Natural Landscapes Project: Natural Lawn Care

A community Outreach Program promoting pesticide-free care for natural, healthy lawns and gardens














	Oysters for Salmon

Natural Lawn Care

Welcome to the world of natural lawn care! We have lots of ideas about how to take lawns off drugs. According to Washington Toxics Coalition, lawn and garden pesticides and herbicides are some of the most toxic chemicals found in our households.

We want to help homeowners find alternatives to using synthetic lawn and garden chemicals, which can have serious health consequences to us, our children, pets, fish, beneficial insects and water quality. Besides the danger from direct or long-term exposure to these products, runoff from pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers has now reached levels of significant concern in many Puget Sound water bodies.

Natural lawn care produces beautiful results and the peace of mind that comes with knowing that sustainable practices will benefit our own world as well as generations to come.

Children playing on a natural lawn

Six Simple Steps To A Healthy, Natural Lawn

1. Mow high and mulch. Grass cycling (sharpen those mower blades!) returns clippings to the lawn providing about 1,500 pounds of free fertilizer to the average lawn. Scattered clippings break down quickly and feed the roots of the grass plants. Grass cycling can be done with a mulching mower or regular mower. Clip only 1/3 of the grass length at each mowing. This will keep the plants less stressed.

2. Use natural, organic, slow-release fertilizer in May and September. When nutrients are released slowly, the plants absorb them better, getting more bang for the buck. the goal here is to keep the lawn a healthy shade of green. A "too green" lawn is a sign of overuse of chemicals...a lawn on drugs. Western Washington lawns may be low in calcium or have acidic soil. Call WSU /Kitsap County Cooperative Extension for information on soil testing (360-337-7157).

3. Water deeply, but less frequently. Deeper watering will penetrate the root zone more effectively. Over-watering promotes lawn diseases and can leach nutrients from the soil. Aeration helps water reach the roots and corrects problems with compaction. If there is thatch buildup, de-thatch! Let the lawn go dormant in the summer. Dormant lawns need only one deep watering per month. Otherwise, water about one inch per week in July and August. Use less in late spring or early fall. Water slowly to avoid puddling and runoff. Newly planted lawns, of course, may need some additional TLC.

4. Aeration and over seeding go a long way toward creating a beautiful, healthy lawn. You can rent a power aerator or hire a professional. If your soil is compacted deeper than 2", find a lawn care professional that has equipment which can penetrate 6-8" for full aeration. Over seed after aeration with a lawn seed mix designed for the northwest. Ask about these mixes at your local nursery. April or May as well as September are the best months for aeration and over seeding.

5. Avoid 'weed and feed' products or other pesticides/herbicides. Pesticides and herbicides create problems, rather than solve them. For example, diazinon is thought to have been responsible for the deaths of dozens of birds in the Puget Sound region, while feeding on treated lawns. Instead, use compost on the lawn to feed the soil and enhance healthy lawn growth. Apply compost about 1/2 " deep on established lawns once a year. To prepare soil for a new lawn, apply 2" of compost to 6-8 inches of soil. Water well. Microorganisms in a healthy lawn help fight pests naturally.

Remove problem weeds by hand in the spring and fall. Long-handled weed pullers are a great tool! Other tools work well for dandelions by letting you go deep and getting the whole root. Try using headphones with your favorite music playing to help make hand weeding more pleasurable, or hire local youth to do the job for you. On Bainbridge Island, contact Bainbridge Youth Services.

Sometimes weeds are telling you something. For example, moss means you are trying to grow lawn in a place that is just too wet or shady for grass. Clover may mean you need more nitrogen.

Some folks believe that your lawn is anything green that grows to a height of a few inches and can be mowed! For many of us, clover and moss look just fine in the lawn.

6. Honey, I shrunk the lawn! We encourage people to minimize the amount of lawn they have, in order to reduce chemical use and save water and your own labor. Using native plants, ground cover, pathways, etc., instead of lawn, makes a lot of sense for many homeowners. To reduce lawn area, simply smother mulch the area of lawn to be converted to garden or other use. Cardboard works well as does a thick layer of newspapers. Apply several inches of compost over this layer and plant a new bed. It's an easy and effective way to make unwanted lawn disappear.

One solution to the drudgery of lawn care is to create a beautiful alternative, a "no-lawn" garden with easy care plants, such as native or plants compatible with your climate.

A Note About Compost, Compost Tea and Lawns

Using compost on lawns may be a new idea to some of you. When we remember that a lawn is made up of lots of little plants, we realize that these plants need the benefit of compost, just like our garden plants do. Compost tea, a liquid form of compost, is especially effective on lawns and can be sprayed on. It is important to condition the soil in which the lawn grows. Our native soil in the Pacific northwest evolved from a forest ecosystem and was not designed to support a "prairie grass" ecosystem that lawns like.

Compost Tea And Lawns

You Can Have An Eco-Lawn!

Specially formulated seed mixes are now available at many local nurseries. These mixes help you create a lawn with bio diversity, a variety of grasses and small flowering plants that can be mowed. When choosing these specialty seed mixes be careful to select ones that are grown for your specific climate conditions. See references below.

Eco-Lawn

A Word About Crane Flies (leather jackets)

Before you treat your lawn for crane fly larvae, determine if they are truly a problem. Crane fly larvae only damage a lawn if they are present at a rate of 25-30 or more per square foot. In early spring, survey your lawn. Select 3 or 4 spots in the lawn 6" by 6". Dig up the first 1-2 " of soil. Tear it apart to count the larvae. Usually larvae will be close to the top of the soil or at the base of the grass layer. Multiply the number of larvae by 4. If this number exceeds 25, consider taking action.

Our remedy is to maintain proper turf health in general, then use beneficial nematodes if necessary. These can be sprayed on when the soil temperature reaches about 55 degrees (mid-spring in the northwest). Some synthetic chemical insecticides are very toxic to birds and fish and should be avoided. Purchase beneficial nematodes at your local nursery.

For Further Information

For more in-depth information about ecologically sound lawn and turf care, please visit the following web site to download Ecologically Sound Lawn Care for the Pacific Northwest by David K. McDonald.

www.seattle.gov/util/Directory/conservation_Index/index.asp

www.govlink.org/hazwaste/house/yard/soil.html

www.eartheasy.com/grow_lawn_care.htm

Natural Lawn Care Services

In Kitsap County:

The Lawn Jockey, www.lawnjockey.net (360-876-3734).

In the Seattle Area:

In Harmony provides complete natural landscaping care services, including compost tea applications: www.inharmony.com (888-472-7748).

Compost Tea Products

In Kitsap County:

Bainbridge Gardens Nursery, 9415 Miller Road, Bainbridge Island, WA, 206-842-5888

Bay Hay and Feed, 10355 NE Valley Road, Bainbridge Island, WA, 206-842-5274