PROVO — Frank Williams' neighbors must wonder if he's any good at his job.
After all, his lawn is rarely the envy of the neighborhood.
"It sometimes doesn't look very good because I'm always trying to do new things," says Williams, who teaches agronomy and horticulture courses at Brigham Young University.
You see, like most plants within Williams' reach, his lawn is often a scientific experiment. He seeks the best ways to maintain yards using the least amount of water.
"Plants do not need the amount of water we give them," said Williams, who is helping Washington County's Water Conservancy District teach folks in one of the hottest parts of the state how to slash water consumption. "It's that we like to water them."
Each week, Williams, who gushes about Gov. Mike Leavitt's request to shave water usage by 25 percent at each home, examines data from an electronic weather station in St. George. Considering the weather history and forecast of temperatures, sunlight, humidity and wind, he prescribes the amount of water folks should give plants.
If tips are heeded, lawns and gardens should receive enough nourishment without wasting water, he said.
Williams' tips — which include the best times to fertilize or aerate lawns — are announced each Monday on an all-talk AM radio station in St. George. The local newspaper also publishes the professor's plant "prescriptions."
"This has been an educational tool," said Julie Breckenridge, the district's conservation coordinator. "A lot of people, even those who were raised here, still overwater their plants."
The radio and newspaper reports are short, easy-to-understand suggestions, said Breckenridge, who has worked for six years to reduce the water used daily by county residents.
Washington County residents use 335 gallons each day per person, compared to the state average of 269 gallons and the national average of 179 gallons.
"Because it can be complex we've tried to simplify," she said. "We might say, 'Water 1 inch of water every five to seven days.' There's no math involved except for counting days."
Williams' efforts also helped one homeowners' association save more than $10,000 on its water bill, Breckenridge said.
Before consulting with Williams, the Emerald Springs housing association turned the sprinklers on three times a day for 20 minutes. Lawns are now watered three times a week for 20 minutes, with a five-minute spritzing each afternoon.
"We drink water when we are thirsty — not at 11 then 2 then at 5 in the afternoon," Williams said, "but that's what we want our plants to do."
The Utah Division of Water Resources estimates that 61 percent of Utah's water goes to landscape, distantly followed by 16 percent used by toilets.
For his part, Williams promotes voluntary cutbacks because he doesn't want city governments to pass ordinances requiring residents to use only plants native to arid Utah.
"Water and air have always been around," he said. "It is the basis of life for us, but we don't really think about it."
E-MAIL: jeffh@desnews.com