June 11th

By Mutt Mulligan

5 reasons your lawn is an outdoor playground (and more!)

If you have a lawn, you’ve got a playground for kids and pets to enjoy. A lawn offers a sturdy place for children and animals to play. In fact, our yards and green spaces offer amazing benefits for our families and communities. Now that summer is here and we will spend more time outdoors, TurfMutt shares a few reasons why our lawns are awesome.

Reason #1: Your lawn offers a safe place for kids and pets to play. A usable outdoor area providing a spacious living area for the entire family, including when it’s time to play! Turfgrass can handle the pounding of little feet and paws, while providing a soft landing pad for tumbles and fun.

Reason #2: Your lawn can help kids get into shape while having fun. Outdoor play is an important strategy in helping the one in three American kids who are obese get fit. It increases fitness levels and builds active, healthy bodies. Research also shows that children’s stress levels fall within minutes of seeing green spaces.

Reason #3: Your lawn can make you happier. Research shows that knowing and experiencing nature, including green space, makes us generally happier, healthier people. Just looking out a window at green spaces can lower adult stress levels. Walking or running in green spaces, instead of synthetic environments, can lead to decreased anger, fatigue and feelings of depression, while increasing attention levels.

Reason #4: Your grass cools down your community and the area around your home. This is especially important in cities, where asphalt and hardscape radiate heat. Grass dissipates this radiant heat through a process called evapotranspiration, which combats the heat island effect.

Reason #5: Your lawn helps control water runoff and erosion. Grass acts like a sponge and prevents water from “running off” into area sewer drains and carrying anything it collects along the way – like motor oil or dirt. Grass cleans the water it collects and breaks down harmful microbes and pollutants, keeping them out of groundwater supplies. The natural filtration system in your lawn is so effective that rain water filtered through a healthy lawn is often as much as 10 times less acidic than water running off a hard surface like a sidewalk or hardscape. It also prevents flooding and soil erosion by “hanging on” to soil.

To get more information and tips on maintaining your lawn, go to SaveLivingLandscapes.com.