Water conservation is on everyone's mind today, as it should be. And when it comes to lawns, some people are quick to point a finger at over water use. It's true that far too many homeowners often over water their lawns in an effort to achieve and maintain a plush carpet of green. But the fact is, lawns don't have to be green to be healthy, and many lawns, including those in and around residential properties, our community parks, school playgrounds, etc., rely solely on the water that nature provides.

Everyone associated with the green industry, regardless of the service they have to offer, or the product they choose to sell, has a responsibility to educate the public on proper water or chemical use. We don't believe legislative action should be necessary to restrict lawns any more than we believe there should be a ban on dogs because some owners neglect to clean up the mess their pets leave behind.

We also believe there can be a balance between the use of turfgrass and the other options such as ground covers, shade loving perennials, ornamental grasses and various shrubs.

We're not quite sure if anyone has ever made the claim that "only lawns" add to curb appeal. We do however know that lawns and turfgrass offer many environmental benefits that are often overlooked or of which the public is unaware, such as: cooling the air, producing oxygen, filtering the air, reducing pollution, capturing and suppressing dust, recharging storm water runoff, controlling soil erosion, retaining and sequestering carbon, assisting in the decomposition of pollutants, restoring soil quality, dissipating heat, lowering allergy related problems, reducing home cooling costs, serving as a fire barrier, etc.

The environmental, community, human-health and economic benefits of turfgrass lawns are considerable and everyone involved in the green industry, be they nursery stock growers, landscape contractors, lawn maintenance firms, garden center owners/managers, arborists, horticulturists, master gardeners, extension specialist, educators, allied suppliers, manufacturers and turfgrass producers need to work together to keep the general public informed, educated and aware.

Natural turfgrass offers tremendous environmental benefits that need to be taken into account, and more importantly, we don't have to pamper our lawns to enjoy those immeasurable benefits.