This year's GIE+EXPO, of which the Outdoor Power Equipment Institute is the managing partner, experienced an 11 percent increase in attendee registrations and a four percent increase in indoor exhibits.

In the middle of the GIE+EXPO that saw a record-breaking amount of attendees – more than 21,000 – Landscape Online Weekly sat down with OPEI's Kris Kiser to find out what is top of mind with the organization's president and CEO.

It turned out it was dog. Kiser first wanted to talk about TurfMutt - the lead character in the educational program that teaches about stewardship of green spaces - and emphasize the importance of TurfMutt's message about holding on to green spaces, especially in the midst of the anti-lawn campaign that is being waged in the Southwest and other drought-stricken areas of the U.S.

"They are actually doing the wrong thing," Kiser said in reference to efforts that seek the removal of lawns in favor of xeriscape, artificial turf and other options, which will not retain precipitation, when it eventually comes, as well as natural turf does.

"We have to be smarter with biodiversity," he adds, which includes having the right type of lawn for the local conditions.

Kiser also hinted that TurfMutt will be coming soon to a TV near you as Kiser's real dog Lucky, the inspiration for the sketched version, will appear with him on the CBS show Lucky Dog. The Emmy-Award winning program on Saturday mornings features animal trainer Brandon McMillan, who rescues untrained and unadoptable dogs and turns them into sought after pets. Kiser and Lucky will appear to help educate viewers on ways to create environmentally–responsible living landscapes that families and pets can enjoy.

Another concern Kiser addressed is that after the outdoor power equipment industry developed standards for UTVs after tens of thousands of hours of testing, the Consumer Product Safety Commission wants to institute their own rules.

The ethanol issue continues to be problematic. The newer mid-level blends output less energy and have the tendency to grow stale more quickly – and stale fuel has to be disposed of somehow.

"Mid-level blends do not make sense," Kiser says. "Even cars are not designed to use them."

When asked what OPEI's best-case scenario for ethanol would be, he replies, "No mandates, let the marketplace decide."