You could look into lawn alternatives. Here the rules are no weeds and vegetation can’t be over 6 inches unless it is intentionally cultivated. So I have native plants in garden beds around my house that take up roughly 50% of the yard, and the “lawn” portion is mostly native groundcovers that are unlikely to reach above 6 inches. I rarely have to do anything to it since it’s mostly native. We go out there maybe once a month to mow the little grass that’s left (which we’re phasing out as natives spread) and pull weeds.
It was a little more work up front to make beds and plant natives, but we did it the lazy way, starting out small and expanding over the years as natives grew and spread. We did temporary borders of cardboard with rocks on top to smother grass and expand out as needed.
I’m in an HOA as well and am working around their rules. Occasionally I’ll get a notice about “weeds,” and I have to give them a call and gently remind them that I’m compliant with the rules. Here in Texas we have laws that the HOA can’t force us to grow exotic grasses or have rules against xeriscaping, so hopefully your area has something similar. People have also had success getting their yards certified as wildlife habitats, so that might be an option. If all else fails, keeping a large garden with a small strip of mowed grass in the front might be a good compromise.
You could look into lawn alternatives. Here the rules are no weeds and vegetation can’t be over 6 inches unless it is intentionally cultivated. So I have native plants in garden beds around my house that take up roughly 50% of the yard, and the “lawn” portion is mostly native groundcovers that are unlikely to reach above 6 inches. I rarely have to do anything to it since it’s mostly native. We go out there maybe once a month to mow the little grass that’s left (which we’re phasing out as natives spread) and pull weeds.
It was a little more work up front to make beds and plant natives, but we did it the lazy way, starting out small and expanding over the years as natives grew and spread. We did temporary borders of cardboard with rocks on top to smother grass and expand out as needed.
Sadly I’m in an HOA, so it would never fly.
I’m in an HOA as well and am working around their rules. Occasionally I’ll get a notice about “weeds,” and I have to give them a call and gently remind them that I’m compliant with the rules. Here in Texas we have laws that the HOA can’t force us to grow exotic grasses or have rules against xeriscaping, so hopefully your area has something similar. People have also had success getting their yards certified as wildlife habitats, so that might be an option. If all else fails, keeping a large garden with a small strip of mowed grass in the front might be a good compromise.