A beautiful dandelion in the Red Bank sun. (Photo by Brian Donohue. Click to enlarge.)
By BRIAN DONOHUE
At redbankgreen we love dandelions. As any toddler knows instinctively, they’re beautiful. And no amount of up-is-down marketing from the lawn industrial complex will ever convince us they’re a menace that must be eradicated with herbicides or even a tiny smidge of elbow grease. And so, for Earth Day, we are launching a contest to celebrate those little bursts of sunshine and the lawn (non) tenders who aren’t buying what Big Lawn is selling. Introducing Red Bank’s first dandelion display contest.
This home on South Street flawlessly – and effortlessly – features a great dandelion display to complement the phlox in the background. (Photo by Brian Donohue. Click to enlarge.)
Here’s how it works. Take a photo of your lawn or a friend’s lawn you think has a fantastic display of yellow flowers or fluffy seed heads. A description of the grower’s approach and motivation, whether it’s a love for the aesthetic, environmental consciousness or sheer wonderful sloth, is nice but not required. Email it to [email protected] along with your name and the address of the dandelion display by Wednesday.
Later this week (or in the true spirit of this, whenever the heck we get around to it) we’ll personally visit the locations of the top submissions and award Red Bank’s first ever champion dandelion grower a redbankgreen hoodie sweatshirt to wear when they are enjoying a beverage of choice on their porch instead of picking dandelions or putting harmful chemicals on their lawns. Besides the sweatshirt, the winner will claim bragging rights as Red Bank’s first ever free thinking, beauty-appreciating dandelion champ.
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