It's just pretty...right?

"Turf is not an essential part of modern society. We can do without it."

I would venture to say that variations of the statement above have been heard by most turfgrass managers at some point in their career. Turfgrass is, after all, just a living carpet that children run around on in the backyards of the suburbs. It is, after all, just a shortcut across that empty expanse in front of the HUB-Robesen Center here at The Pennsylvania State University. Turfgrass is nothing more than eye-candy, and is far from a vital part of our infrastructure. Yes my fellow turf managers, the only place our skills are of use is in the realm of leisure. WRONG!

The role that turfgrass plays in our modern society is often overlooked. We all know that turf is the primary choice of playing surfaces for many of our outdoor recreational activities. However, sometimes other uses for turfgrass are more subtle and less likely to be appreciated. I would like you to consider for a moment that you are embarking on a business trip....

• You wake up early and after your morning routine, you hop in your car and begin your drive to the airport. On the way to your flight, you encounter morning traffic backed up on the highway.
  

This highway, like many, is elevated slightly above the surrounding terrain. Along the roadside banks grows a low-maintenance variety of fescue that is rooted well in the soil. This grass plant is not here to be a beautiful roadside decoration, but is here to grant stability to the road. The grass here is vital for preventing the erosion of the banks and of the road itself. In addition to this, the thousands of idling vehicles along this congested section of your morning commute are pumping out pollutants. A turfgrass stand is very capable as a natural air filter, and without turfgrass along roadsides, more pollutants enter the atmosphere.

• Thankfully, the traffic picks up and you catch your flight to California just in time.

• Now you are airborne, gaining altitude and heading west. As you near Los Angeles you are amazed at the amount of green patches in amongst the homes of this sprawling city.
  

Every one of these lawns is providing multiple benefits to the surrounding area. Similar to before, the grass acts as a filter for pollutants, but several other important things are happening as well. The temperature in Los Angeles can become unbearable in the summer months, and with so much blacktop and concrete, the heat is even more intense. However, every place where there is a patch of healthy turf, we are granted an escape from the unbearable heat. Not only does turf not become as hot as the surrounding roadways and sidewalks, it is also capable of a cooling process called transpiration. Transpiration is a physiological process that releases moisture, cooling the plant. This release of water vapor can significantly reduce the air temperature in the immediate vicinity of the turfgrass stand. In addition to the comfort that grass adds here, the contiguous ground cover also keeps dust suppressed and keeps mud from being tracked inside of the homes.

• As your plane slowly descends, the houses race by too fast to follow anymore, and you touch down gently on the runway. After touching down, your pilot taxis the plane toward your gate. Looking out the window, you observe a substantial amount of turf between the runways of LAX.
  

In this instance, the grass is providing all of the benefits discussed above, but one in particular is of extreme importance. The suppression of dust is vital to the smooth and safe operation of the modern aircraft. When planes take off and land, dusty runways raise the risk of foreign objects being sucked in to their engines. When foreign objects cause damage to an aircraft, the aviation industry calls it F.O.D (foreign object damage). When this happens, expensive parts may be required and expensive labor is needed to install them. In a worst case scenario, F.O.D. can cause an aircraft to crash with catastrophic results. Obviously, we want to avoid this, we want our planes safely in the sky, and turfgrass makes F.O.D. less of an issue at the interface of land and air.

• You have arrived safe in Los Angeles with turfgrass playing it's ever-present role in the background of modern society.

Considering these examples of turf being used outside of recreation, it is difficult to argue that it is strictly aesthetic. Turf plays a vital supporting role in the infrastructure of our towns, cities, and sprawling metropolises. Turf is here to stay, and as we advance as a society and as a civilization, it is hard to imagine us without the grass plant.

(photo obtained from www.mellowmonk.com)