Can you picture yourself, your puppy, and your family enjoying an afternoon in your yard, playing on a lush lawn bordered with thriving bushes and flowers, anticipating the cook-out you have planned for later in the day? Sounds great, doesn't it? The problem is that there are lots of things in your yard that you might want to have look perfect but may be hazardous to the health of all of you.

To achieve that “picture-perfect” moment where everything looks great, people are encouraged to fertilize their lawns, apply weed killer, spray for bugs, and spray to kill or prevent any diseases on our bushes and flower gardens. If this has been your line of defense, before letting your puppy and family romp away in the yard, reexamine the products you're using. What are their cautions for dogs? For children? What's in the sprays you use on various parts of your lawn and garden? How do those products affect the natural flora and fauna of the area you live in? Your yard may look great, but the price you pay for it may be the health of the living beings it's intended for.

Going green outdoors means paying attention to the number and type of products you use or things you do to sustain a potentially unnatural environment. For example, do you live in a place where keeping grass green means watering it almost daily? Are you and all your neighbors doing that? Think about how much water you're using in the neighborhood. Is the water falling on grass and plants that have been chemically treated to thrive? Where is the run-off going and how might it be affecting other life forms?

Know Your Place

Keeping a green yard doesn't mean it has to be barren and ugly. When you understand what might grow best where you are and you take into consideration the effects that your pup will have on your yard (wearing down a path, digging, creating urine or feces stains), you can create a space that works for you and your pup instead of against you.

That means talking to a local plant supplier about the kinds of things that are easy to grow. It may mean creating a pebbled path along the fence line or planting a foot or so away from it so your dog can walk or run there without damaging the landscaping. It means that if your pup likes to dig, instead of constantly getting after him to stop, you choose a spot in the yard where it's appropriate for him to do so, and you put in a sand box for him. And it means training him to do his business in a particular spot that you can monitor for stains, and picking up after his bowel movements.

When a green(er) mindset starts to kick in for you, you'll notice all sorts of things in your piece of the great outdoors that could be more ecofriendly. A propane grill is less polluting than a charcoal one; there are green-friendly materials now for everything from deck surfaces to patio furniture; choose toys that are longer-lasting than many of the cheap plastic ones sold at discount stores; and so on.