FACT OF THE DAY:

The Environmental Protection Agency has estimated that approximately 71 percent of the runoff from commercial and residential landscaping could be eliminated through better landscape irrigation planning. Some communities such as Newport Beach have imposed restrictions on landscaping to reduce selenium from leeching from the soil into the bay.

Plants hate overwatering too. "Eighty percent of all landscape assets are lost to overwatering. Plants get deeper root structures if you let them deplete," Spain said. "Trees topple over next to lawns because of overwatering."

Landscaping currently exacerbates droughts and shortages. Fifty percent of urban water use goes to landscaping. At the same time, thirty-six states will face water scarcity issues in the next few years. Water bills, meanwhile, continue to climb. In the past five years, water costs have risen 29.7 percent nationwide. Water costs alone rose 11 percent to 14 percent in Los Angeles last year alone, he said.

There's even an energy conservation play. Roughly 19 percent of the energy in California is consumed in processing and delivering water. Therefore, if you can reduce water consumption, you can also reduce greenhouse gases. An Obama-friendly employment angle? Yes. 50,000 landscaping companies employ 10.5 million people nationwide.

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