Grow Food, Not Lawns

Producing food locally is good for our planet and our health.

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Maintaining your lawn consumes large amounts of water and fossil fuels.

• Residential lawns in the United States consume 270 billion gallons of water every year.
• Most fertilizers and pesticides used on lawns are petroleum based, and residential lawns use 10 times as many chemicals as industrial agricultural systems.
• The emissions from using a mower for one hour are equal to a roundtrip drive from Cleveland to Detroit.

Buying and growing food locally can reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Buy local

• Reduce your food miles by shopping at your local farmers market.  To find a farmers market near you, check out the Harvest Guide at www.cvcountryside.org.
• Local food purchased at a farmers market travels an average of 63 miles. The same food bought at a grocery story travels an average of 1,500 miles. 
• Greenhouse gases from transporting food can increase rates of asthma, heat stress and waterborne diseases.

Grow local

• Join a community garden and grow your own fresh fruits and vegetables really close to home. To find a community garden in your neighborhood call OSU Extension at (216) 429-8238.
• It takes 10 calories of fossil fuels to produce one calorie of food. You’ll use fewer calories if you grow your own.  Plus, gardening can be good exercise, which can actually burn calories in your body!

Try composting

• Each American throws away over 400 pounds of food waste on average per year.  Composting keeps these food scraps out of landfills where they decay and release greenhouse gases.
• All you need to start a compost pile is kitchen scraps, a carbon source (such as straw or leaves) and a pitchfork. For more information: www.epa.state.oh.us/ocapp/food_scrap
  

What can YOU do?

• Convert part or all of your lawn to garden.
• Compost your kitchen waste.
• Join a community garden.
• Shop at your local farmers market.
• Cut your grass with a push mower.
• Support restaurants and cafes that purchase local ingredients.