Ever bought a houseplant, only to let it wither away due to forgetfulness? Imagine the horror if someone dubbed you the worst plant keeper ever. It’s a scenario most of us wouldn’t know how to handle. However, there’s a woman out there who not only embraced her less-than-lush lawn but proudly clinched the title of the ‘Proud Owner of The World’s Ugliest Lawn.’ Yes, she won – a T-shirt and all.
In the World’s Ugliest Lawn competition, Kathleen Murray hailing from Australia’s Tasmania emerged victorious. Now, you might be wondering, how does one even stumble upon such a unique competition? Well, it turns out the Municipality of Gotland in Sweden decided to organise the World’s Ugliest Lawn competition to encourage water conservation during a near-disastrous drought, according to news.com.au.
And in a bizarre turn of events, Murray’s lawn, resembling a real-life Hungry Hungry Hippo game with yellow patches of grass, shrivelled plants and bandicoot-induced divots, took home the top prize.
Her triumph earned her not a glittering trophy, but a second-hand brown T-shirt donated by the previous year’s Gotland’s Ugliest Lawn winner. The shirt proudly declares her status as the ‘Proud owner of The World’s Ugliest Lawn.’
This year, the competition expanded its horizons on a global scale, thanks to the involvement of actor and environmental activist Shailene Woodley. As she unveiled the contest, Woodley expressed, “This challenge is a great way to influence people to use less water,” reported Hindustan Times.
In an interview with The Guardian, Murray revealed the secret behind her lawn’s unorthodox appearance. “The bandicoots love digging – that’s how they find their favourite food. Now my backyard looks like a real-life Hungry Hungry Hippo game. I also have an echidna that helps and some chooks,” she said.
Apparently, Murray has transformed her perception of bandicoots from wildlife of mass destruction to liberators who have saved her from ever having to mow her lawn again.
Living in an area without access to mains water, Murray and her four teenage children depend on collected rainwater stored in tanks. This liquid gold is too valuable to be squandered on the lawn, and during the dry summer months, the family has to endure a wait of up to two weeks for a water tanker to come to their rescue.
Indeed, Murray’s lawn, as peculiar as it may seem, played a role in reducing water consumption on the island by 5% compared to the previous summer, according to Gotland.com.
The jury, faced with the daunting task of choosing the world’s ugliest lawn, deliberated for nearly two hours. “All of them were hideous and well worthy of winning, but the winning entry was really, really bad,” confessed Mimmi Gibson, representing the Municipality of Gotland.
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