Get Off My Lawn

Sidedoor

Smithsonian Institution

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4.6 • 2.3K Ratings

🗓️ 10 May 2023

⏱️ 31 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Nowhere in the world are lawns as revered as they are in the United States. The picture-perfect patch of grass is so deeply rooted in the American psyche it feels more like a default setting than a choice. Americans spend countless hours every year seeding, watering, mowing, and fertilizing patches of grass that don't make much sense, economically or ecologically. But why? In this episode, we dig into the history of our lawnly love to learn where the concept came from...and how we grew so obsessed.

Guests:

Cindy Brown, manager of collections, education, and access at Smithsonian Gardens

Joyce Connolly, museum specialist at the Smithsonian’s Archives of American Gardens

Abeer Saha, curator of agriculture and engineering at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History

Sylvia Schmeichel, lead horticulturist at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History

Jeff Schneider, deputy director of Smithsonian Gardens

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello, Side Door Bowls. It's May, which means tis the season when many are dawning gardening
0:05.4	gloves, brandishing pruning shears, and heading outside to take on the lawn. So we thought we'd
0:11.3	share one of our favorite episodes from the Side Door Library, all about the roots of our American
0:16.4	love for lawns. With some practical tips thrown in as well. We'll be back in two weeks with a brand new episode for you.
0:23.3	But in the meantime, pop in those earbuds while you're reading and enjoy.
0:36.1	This is Side Door, a podcast from the Smithsonian with support from PRX.
0:40.5	I'm Lizzie Peabody.
0:41.5	It's a beautiful morning for a stroll in the grass, and not just any grass.
0:59.6	So in front of me is the Capitol building.
1:02.6	Behind me is the Washington Monument.
1:05.7	And in between is just huge swaths of green, like a big green,
1:11.6	green, soft carpet.
1:15.6	It's the kind of grass that makes you want to kick off your shoes.
1:19.6	That's me wiggling my toes.
1:22.6	The smell of fresh-cooked grass in summertime takes me right back to childhood.
1:32.5	Summer evenings when it stayed light after dinner, and I could go outside with my brothers and play.
1:36.9	And we come back in all sweaty and itchy from tumbling around in the grass of our yard.
1:45.8	Here, on America's front yard, you'll find people all summer long, snapping photos, tossing frisbees, playing kickball, reading, sunbathing,
1:52.1	and in spite of all the wear and tear it gets, the National Mall is the poster child for the all-American lawn, all the same green, all the same height, not a weed in sight, soft, fuzzy,
2:06.5	a little bit damp. It's nice. But what does it take to make a lawn that looks so perfect? I knew just who to ask about this, because just a few paces away,
2:15.2	go past the carousel, past this little fountain next to the castle, and through the gates
2:27.0	of the Hout Garden, tucked behind the Smithsonian Castle is Jeff.
	...

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