Did you know that Kentucky Blue Grass, a grass with a 2-3" deep root system and the typical lawn grass in Minnesota, is from an area in Europe that gets 3 times more annual rainfall that we get in Minnesota?  When it doesn't rain here for a week or two it starts to get stressed out (because its shallow roots easily get dry), so people freak out and pour a lot of water on it to keep it limping along.  In Bloomington lawns are watered with treated drinking water, much of this is pumped up from deep aquifers that are 400 to 1,000 feet below the earth's surface.  Did you know that lawn irrigation can account for half of treated drinking water consumed in the summer?  Much of this irrigation water is wasted by watering already wet or overly compacted soils, watering driveways and streets, and watering during hot and windy days which causes loss through evaporation.  We can do better than this to protect our finite drinking water sources.

Did you know that something so simple as planting a fine-fescue blend lawn grass, with a 8" deep root system that is very efficient, could save a whole lotta drinking water from being wasted on watering lawn grass? 

Water-Smart Landscaping is an educational program that teaches simple tips for the lawn and landscape that can save a lot of water, build better soil (under the lawn and garden), and also how to select the right plants for the right place.