The economics of native plants in residential landscape designs

Yard-scale landscape designs can influence environmental quality through effects on habitat, stormwater runoff, and water uality. Native plant gardens may have ecological benefits, and previous research has shown that yards using these plants an be designed in ways that people find attractive. This study examines whether people are willing to pay more for more cologically benign designs than for a lawn. A contingent choice survey was conducted in southeast Michigan in which people ere presented with four different yard designs (three of which included native plants) in three different settings, with different onthly maintenance costs for each design. Respondents were asked to rank their choices of the yards while considering the aintenance costs they were presented. Results suggest that people are willing to pay more for well-designed yards including ative plants than for lawns, and that their increased willingness to pay exceeds any increase in costs associated with the native lantings. These results should encourage homeowners, landscape designers, and the landscape plant industry to work with native lants. In this study, people were willing to pay more for designs that present gains for the environment, without government ntervention and without social cost. 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.