Friday Fun Facts About Grass

(Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images)

Read or Subscribe to all Tom Egelhoff’s Daily Blog Posts by Clicking Here

No, not that kind of grass. I’m talking about the grass in your front yard. The grass you have to mow in blazing heat after you’ve already put in a full days work. It’s the stuff that grows in between the dandelions.

I know you are on the edge of your seat to learn all the great things about grass. Here are a few astonishing things about grass I bet you didn’t know.

Fun Facts About Grass

There are about 10,000 different species of grass grown around the world. There is the common lawn grass we all know and love but there are also bamboo grasses that reach 120 feet tall. You should see the lawn mower.
Twenty percent of the worlds vegetation is made up of grasses. In parts of South America grass covers area’s five times the size of England. In Central Asia you are looking at over 27,000 square miles. And these are small areas in relation to the size of earth.
Grasslands depend on a very delicate ecosystem for their survival. Soils, climate, fire and grazing animals all contribute to their maintenance.
Grasses clone themselves each year as the seasons change. Some Red Fescue spread underground roots and a single plant can spread up to 250 yards and be 400 years old. Other species such a Sheep’s Fescue that grows in clumps could be over 1,000 years old.
Mankind could have never survived without grasses. Wheat, corn and rice are all part of the grass family. Grasses provide nearly all our cereal crops as well as grazing for cattle and sheep. They also produce the bulk of sugar for the world.
Grasses are found all over the world. From the North and South Pole to the equator. They can withstand extreme cold, shifting sand and salt water.
Grasses have growing point along each stem so if they are cut or broken they can recover which makes them idea for sports fields, golf courses, and any other are that is heavily walked on.
Your party would be pretty boring without grass. Barley, rye, rice and corn are all used to make your favorite adult beverages.
Grasses also make excellent building materials. We have seen houses constructed of hay bales.
Grasses are also used in the making of paper products.

Some Final Thoughts

Your life would be pretty miserable without grass. Food would be very scarce and many of the products and service you use might be a little harder to find. So give a tip of the hat to your grass the next time you crank up the mower. It’s pretty tough stuff and has been making your property look pretty good for a long time. Treat it right.