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Hell in a Handbasket: Amidst the Drought, Californians are Painting Their Dead Lawns Green

Maybe next they can invent makeup that makes it look like you're not thirsty

By Rain Noe - July 23, 2015

in Object Culture

This is being presented as a "drought hack," demonstrating how far one can stretch the definition of the latter word.

Amidst California's recent drought, a lot of folks' lawns are unsurprisingly dying. That's what happens when humans try to force particular breeds of nature to exist in inhospitable climates. And so concerned are a subset of Californians with appearances, and so disrespectful are they of nature, that they are now paying in the neighborhood of 25 cents per square foot to have companies spraypaint their lawns green.

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To be fair to the painters, both the guy mentioned in the video and this Sacramento-based lawn painter claim their paints are non-toxic. The latter painter claims that "there are no chemicals in the paint that we use, it is and (sic) non-toxic, so it is 100% completely safe for your kids, pets and any other living thing your lawn comes into contact with and for the lawn itself."

I'd like to see more details as to the chemical composition, but none are provided.

Wouldn't a better solution be to do what the southwestern states do, and landscape with cacti and plants that can naturally cut it in the climate?

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Drew Douglass

9 years ago

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It's fun to poke fun at California and I suppose we deserve it. Please know that we laugh at you guys and the endless annual "snowmageddon" stories (and being a former east coaster, I revel in those stories, so please don't stop--they make my winter each year). Plus, the story above it's sensationalism at it's best; a great way to get attention to an article that is filled mostly with fluff. The reality here locally in the Bay Area is much different and (of course) more complex. Few people in my area are painting their lawns. You don't actually even hear much about it. In fact, I just went and did a Yelp search for "Lawn Painting" in the seven Bay Area counties and only found two companies offering it. Granted, you do hear about lawn painting in some other areas (i.e. **real** suburbia) where the 1950's-60's "keeping up with the Joneses" mentality still prevails.

The **real** problem is not painting lawns--I could care less if they do it--as long as it is really non-toxic (probably isn't). But a bigger problem for me in my eyes is that some are still actually **watering** their lawns in the thick of the drought. In the face of higher water rates, potential fines, scorn from their neighbors, etc., they're still watering regardless. Some folks aren't even trying to hide it or be slick about it. They aren't even waiting before or after the mandated time frame (varies on the community, but often before 8am and then after 6pm, to reduce loss to evaporation), they just water, water, and water some more. I saw one house where they'd just left a sprinkler on for a good hour or more. And in the Bay Area, let's face it, due to the price of land, most of us have postage-stamp size yards anyway, so really, what's the deal on watering that 20' x 20' thing for a couple hours? What good are you doing?

Other situations where you have automatic sprinklers, people have pop up heads that are broken, and sprays aren't adjusted, or systems that are inefficient and old. So much could be done with drip systems, fabric, mulch, and using native plants (or ornamental edibles, IMHO).

In my household, we're in the spirit, cutting water use by about 30% in comparison to bills from this same time in past years. And yes, Rain, as you point out, we're doing it by letting some non-native plants die and pull them out, replacing them with succulents, cacti, and native plants. We also have tried replacing a portion of the lawn with a drought tolerant ground cover, with mixed results. For now, though, that new groung cover is all we have, as the rest of the lawn has been left to die. But beyond that, not mentioned in your article, we're also doing larger, longer term things like we replaced an old toilet with a high water saving dual-flush model. I already had an efficient and green front loader washer and dryer, so not much we can do there. And we really, really, really miss our tub, but shorter showers will do for now.

Sorry to ramble on, but just a few thoughts from the front lines of the drought!

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Leif Forrest

9 years ago

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Nothing new. They done this in the southwest for decades at least.

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Chris Witham

9 years ago

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I've felt like this drought is a great chance for someone to come up with a great design plan to kill the front lawn in California. Think of all the cool ways you could use that space if you weren't tied to the traditional suburban plan. Those rocks in arizona and new mexico always feel like the most out of place "Band-Aid" solution I've ever seen. Although maybe only slightly less than painting your grass green.

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Survival Skills

9 years ago

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is a good article might help stop the water crisis in California, in my search I found an article as good or a little better about the drought in California and how it could stop the scourge, but also about world water war and H2O Dynamo https://www.patriotdirect.org/californias-drought-problem-a-problem-that-was-waiting-to-happen/

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Wes Bell

9 years ago

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"Amid"(not "Amidst"), please.

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Kivi Shapiro

9 years ago

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How can there be a chemical composition when "there are no chemicals in the paint that [they] use"? I figure they actually just give you a pair of green-tinted glasses.

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Jay Prospero

9 years ago

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It's okay it's water based paint.

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Eric Strebel

9 years ago

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That is messed up!

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Juan Cano

9 years ago

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That is awesome!!! I hate having a nice front lawn, we've made 2/3 of our front lawn into flower beds or vegetable gardens. I love the idea of painting your lawn, it's so Vegas.

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D Louder

9 years ago

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Leave it to someone named Rain to post something anti-California. :p

All kidding aside, that is horrifying. And more disheartening that it's in my city. I know the drought is bad and lawns look bad, but jeez.

I do also agree with your idea of using drought resistant/local plants for landscaping. I don't know why more people don't go for it. That or AstroTurf or something.

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