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Winter Survival Tips for Your Lawn: Starting Early Leads to Big Rewards Come Spring
"Some people don't realize that a beautiful landscape in the spring and summer means a lot of work in the winter and especially fall," says Daniel Macpeak, lawn and shrubcare expert and owner of GoldLeaf Lawn and Shrub Care.
"There are many simple and cost-effective things property owners can do to bump up their curb appeal, as long as they plan accordingly."
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Lawn Care Service Can Help Provide Greener Landscape
There are some people who truly enjoy getting outside and caring for their lawns while others would prefer having their yards covered in green concrete. However, instead of installing artificial turf they can hire companies that provide lawn care service to keep their yard looking good.
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Tractor Races A Big Hit, Competition Gets Mowed Down
Were there is a motor, there is a Sport.
The yellow lawn mower that Aaron Crowl drove in Saturday's race at the Rockingham County Fair came from the scrap heap.
"A buddy of mine bought it for the engine for $150 dollars," Crowl said. "He was on his way to the junkyard with it when I bought it off him."
Crowl took the salvaged parts from the 20-horsepower 1999 Scotts model and turned into a mighty machine - one that has earned him numerous victories in the sport of lawn mower racing.
How many wins?
"I've got a room full of trophies," Crowl answered.
On Saturday, the fair's last day, the lawn mower races drew hundreds of spectators - a testament to the fast-growing popularity of the offbeat sport. The three-hour series of races, sponsored by Dayton Equipment Inc., drew 45 drivers from the central Valley and beyond.
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Lawn Care Products Pollution
In case you were wondering why all the latest focus on organic, let’s talk some about lawn care products and the pollution they cause.
Lawn care products pollution includes an unfortunately vast number of things. I often hesitate to list them owing to the numbers, but what I can do is provide some cautionary tales about being better with what we do use. In many ways, it also depends on where we live as to the effects we have on our fellow man. Noise pollution, for example, is not an issue out on the farm or in remoter suburban areas.
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Garden tips for August
Mow sparingly. When your lawn is stressed during summer's heat, keep off it as much as possible, mowing only when necessary and at the highest setting.
Prepare to go green. Prepare for fall lawn care by testing your soil now. Pick up a soil test kit at the cooperative extension office or at a local garden center and prepare the sample by mixing random scoops of soil from your lawn. The results will guide your fall fertilizing decisions.
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Protecting your elderly parents' assets
So what are the most common scams you're seeing right now that are being used on the elderly?
Jeannie Keenan: There are just so many. And scam artists are always looking for opportunities. Anyone who provides a service from driveway seals to roofers to lawn care companies and painters can easily prey on the elderly. A lot of the time, the elderly can be fast talked into a good deal, especially if they are told their neighbor down the block is having the same thing done. Avoidance of anyone door-to-door soliciting or phone soliciting is a must. An open door is an open invitation for trouble.
WalletPop: What really stinks is that obviously there are a lot of good people out there -- honest roofers, honest lawn care companies -- do you have any ideas or thoughts on how to distinguish between a thief and a generally honest person?
Jeannie Keenan: It's sad that it has to be this way, but you really can trust no one until you check them out by looking into their references. You can also pay for a criminal background check. Utilize assistance through reputable companies that vet their employees and carry liability insurance.
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Your lawn care basics coach
A Basic Overview of Methods used in Lawn Care
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Bermuda Grass
A home can be called as perfect only if it is complimented by a touch of greenery to provide a striking contrast to the concrete structure behind. A fairly preferred way is to have an expanse of fresh green grass as lawn coupled with pots of flowers of varied hues.
When looking for the best grass for your lawn, Bermuda grass tops the list. On this site we offer you detailed information about what you need to do to have the perfect lawn at your home.
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Drought increases need for plant care
Among important tasks that need attention in landscape are watering, mulching, weed management and continuous pest control. This summer’s drought thus far has made it necessary to take an even closer look and evaluation of various tasks.
When watering, it is more efficient to do it slowly to minimize run off and to reduce surface evaporation. On an above 90 degree Fahrenheit day in bare soil, one-fourth of the water applied can be lost. It is further recommended that the depth of water movement be checked by probing the soil to see if four inches or deeper of the soil’s profile is getting wet. Newly seeded or transplants need mulch of one-half inch immediately surrounding the plants and 2 inches between. Young trees and shrubs should be weeded first, watered and then mulched with no more than 4 inches of bark, pine needles or composted leaves. Pine bark or needles are preferred over hardwood or chips.
Watering the root system only instead of the foliage reduces many disease problems like powdery mildew and leaf spot. Lawns should be irrigated in the very early portion of the morning and shrubs from late evening through mid morning.
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Lawn care, Ingredients for a healthy lawn
The average homeowner spends 3.8 hours a week on yard work and mows their lawn 30 times a year. You may not realize it, but your lawn pays you back for all this hard work. It serves as a giant air conditioner to help cool your home. It releases a tremendous amount of oxygen and captures tons of dirt and dust to help keep you and your family healthy. And the healthier your lawn is, the better it keeps up its end of the bargain.
The good news is, you don’t have to slave over your lawn to keep it healthy. In fact, to a great extent, it’s not the amount of work you put into your lawn—it’s when and how you do it. The following five “ingredients” are essential for a healthy lawn.
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Red Sox groundskeeper offers tips for the lawn
"Many of the challenges I face at the park I have waiting for me on my lawn at home," Mellor said. "Shade from the upper deck is similar to the shade from maturing trees. Planting the proper grass in the proper areas. Handling high traffic and wear."
Then there's drought resistance, a vexing problem for many home groundskeepers. While many Midwestern states made headlines with devastating floods this spring, drought persisted across large portions of the Great Plains, the nation's Southeast and Southwest.
Mellor, author of "The Lawn Bible: How to Keep it Green, Groomed and Growing Every Season of the Year," advises property owners to stay ahead of the problem by designing for drought. A healthy lawn and root system will hold onto moisture in the soil.
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2 Lawn Care Workers struck by Lightning
NOBLETON - Quick thinking by a 15-year-old girl helped save two people struck by lightning.
Two lawn-care workers for Green Lawn Professionals were mowing the lawn of a large home just north of King Side Rd. and Hwy. 27 when lightning struck the area between them on Wednesday morning.
"It was a huge bang that shook the whole house," said the girl's mother, Rhona Hayhoe.
"My daughter was looking out the window and saw the lightning bolt strike him. She immediately came to me and told me to call 911."
At first her daughter, who was "pretty upset" by the incident, thought the one worker was helping out the person closest to where the lightning struck but it soon became apparent both workers had been hit.
According to Hayhoe, paramedics responding to the scene transported the two workers away although she thought but had vitals signs before leaving for hospital.
Citing privacy reasons, paramedics were unable to comment on the condition of the workers.
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Grass greener for lawn mower owner
Danny Duhan had waited weeks, while the grass grew under his feet.
"I run a small lawn care business," Duhan told Action Line. "In June 2007, I purchased a Cub Cadet Enforcer 44 commercial mower for $6,606.30 from Weeks Home Hardware in Waterdown.
"When I made the purchase, I asked if there'd be any problem getting parts and experienced service should anything go wrong. I was told all my service needs and warranty work would be done by Weeks. At cubcadet.com, it states the Enforcer 44 is designed and built for the most demanding commercial operator and that availability of parts was not a problem and 'down time' in a business would be eliminated."
After only a few hours of operation, the belt that drives the blades on Duhan's machine broke.
"A Cub Cadet replacement belt was not readily available," Duhan said. "I could not afford to have the machine sit idle, so a substitute larger belt was installed. Over the next four months, six belts had to be replaced. Whenever you wanted to set the height for mowing below three inches, the belt would break."
Problems never seemed to end.
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Experts say dressing up yard draws potential buyers into the home
Nationally, 10 percent to 12 percent of a home’s value is in the landscaping, on average, said Marty Hilliard, president of Home & Lawn Care Services Inc. in Hixson. In Chattanooga, landscaping typically represents 5 percent to 7 percent of a home’s value, she said.
Contractors building a house typically have small landscaping budgets of $750 to $1,500, Ms. Hilliard said.
“You would be surprised at how much more traffic a home with landscaping gets than one that doesn’t have it,” Ms. Hilliard said. “With home sales being slower, it can make a difference.”
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Foreclosures: Empty homes mean overgrown lawns
On Southwest 1st Place, two abandoned properties mar an otherwise uninterrupted landscape of carefully manicured lawns.Advertisement
Aided by the rainy season, the grass around the home at 3507 SW 1st Pl., a home now in foreclosure, had grown to shin-height last week. The city paid a landscaper $34 to cut the yard on the vacant house next door. But as the contract specified, the company only cut the grass leaving piles of clippings and bedraggled landscaping in their wake.
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Scare Tactics
I started a lawn care business in 1980. We fertilized grass, treated weeds , fungus and insects. I have spread more granular fertilizer, treated more chinch bugs and brown patch than anyone you are likely to talk to about grass. I know a lot about general gardening but I really know a lot about St. Augustine lawns in Houston.
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Carbon Emisions Cause Global warming - Fact or Myth?
No smoking hot spot
David Evans July 18, 2008
I DEVOTED six years to carbon accounting, building models for the Australian Greenhouse Office. I am the rocket scientist who wrote the carbon accounting model (FullCAM) that measures Australia's compliance with the Kyoto Protocol, in the land use change and forestry sector.
FullCAM models carbon flows in plants, mulch, debris, soils and agricultural products, using inputs such as climate data, plant physiology and satellite data. I've been following the global warming debate closely for years.
When I started that job in 1999 the evidence that carbon emissions caused global warming seemed pretty good: CO2 is a greenhouse gas, the old ice core data, no other suspects.
The evidence was not conclusive, but why wait until we were certain when it appeared we needed to act quickly? Soon government and the scientific community were working together and lots of science research jobs were created. We scientists had political support, the ear of government, big budgets, and we felt fairly important and useful (well, I did anyway). It was great. We were working to save the planet.
But since 1999 new evidence has seriously weakened the case that carbon emissions are the main cause of global warming, and by 2007 the evidence was pretty conclusive that carbon played only a minor role and was not the main cause of the recent global warming. As Lord Keynes famously said, "When the facts change, I change my mind. What do you do, sir?"
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You Can Hire The Best Lawn Care Services
Confidently evaluate and select the best and most appropriate lawn care services for your situation. This is the second in a series of articles designed to assist you in making this decision as an informed homeowner.
As mentioned in the first article, you may be wondering:
* How do you select someone to do the work? * What questions do you need to ask? * Is there vital information to know about a business and the lawn care services they offer? * What can you reasonably expect or demand from a lawn service company?
This article will present you with insight and questions to ask the potential service provider. Article #1 helped you consider certain aspects of your situation to provide pertinent information to the estimator. Let’s get started now with a comprehensive look at the things you need to consider about hiring lawn care services.
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If Northern Trees Suffer Because Of Global Warming, Southern Trees May Still Be Slow To Replace Them
ScienceDaily (July 15, 2008) — If a warmer Wisconsin climate causes some northern tree species to disappear in the future, it's easy to imagine that southern species will just expand their range northward as soon as the conditions suit them.
The reality, though, may not be nearly so simple. A model developed by University of Wisconsin-Madison forest ecologists Robert Scheller and David Mladenoff suggests that while certain northern species, such as balsam fir, spruce and jack pine, are likely to decline as the state's climate warms, oaks, hickories and other southern Wisconsin trees will be slow to replace them.
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Bayer, Lawn Care Association Host Healthy Lawns Healthy Business Summit
In an ongoing effort to provide lawn care operators (LCOs) with the resources they need to run their businesses, the Bayer Lawn Care Institute (LCI) is conducting its fourth Healthy Lawns, Healthy Business Summit of 2008 in conjunction with the Lawn Care Association of Pennyslvania’s annual pest walk. The combined event will take place Aug. 11 at Delaware Valley College in Doylestown, Pa. The walk begins at 8:30 a.m., focusing on turfgrass, landscape and lawn weeds and landscape plant pests.
The Healthy Lawns Healthy Business Summit will follow the pest walk, kicking off with a keynote address by Bill Arman, head harvester of The Harvest Group: Landscape Business Consulting. His presentation, “The Seven Step Process to Recruiting and Getting the Right People,” will provide a hands-on approach to building an effective employee recruiting program.
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Reasons to Use a Professional
There is so much more to caring for the lawn in your garden than you just cutting it. Like any other plants in your garden if you want your lawn to thrive you need to feed it and water it regularly. So it may be worthwhile considering employing a professional to care for yours if you don’t have enough time to do this yourself. Below we offer some reasons for why you may want to employ a lawn care company.
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Suburban dance craze: a perfect lawn care routine
I love coming home to our lawn on Fridays. Like wall-to-wall carpeting with fresh vacuum marks, the grass is streaked with mower tracks, the edging perfectly cropped, the flower beds raked, extraneous leaves and twigs blown off the Disney-perfect property. It's a Power Lawn - golf-course green and so flawless we could host the Masters Tournament.
But there wasn't always splendor in our grass. Our first year in the house we kept the previous homeowner's landscaping service, not wanting to trigger separation anxiety in our newly purchased flora. But our lackluster lawn failed to excite the kind of suburban bliss we'd anticipated when we traded in apartment living for homeowner status. We began interviewing landscapers.
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Avant Yard: 75 tricks to get your kids outdoors
Summer vacation keeps rolling along. How long until your kids go back to school? Are they spending too much time lounging on the couch? Here are a bunch of summer projects to trick your kids away from their air-conditioned sanctuary and out into the great outdoors of, er, your backyard.
Okay, okay. So the backyard is not the great outdoors. True. But the main thing is to get the kiddos out in the fresh air, learning about nature, and learning about the noble pursuit of maintaining a garden.
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Doing something about global warming
We need to do something drastic to stop the planet heating up. That is the general consensus. There are various scenarios for the future, and almost all of them involve some sort of global apocalypse: sea levels rising to the point where most of the world's cities are inundated, droughts causing wars as states fight over ever-dwindling stocks of fresh water, increased number of hurricanes and 'extreme weather events' - even, paradoxically, a mini-ice age in Europe.
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TruGreen Deploys Expert Volunteers to Help Military Families Keep Their Yards Ship Shape
TruGreen has been volunteering its services through a national program called GreenCare for Troops since 2006. The program, established by the national non-profit organization Project EverGreen, provides free lawn and landscape care for military families whose major breadwinner is serving overseas. The program is intended – in a small way – to help military families who are doing their best to cope as a one-parent or one-income household.
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Lawn looking spotty? Blame it on the rain
Recently, there has been a spate of queries about lawn care and disease.
A woman e-mailed the Marion County Master Gardeners (marionmg @purdue.edu) to ask about the brown areas on her lawn, and sent photos. The condition was diagnosed as the disease dollar spot. With dollar spot (Sclerotinia homoeocarpa), you usually see a tan band with a reddish border on a green blade of grass.Advertisement
This is a common condition that may occur with heavy rains, such as we've had the past few weeks, explains Steve Mayer, a horticultural educator at Purdue University Extension in Indianapolis.
Heavy rains wash the nitrogen through the soil faster than usual. Low nitrogen may allow this fungus disease to sprout. If there is low fertility or a lack of fertilizer, the disease may show up in the lawn.
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The cost of going green A ban on pesticides will make a perfect lawn a little tougher to achieve
Ontario's Minister of the Environment is touting the recent decision to ban the sale and cosmetic use of hundreds of pesticides and chemicals as the safest course of action for children.
The ban has a local lawn care company concerned, although it's not their most worrying problem.
"We feel there is enough evidence in now from organizations such as the College of Family Physicians, the David Suzuki Foundation, a whole group of environmental organizations that basically say that the cumulative effects of different pesticide products on particularly small children may have a health effect," said John Gerretsen, Ontario's minister of the Environment.
More than 80 ingredients and 300 pesticide products will be banned next spring when the Ontario government's regulations come into effect.
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Penguin Chicks Frozen by Global Warming?
This January—deep summer in Antarctica—explorer Jon Bowermaster suffered through a five-day stretch of torrential rains on the west side of the Antarctic Peninsula. The same cannot be said for thousands of downy penguin chicks.
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Running a Lawn Care Service Requires Organization, Discipline, Work and Cooperation of the Weather
The day when folks hired a neighbor kid to pushmow the front yard are gone. Today, mowing, mulching and all related work comprise a multimillion dollar business. According to the Professional Landcare Network (PLANET), an international association serving lawn care professionals, there are an estimated 10,000 individual lawn care service providers and about 12,000 landscapers in the United States. These run the gamut from independent operations to franchises and divisions of large companies.
And there is no shortage of customers out there. A 2005 survey by Irrigation and Green Industry magazine found that the landscape industry generates $67 billion to $69 billion a year and generates 704,000 jobs.
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Lawns can be taught to live with less water
Q.Can lawns be conditioned to require less water and still remain healthy?
A.The short answer is yes. But I am not known for short answers, so let me explain further.
In climates that have long, hot, dry summers, the turf varieties most commonly used are perennial grasses that not only thrive in hot weather, but also develop deep and extensive root systems. We are not in an area that is traditionally considered a dry climate, but we can learn from those who are in this type of environment.
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Cutting that lawn obsession
We love the cool softness underfoot, the brilliant emerald color, the sense of orderliness evoked by an unbroken stretch of groomed grass. Our culture considers a manicured lawn to be a badge of good citizenship, a sign that its owners care about their property and their community.
What we don't always like is the price of such perfection.
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A Greener Option for Mowing Your Small Lawn
I recently had the opportunity to get my hands on a brand new Neuton CE 6.2 mower. This is the latest release from Neuton boasting a 19″ cut and a 36V sealed lead acid battery. More impressive than its wide cut and high powered battery is its ability to virtually eliminate harmful emissions. Believe it or not, your traditional gas powered mower will produce its weight in emissions every year. The Neuton mower is able to completely eliminate these emissions by running a battery that only costs $0.10 to charge. The question most of you are probably wondering is will it cut my grass? Read the rest of the review to find out!
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Fasten Your Seat Belts for Global Warming
“It is just hurtling toward us. Anyone who is 10 years old right now is going to be facing a very different and frightening world by the time that they are 50 or 60."
And guess what? It’s our fault.
Global temperatures rise, in part, thanks to the emission of greenhouse gases. In other words, every time we turn on a light, take a shower, or do the laundry, we add to the greenhouse effect. Go ahead, wash your dishes or take a drive or check your e-mail. The acts we take for granted are impacting the planet. It’s our fault that ocean levels are rising and species are going extinct and human children face “a very different and frightening world” in the near future. What we call normal is actually consumption and consumption requires energy.
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Global warming to worsen extreme weather conditions in the US: Science report news
For long the US had denied the obvious effects of global warming, in a bid to mitigate their obvious culpability in greenhouse gas emissions, the reduction of which would have necessitated a decrease in consumption so ingrained in the American psyche.
Now, their own scientists have come out with a scientific study that says that the recent Iowa floods may be just the tip of the iceberg, with such extreme weather becoming more likely as the earth continues to warm up.
The US Climate Change Science Program and the Subcommittee on Global Change Research has released a scientific assessment that provides the first comprehensive analysis of observed and projected changes in weather and climate extremes in Canadian and US territories.
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Use Soil Rich in Potassium and Lawn Care is Minimized
There are approximately 17 chemical elements required by most plants to insure a healthy lifestyle and potassium is one of the most often neglected in plant fertilization. It is often considered a regulator for plant growth and health and using soil rich in potassium and lawn care needs will be less that expected.
In addition to helping crops resist disease, it can help them resist any negative effects of an extended drought and extreme temperature swings. Using potassium and lawn care techniques also help open and close the plants’ pores, essential for effective watering of the plants, allowing the plants to use the water more efficiently.
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Local Lawn Care Customers
A page dedicated to updating my Local Lawn Care Customers.
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Lawn Mower Operator Safety Tips
An Overview of Lawn Mower Operator Safety Tips.
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Lawn Care Equipment
An Overview of Lawn Care Equipment needed to adequately maintain a Lawn.
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The Trouble With Lawn Mowers
Mowing the lawn is a summertime ritual and a rite of passage for many children. But a surprising number of adults and children are injured every year in mowing accidents.
Last year, nearly 210,000 people were treated in clinics and emergency rooms for lawn mower-related injuries, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission. About 16,200 of those accidents involved children.
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Pricey fuel trims lawn care profits, strains city budgets
Rising gas costs are affecting both private lawn care businesses and city and county government mowing crews.
The owner of Dependable Lawn Care, Joshua Bradburn, estimates he has spent 25 percent more on fuel this year than in 2007. That increase led him to charge "four or five bucks" more than last year, but he has not lost any customers as a result.
Jean said after five years mowing commercially, the constant hike in gas prices is the biggest obstacle he's faced, partly because many of his 70-80 weekly accounts have irrigation systems that overcome potential droughts.
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Under Court Order, White House Finally Releases Global Warming Report
The Bush administration just released its report on the health effects of manmade global warming last week, and it only took four years and a court order to get it. This compilation of U.S. and international research discusses known global warming threats like rising sea levels eating away at coastlines, but it also highlights the way effects like heat wave deaths will affect poor communities the most.
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Tips to Make Yard Care Easier on The Body
Oh, our achin’ backs. It’s no surprise that baby boomers who take care of the yard have plenty to complain about when it comes to aches and pains, including problems with backs, shoulders, arms, legs, hands and feet. And new research confirms what many of us know to be true — that yard care can be tough on the body, particularly for adults in the baby boomer generation.
No matter your age, taking steps now to put less strain on muscles and joints can help you avoid problems down the road. Here are four ways to help cut down on yard care’s stress and strain:
Know your limits. Simply put, don’t overdo it. People with a history of back or joint pain should think twice before overexerting themselves in the yard. And if you start to feel fatigued, take a break. “Know and respect your physical limitations,” advises Costilla.
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Rain good for lawns, bad for mowers
"This weather is absolutely devastating us," said Richard Blake of Blake's Lawn and Landscape. "It's like the proverbial school yard bully. There's nothing you can do about it. You just deal with it."
Grass is growing "like nobody's business," Blake said. "We're getting eight, nine, 10 calls per day from people wanting us to take on their lawns because their current lawn care company can't get to them."
But Blake's has all it can handle, he said.
"We logged 110 hours of overtime last week, just trying to keep up with what we've got," he said. "It's really, really tough."
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Buying a String Trimmer
Tips on what to look for when Buying a String Trimmer
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Natural Lawn and Garden Care
Use these lists to help you know what pesticides to choose and which ones to avoid.
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Caring for Your Lawn in an Environmentally Friendly Way Picture a healthy green lawn:
Healthy grass provides feeding ground for birds, which find it a rich source of insects, worms, and other food. Thick grass prevents soil erosion, filters contaminants from rainwater, and absorbs many types of airborne pollutants, like dust and soot. Grass is also highly efficient at converting carbon dioxide to oxygen, a process that helps clean the air.Caring for your lawn properly can both enhance its appearance and contribute to its environmental benefits. You don't have to be an expert to grow a healthy lawn. Just keep in mind that the secret is to work with nature. This means creating conditions for grass to thrive and resist damage from weeds, disease, and insect pests. It means setting realistic goals for your lawn, whether you or a professional lawn care service will be doing the work. And if you choose to use pesticides, it means using them with care so as to get the most benefit and reduce any risks. Caring for your lawn in an environmentally sensible way can have a bigger impact than you might think. Your lawn is only a small piece of land, but all the lawns across the country cover a lot of ground. That means you and your lawn care activities, along with everyone else's, can make a difference to the environment.
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Lawn care companies are adjusting to the higher prices,
Lawn care companies are adjusting to the higher prices, as well.
For five years, Jeff Lickly has held off passing on rising fuel prices to his residential customers -- mostly senior citizens -- but that must change this year.
"Every time prices go over $3.50 a gallon, we're going to have to add a $1.50 fuel surcharge," said Lickly, the general manager of Total Lawn Care Services Inc. at 3805 Old King in Bridgeport Township.
"What kills me are these people who stand in front of the gas station counter complaining about spending $40 for the week while buying a $3 bottle of vitamin water. We spend $250 for our trucks and mowers, and that only lasts about two days."
Keep in mind that almost everything in this business runs on gas and you must increase your prices or go broke. Customers will understand.
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Gas Prices Taking Toll on Lawn Care
Gas prices are hurting all of us. Just about every aspect of our lives is impacted in some way by rising prices associated to fuel. The service industry is one that is suffering more than others. Lawn care companies are spending hundreds even thousands of dollars every week on fuel. While they don't want to raise the prices they charge their customers, some say its' getting to the point where they may not have a choice if they want their business to be profitable at all.
"It's a pretty big impact when you look at your gas credit cards and you're maxed out after a month or so," said Elwood.
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Go green for a green lawn
“We’re talking about lawn care that won’t cost the Earth,” Ms Marsh said. “And it will save you time and money.”
Still, Ms Marsh explained getting to the point where green lawn options can save you time and money might take a season or two to accomplish.
The fact is it involves “resurrecting” your lawn.“Those chemicals that you have been using on your soil has killed it,” she said.
“There are no good bacteria and no beneficial fungus left. When you use chemicals all of that is dead.”
Pesticide dangers:
Aside from being the leading cause of poisoning in Canada, pesticides can also:
* Cause respiratory problems * Cause skin rashes, blistering and redness * Result in lung injury if ingested * Cause nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps, headaches * Produce nose bleeds * Bring on asthma * Be dangerous to human health if ingested, inhaled, exposed to bare skin or eyes * Children, pets and pregnant women are most at risk for poisoning due to pesticides and the chemicals are associated with numerous adverse environmental effects. These can include groundwater contaminations, causing genetic defects in animals and the destruction of beneficial flora and fauna.
Many people get discouraged, because their lawns don’t always respond to organic treatments right away. This doesn’t mean organic options are ineffective, but, that life needs to return to the lawn.
* Resist the urge to fertilize: Fertilization does provide nitrogen, which plants need, but permits unnecessary top growth instead of root growth. * Aerate your lawn: This provides needed air and moisture into the soil. * Compost: Adds major and micro nutrients, improves root development and soil structure. Top dress with one quarter to a half-inch two times per year. * Clover: Ignore the propaganda about it being a weed. Clover helps fix nitrogen to plant roots. It provides one third of the nitrogen to a lawn. * Clippings: Leave them on the lawn. They don’t cause thatch and provide another third of the nitrogen your lawn needs.
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EPA Orders Scotts to Stop Selling Certain Pesticides
Under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act, all pesticides must be submitted to EPA for review, evaluation and registration to ensure that they do not pose an unreasonable risk to human health or the environment. EPA's review and registration process is internationally recognized. Pesticide products that have not undergone EPA review may pose risks to human health and the environment.
"A manufacturer such as Scotts cannot ignore the important legal requirement of registering its pesticides," said Region 5 Administrator Mary A. Gade. "This is a serious violation of EPA's system for protecting people and the environment from the potential harmful effects of pesticides. EPA will fully investigate this violation and take appropriate actions. We are committed to keeping the public informed about any health consequences and providing information to assure the safe recall of these products as soon as possible."
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