the simultaneously low-maintenance and high-maintenance lawn
Humans, plants, and grasses from all over the world have convened in this neighborhood. An interviewee native to Puerto Rico - with a grass native to Asia (Zoysia) - speaks about her preferences and concerns when it comes to caring for her lawn.
Thoughts and Question: there's a powerful commitment to the spaces around us that is so poignantly conveyed here. There's an attachment and eagerness to defend the space that we live in and how we think it's supposed to look.
Conclusion
The process of engaging with my neighbors and learning more about my community - natural and human - was deeply rewarding. As conversations flourished and new perspectives emerged from the interviews, the mundanity I had associated with my neighborhood was challenged. In hearing and learning from the people around me, I began to question what I deemed normal, I learned how nuanced something as simple as a lawn can be, and I solidified my commitment to practicing curiosity before judgment when understanding myself and the world around me.
In the spirit of curiosity, I invite you to explore the lawns and the nature of your neighborhood. Ask yourself: 'What does my lawn say about me?'
