Eli5: How come the median between highway lanes is so barren?

Question

I understand that it’s not the most hospitable environment for most plants (salt, car accidents, minimal animal traffic) but that space gets mowed to keep what grows there short. Why not have some wildflowers, native grass, or even trees there? Trees would act as an extra barrier between such fast traffic

In: 9

Answer 1

Those medians are often clear zones, so if you get run off road you don’t cross into the other direction of traffic. Imagine you were going 60mph and you slammed into a mature established tree, you would probably be dead.