Santa Fe homeowners weigh in on landscape preferences

Residents' water conservation, plant choices may aid urban planners

2010-09-21

(Press-News.org) LAS CRUCES, NM—While municipalities may mandate communitywide water conservation measures, individuals—particularly homeowners—can make significant contributions to water conservation in urban environments. Hoping to provide urban planners with more information about how residents' landscape preferences affect municipal water supplies, a team from New Mexico State University surveyed homeowners in Santa Fe about their attitudes toward high desert plants. Rolston St. Hilaire, Dawn M. VanLeeuwen, and Patrick Torres reported on their study of residents' preferences for urban landscapes and water conservation strategies in a recent issue of HortTechnology.

The survey contained questions about homeowners' perceptions of desert plants, trees, and grass lawns in home landscapes; willingness to change current home landscapes; opinions on current water use practices; and factors that could affect their willingness to reduce water use. "Santa Fe, a city that boasts a long history of water conservation efforts, also has one of the highest water usage rates in the United States for a city of its size", noted the researchers.

According to the survey, almost one-third of the respondents agreed that high desert plants are not their favorite varieties. "However, most Santa Fe residents are satisfied with these plants, indicating that they provide the type of landscape they desire", observed the researchers. They added that 64% of residents agreed that high desert plants provided the variety they needed in their residential landscapes, and 92% of residents would use high desert plants to landscape their front yard. Homeowners had a strong preference for retaining their current desert landscapes and converting traditional landscapes to high desert-adapted landscapes.

When homeowners who irrigated their landscapes were asked what factors would cause them to use less water, the most selected option—chosen by 94% of respondents—was "water shortages". Interestingly, the study found that the longer people have been residents of a desert environment, the less likely they are to adopt a water-conserving landscape.

The research team sees implications for city officials when it comes to selecting effective water conservation strategies. "This research clearly indicates that the fear of water shortage is one of the most important factors that will get communities to reduce landscape water use in the high desert regions of New Mexico. Therefore, municipalities must craft public education water conservation programs that show or even simulate water shortages as a possible consequence of apathy to water conservation in the urban environment", the study concluded.

INFORMATION:

The complete study and abstract are available on the ASHS HortTechnology electronic journal web site: http://horttech.ashspublications.org/cgi/content/abstract/20/2/308

Founded in 1903, the American Society for Horticultural Science (ASHS) is the largest organization dedicated to advancing all facets of horticultural research, education, and application. More information at ashs.org

[Attachments] See images for this press release:

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Scientists uncover process enabling toxoplasmosis parasite to survive homelessness

2010-09-21

INDIANAPOLIS — The parasite responsible for toxoplasmosis requires a stress response system that helps it survive the move to infect new cells, Indiana University School of Medicine scientists have reported, a discovery that could lead to new treatments to control the disease. Parasites such as Toxoplasma gondii invade host cells, replicate and then must exit to find new host cells to invade. Traveling outside their host cell exposes the parasites to environmental stresses that limit how long they can remain viable while searching for new host cells. The researchers ...

Learning how consumers value products

2010-09-21

Suggesting to consumers that they will use a product frequently can actually reduce their interest in purchasing the product, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research. "When consumers estimate the value of a durable product, they consider not only the absolute number of times they think they will use the product, but also the number of time they will use the product relative to other consumers," write authors Rebecca W. Hamilton, Rebecca K. Ratner (both University of Maryland, College Park), and Debora Viana Thompson (Georgetown University). The ...

Could learning self-control be enjoyable?

2010-09-21

When it comes to self-control, consumers in the United States are in trouble. But a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research says there's hope; we just need a little help to see self-regulation as fun. "Self-control failures depend on whether people see activities involving self-control (e.g., eating in moderate quantities) as an obligation to work or an opportunity to have fun," write authors Juliano Laran (University of Miami) and Chris Janiszewski (University of Florida, Gainesville). According to the authors, approximately one in five U.S. citizens over the ...

Windborne dust on high peaks dampens Colorado River runoff

2010-09-21

On spring winds, something wicked this way comes--at least for the mountains of the Colorado River Basin and their ecosystems, and for people who depend on snowmelt from these mountains as a regional source of water. "More than 80 percent of sunlight falling on fresh snow is reflected back to space," says scientist Tom Painter of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., and the University of California at Los Angeles. "But sprinkle some dark particles on the snow and that number drops dramatically." The darker dust absorbs sunlight, reducing the amount of ...

Buyer backlash: Why do slogans about saving money increase spending?

2010-09-21

A new study in the Journal of Consumer Research reveals a strange facet of consumer behavior: people behave differently when they encounter companies' brands than they do when they encounter their slogans. "Exposure to the retailer brand name Walmart, typically associated with saving money, reduces subsequent spending, whereas exposure to the Walmart slogan, (Save money. Live better.) increases spending," write authors Juliano Laran (University of Miami), Amy N. Dalton (Hong Kong University of Science and Technology), and Eduardo B. Andrade (University of California, ...

Money, drugs and chicken feet? What consumers will do for social acceptance

2010-09-21

People who feel excluded will go to any length to try to become part of a group, even if it involves spending large sums of cash, eating something dicey, or doing illicit drugs, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research. "Social exclusion prompts people to use money and consumption in the service of affiliation," write authors Nicole L. Mead (Tilburg University), Roy F. Baumeister (Florida State University), Tyler F. Stillman (Southern Utah University), Catherine D. Rawn (University of British Columbia), and Kathleen D. Vohs (University of Minnesota). "An ...

Hard-wired for chocolate and hybrid cars? How genetics affect consumer choice

2010-09-21

Clues to consumer behavior may be lurking our genes, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research. "We examine a wide range of consumer judgment and decision-making phenomenon and discover that many—though not all of them—are in fact heritable or influenced by genetic factors," write authors Itamar Simonson (Stanford University) and Aner Sela (University of Florida, Gainesville). The authors studied twins' consumer preferences to determine whether or not certain behaviors or traits have a genetic basis. "A greater similarity in behavior or trait between ...

Consumers willing to pay more for locally grown apples

2010-09-21

BURLINGTON, VT—A 2008 study found that organic apples represented 4.6% of total apple sales in the United States, up from 3.5% in 2007. In Vermont, apples have been the most important fruit crop for many years, playing an important role in the state's economy—so important, in fact, that apples were named the state's official fruit in 1999. Vermont apple growers, facing a host of challenges such as increasing production costs and intensifying competition from imported apples, are looking for ways to succeed in the emerging organic food market. Qingbin Wang and Robert Parsons ...

New study indicates higher than predicted human exposure to the toxic chemical bisphenol A or BPA

2010-09-21

COLUMBIA, Mo. – Researchers have discovered that women, female monkeys and female mice have major similarities when it comes to how bisphenol A (BPA) is metabolized, and they have renewed their call for governmental regulation when it comes to the estrogen-like chemical found in many everyday products. A study published online in the Sept. 20 NIH journal Environmental Health Perspectives ties rodent data on the health effects of BPA to predictions of human health effects from BPA with the use of everyday household products. The study was authored by researchers at the ...

Investigational eye treatment: Corneal collagen crosslinking research study

2010-09-21

Teaneck, NJ – The Cornea and Laser Eye Institute, with Principal Investigator, Peter S. Hersh M.D., is conducting a research study to study the safety and effectiveness of corneal collagen crosslinking (CXL) using Riboflavin/Dextran and Hypotonic Riboflavin in patients with progressive keratoconus and corneal ectasia. Keratoconus is a disease of the cornea, the clear front lens of the eye (like the crystal on a watch), that occurs in the overall population at a rate of about one in 2000. It usually begins in the teens and 20's and can worsen over time. It is often ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of automated external defibrillators in private homes

University of Phoenix College of Social and Behavioral Sciences leadership publishes white paper on trauma-informed education

Identifying the best high-biomass sorghum hybrids based on biomass yield potential and feedstock quality affected by nitrogen fertility management under various environments