Environment Today

Oxygen and Turfgrass

(HIT) - Our air is cleansed by plants through the process of photosynthesis. Green plants take in carbon dioxide and water and use the energy from sunlight in photosynthesis, which produces carbohydrates for the plant to live off of and releases the true breath of life ... pure oxygen.

A turf area 50' x 50' produces enough oxygen to meet the every day needs of a family of four and each acre of grass produces enough oxygen for 64 people a day.

The grass and trees along our country's interstate system produce enough oxygen to support 22 million people!

Erosion Control

Soil erosion is one of the most pressing environmental problems facing the U.S. today.  Nearly 6 billion tons of soil wash or blow away each year, a figure exceeding the amount of erosion experienced during the devastating "Dust Bowl" years of the 1930s. Soil erosion costs between $6 billion and $16 billion a year.

Turfgrass is the best defense against soil erosion. Grass binds the soil more effectively than any other plant. The reason is that each grass plant has an extensive root system. Up to 90% of the weight of a grass plant is in its roots. A single grass plant grown under ideal conditions has over 300 miles of roots.

Healthy turf areas absorb rainfall 6 times more effectively than a wheat field and 4 times better than a hay field. A thick healthy lawn reduces runoff to next to nothing. No wonder newly excavated earth is so quickly replanted to turfgrass.

These are just some of your lawn’s ecosystem services. To learn more, visit www.thelawninstitute.org.

NOTE: Survey data was collected by the Maryland Agricultural Statistics Service which also tabulated the results and wrote the findings.

About The Lawn Institute

In 1955, The Lawn Institute was created as a not-for-profit corporation to assist in and encourage through research and education the improvement of lawns and sports turf. Since then, the Institute has been one of the most respected authorities in the world among turf professionals and scientists for monitoring, reporting, and interpreting the latest advances in turfgrass research, landscape horticulture, and agronomic science. The Lawn Institute conducts its own research program which funds some of the world's highest regarded turf scientist to fill gaps in our knowledge. It is the desire of The Lawn Institute that natural turfgrass is utilized and properly cared for in everyplace that it is applicable. The Lawn Institute is proud to make it's over 50 years of expertise available to everyone.

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