Why Should I Care For My Lawn?

Have you ever asked yourself this question, especially after spending several hours on a Saturday morning mowing, trimming, weeding, and watering a bunch of grass? If you have a lawn service, they are probably advising you to mow it higher, water it more often, and to spend more and more of your money and time on something that will grow without much effort from you, anyway. So, why is it necessary to care for your lawn, or hire a professional company to do the work for you, when grass has been growing on its own for thousands of years without any human help?

The best way to answer this question is to explain that grass, grown as a lawn, is not a natural system. The concept of lawn care is relatively new. Keeping the grass cut used to be a job for sheep. Lawn mowers have only been around for the last hundred years or so, and power mowers for much less time than that. Someone decided that a nice manicured lawn looked good around a house. From that point, it just blossomed into a "keeping up with the Jones" situation. Keeping the grass cut makes sense. It is easier to find the front door if you do not have to trudge through waist-high grass. Many little creatures make their home in the tall grass. A few of these could easily find their way into the house. Mice, snakes, and dozens of insects find the tall grass a great place to live and breed. Keeping the grass cut will provide a less desirable habitat for these creatures. At one time, only the wealthy could afford to maintain a nice lawn. With the advances in fertilizers and the availability of many pest control products, lawn care has become something that anyone can do, or can have done for them.

As was mentioned earlier, lawns are not a natural system, and need human intervention to keep them healthy and growing. It is the same with a farmer's crop. Wheat, corn, soy beans, or any of the other cash crops will all grow by themselves, but will not produce the desired yields without the help of the farmer. Grass will grow on its own, but will not give a pleasing aesthetic appearance to a home without help. It has been estimated that a pleasing landscape and well-maintained lawn will increase the value of a home by about 15%. A healthy lawn has environmental advantages as well. The Professional Lawn Care Association of America, or PLCAA, sites several environmental advantages of healthy lawns at their website at http://www.plcaa.org. 

A healthy lawn will aid or benefit the following areas:

• Oxygen production
• Temperature modification
• Allergy control
• Pollutant absorption
• Particulate entrapment
• Fire retardation
• Water quality

According to the EPA's publication Healthy Lawn, Healthy Environment, "Healthy grass provides feeding ground for birds, who find it a rich source of insects, worms, and other food. Thick grass prevents soil erosion, filters contaminants from rainwater, and absorbs many types of airborne pollutants, like dust and soot. Grass is also highly efficient at converting carbon dioxide to oxygen, a process that helps clean the air."
Therefore, the next time you go out to mow or water your lawn, remember that your lawn plays a significant role in the welfare of our environment. We, at When Nature Calls, encourage you to visit their website and learn more about the benefits of a healthy lawn and landscape.