Edible lawns????

From http://www.organicconsumers.org

TURNING AMERICA'S WATER-GUZZLING LAWNS INTO EDIBLE ESTATES
The average temperature for the continental United States from January through June 2006 was the warmest first half of any year since records began being kept, according to scientists at the NOAA National Climatic Data Center.. As many U.S. states suffer from drought, tensions over water usage are escalating, particularly over the nation's obsession for green lawns. In Los Angeles, Fritz Haeg has launched a nationwide campaign called "Edible Estates," helping homeowners convert their water thirsty lawns into vegetable gardens or native vegetation. "It's about shifting ideas of what's beautiful," says Haeg. According to homeowners across the U.S. who have taken similar steps to convert their yards into more practical (and less water-hungry) plots of land, the biggest problem comes from neighbors who believe such yards will reduce property values in the neighborhood. Meanwhile, groups like Edible Estates, are working to highlight the major problems inherent in fertilizing, watering and applying pesticides to the millions of acres of lawns across the U.S. "Diversity is healthy," says Haeg. "The pioneers were ecologically-minded out of sheer necessity, because they had to eat what they grew. But we've lost touch with the garden as a food source." Learn more: "http://www.organicconsumers.org/2006/article_1105.cfm"

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THINGS YOUR LAWN NEVER WANTED YOU TO KNOW

* The EPA estimates that the total amount of residential lawn in the United States ranges around 40 million acres, making turf grass the nation's biggest irrigated crop.
* Americans pour as much as 238 gallons of water per person, per day onto lawns during the growing season.
* The U.S. lawn industry is a $70 billion annual business.
* America's 50 million or so lawnmowers burn through 800 million gallons of gas every year.

Source: United States EPA: Pesticide Environmental Stewardship Program