Seven tips for a pesticide free lawn
Pesticides and other harmful chemicals you put on your lawn are not only detrimental to the air, water, and soil (i.e. the whole flipping planet) but the health of your family and community. The pesticides you use for lawn care don’t stay on your lawn. You and your family drag them into the house on your shoes. Pets run through the lawn and spread the pesticides. And particles drift off into the neighborhood. Yay! Instead, keep it green and healthy by reducing your overall use of pesticides – in fact, many people don’t use any pesticides at all.
Here’s how to say see ya to lawn pesticides and still have a healthy and great looking lawn…
1. Water is not all it’s cracked up to be: Lawns really only need about one inch of water per week. Anymore and you’re just overly soaking the lawn which can ruin it, increase weeds, and waste water. Note, in rainy areas, you’ll need to water even less.
2. Sunshine rocks: A naturally shaded area won’t grow grass as easily and may just grow moss. Too much shade is not perfect for grass landscaping. If your lawn is shady, and you can’t fix the shade issue you may want to consider shade loving ground covers or flowers instead of grass.
3. Would it kill you to pull some weeds?: In a word no. BUT spraying them with harmful pesticide poison could affect your health negatively. Instead of weed killer try pulling weeds out. Use a trowel to dig out deep weed roots, and overseed any bare spots the weeds may have created on your lawn.
4. Quit raking: If you mow your grass, then leave said grass on your lawn, it’s sort of like composting naturally. This is called Grasscycling and it improves your soil making it nutrient rich.
5. Aerate annually: Each year you should use a core aerator on your lawn then overseed with grass seed. Afterwards top dress with 1/2 inch of fine compost.
6. Grow native plants: Native plants are made to survive much better in your location than exotic plants. They’ll need less watering, less care, and yup, fewer chemical additives to grow well.
7. Big lawns can be a drag: Keeping a smaller lawn healthy is easier and more efficient when it comes to resources like water. Instead of a huge lawn, make your grass area smaller and put in a nice cedar deck, mulch and add a play set for the kiddos, or grow veggies. Another perk for tree and shrub owners is that both trees and shrubs grow better when their roots remain grass-free. If you mulch over the soil atop the roots instead of grow grass the grass and trees and shrubs won’t be fighting for the same nutrients. mulch instead, so that grass and your trees aren’t fighting over nutrients. In fact some people go totally lawn-free and manage just fine.
[image via stock.xchng]
Post from: Blisstree
Seven tips for a pesticide free lawn