Some Green Tips For Your Lawn

We spend lots of time, energy and money making our lawns beautiful and user-friendly.

Here are some tips for making them environmentally friendly as well.

Grass clippings contain valuable nutrients taken right out of your soil. So isn’t it odd that

we gather our grass  clippings in bags and ship them off to a land fill somewhere on the other

side of the county?

1. Mulch Your Grass Clippings when possible.

Did you know that mulching your grass and leaves can save you as many as two

fertilizer applications every year?  Most lawn mowers come with a mulching blade

that chops grass and leaves into small pieces and deposits them right back into the

lawn.

Mulched leaves – especially sugar and red maple leaves – provide a degree of natural

weed control when mulched into the lawn. Sometimes it is not practical to mulch

your leaves because you have too many of them. But often it is – and it helps your

lawn too!

2. Plant trees, shrubs and flowers – You know that trees are good for the

environment. They help clean the air, return moisture to the air and provide shade

from the hot sun.  Shrubs, flowers and bushes also have many benefits other than

just adding beauty. They help stimulate the soil, add bio-diversity to your yard, and

attract birds and other wildlife.

3. Use Fertilizer Wisely – Synthetic fertilizers almost always contain nitrogen and

phosphorous. Nitrogen is what your grass needs for healthy growth. Much of your

lawn’s nitrogen requirements can be supplied by mulching your grass each time you

mow it.

Phosophorous (the second number) is usually unnecessary for healthy lawns, and it

has some negative effects on the environment. Phosphorous that ends up in our

rivers, lakes and ponds stimulates plant growth which disrupts the habitat of fish and

other water life. Look for a fertilizer than has “0″ phosophorous.

Organic fertilizers may actually contain more phosophorus than synthetic ones, so

read the label carefully.