Florida Sod Growers Say Banning Grass is Not the Answer to Water Conservation

Lake County, Fla., commissioners appear to be backing away from a proposed ban on St. Augustine grass on new homes and developments.

The backpedaling came Tuesday after representatives from Florida's sod industry pleaded with commissioners to rethink the proposed ban, part of a new landscape ordinance in the works for Lake County.

Irrigation controls, water-saving technologies and education would be more effective than banning a grass that can sometimes be more resilient than other drought-resistant varieties, those industry leaders argued during a Tuesday county commission workshop.

Simply banning a grass instead of encouraging methods for water conservation doesn't get commissioners to the ultimate goal of saving water, said David Dymond, board member with the Florida Sod Growers Cooperative and general manager of a sod growing business.

"The main purpose of this ordinance is to save water," Dymond said. "It's not a plant or variety issue. It's a usage issue."

Commissioner Linda Stewart took a similar tack, saying there were larger issues at hand than a certain type of grass.

"The goal here is not to ban anything, it's to conserve water," she said.

The county's proposed landscaping ordinance is aimed at curtailing water use on irrigation, which the St. Johns River Water Management District says represents up to 50 percent of water consumption in the county.

Original plans showed Lake banning St. Augustine grass from any new home or commercial developments as part of an effort to reduce irrigation.

Banning the grass could affect the local economy, said Jim Spratt, director of governmental affairs for the Florida Nursery Growers Association. Lake alone saw more than $458 million in sales from the nursery and sod industry in 2005, he said.

"That's no small potatoes by any stretch of the imagination," Spratt said.

He could not estimate how much of that was represented by St. Augustine sod production.

Plus, some varieties of St. Augustine grass have a smaller decline in dry weather compared to other grass types, said Dymond and Keith Truenow, director of the Florida Sod Growers Association and owner of Lake Jem Farms.

If homeowners researched and knew exactly how to irrigate efficiently and correctly, they could still have green lawns without wasting water, Truenow said.

"We can have beautiful landscapes through education," he said.

Commissioners were deriving new ways to limit the use of the grass without banning it outright.

Commissioner Elaine Renick suggested having new builders inspect to see which grass is best on new homes and developments. St. Augustine might be better in shady areas compared to other grasses that are more hearty in constant, direct sunlight.

"If the site were appropriate (for St. Augustine grass), I don't see what the problem would be," Renick said.