Pink grass planet

Pink grass planet by Jr. Sam Merwin is a science-fiction short story written in the mid-20th century. It centers on humanity’s susceptibility to fads, showing how alien aesthetics and customs sweep across Earth and reshape culture and landscape, highlighting the costs of imitation and the clash between beauty and authenticity.

Ricardo Webb returns from the alien world Liguria longing for Earth and his fiancée, Carla, but finds home overrun by Ligurian fashions: slang, drink, permissive social rituals, and a craze for chlorodyll, a chemical that turns all foliage permanently pink. Even Carla sports dyed hair and sideways kisses, and a televised spectacle and country-club ball celebrate imported customs. Horrified as lawns and prairies blush into confectionary hues, Ricardo decides Earth has become a shallow copy of the world he left. He heads back to the stars, signing on for a long hitch to Liguria—and brings a crate of seeds, declaring he will turn that pink planet green, a final, ironic bid to reclaim authenticity by transforming the very world he once fled. (This is an automatically generated summary.)