8 Weird Facts You Didn’t Know About Your Lawn
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It’s that time of year, folks–the sun is out more, the temperatures are warming up, and the green grass in your yard is seemingly growing inches every day. While not everyone in America has a lawn to mow, most single family homes in the country do, indeed, have at least a patch of spiky green stuff. Here are ten fun facts about lawn care, grass, and the magic that is the American front (and back) yard.
Fact #1: The average American spends four hours per week during the spring and summer on lawn care.
In America, lush, green lawns are something homeowners take a lot of pride in. So much so, in fact, that during the months when grass is growing, they spend an average of four hours per week tending to their lawns. That’s 10% of an average work week, so that’s a lot of time. However, many people find yard work to be rewarding and relaxing. And to those who don’t find it to be either, you can always buy a condo or hire a pro.
Fact #2: Americans spend nearly $30 billion dollars each year on lawn care supplies.
Speaking of hiring a pro, as a country, we spend $30 billion (yes, that’s a ‘B’, not an ‘M’) on making our lawns look pretty. From hiring professional landscapers to mow for us to purchasing weed killer to get rid of those pesky weeds that pop up in drive cracks, American homeowners love to keep their yards looking spectacular.
Fact #3: Roughly 40% of the total acres of grass in the U.S. is privately owned.
In America, there are more than 51 million total acres of grass– and roughly 20 of those 51 million are owned privately by home and business owners. That’s a lot of grass to keep up with!
Fact #4: Approximately on 50×50 parcel of green grass produces enough oxygen to keep you alive daily.
If we placed you in a dome with a 50×50 patch of green, healthy grass, it would provide you with enough oxygen to sustain your own life every single day. Meanwhile, you’d be giving it the gift of carbon dioxide when you exhaled–which it needs to create oxygen. How very…harmonious!
Fact #5: You should switch up the direction you mow your grass each week.
In order to keep your lawn healthy, you should switch the direction in which you mow your lawn each week. Diagonals, horizontals, and verticals–swap one for another every week and you’ll see your grass grow thicker and lusher over time.
Fact #6: Your grass gets stressed, so don’t aggravate it.
You should never mow your lawn during conditions that are too wet, too hot, or too dry. Grass actually gets stressed and its quality will diminish over time if it is cut during times of stress. Mow your lawn when it’s cool and hasn’t rained in at least 24 hours, if at all possible.
Fact #7: Nearly 70,000 people are injured by lawnmowers each year.
Yikes! That’s a lot of injuries, and we’d bet some of them are pretty gruesome. Great advancements have been made in terms of lawnmower safety over the year, but people still seem to injure themselves–especially during the summer months. Remember, at the end of the day, your lawnmower is still a machine that spins a super sharp blade around really, really quickly. Be careful out there, homeowners.
Fact #8: There is actually a lawnmower museum in Britain.
If you ever find yourself in Merseyside, Great Britain, be sure to stop at the great British Lawnmower museum. Yes, it actually exists.
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