My mother, who was a gardener/landscaper, kept an untreated yard when I was a child (and still does). I always enjoyed the non-uniformity and fullness of it, in

My mother, who was a gardener/landscaper, kept an untreated yard when I was a child (and still does). I always enjoyed the non-uniformity and fullness of it, in addition to the seasonality. While some neighbours' grass lawns would develop bald patches or dead grass in spots where light and water were not ideal, we would just have a different mix of plants ("weeds") in those areas. Under our trees we would get more shade-loving plants, for example. Every niche is filled in by nature.