Organic Lawn Fertilizer

Black Medic is a sign of low nitrogen

admin — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 11:36:01 +0000

Black Medic is a sign of low nitrogen
I once moved to a house that was infested with both bindweed and thistle. Imagine my yard as a big rectangle. I started pulling weeds on the left and stopped about ten percent of the way across. A few days later, I started at the left again and picked out anything that cropped up in the last few days and then made a little progresss into the rest of the rectangle. Each brief weeding trip gets me another 5% of new territory. The important thing is to always weed the area you already weeded first. If I didn’t do it this way, then the weed would recover in the first section while I was attacking another section.
Dandelions are a sign of alkaline soil. Refer to the pH stuff above. The above methods will prevent dandelions from propogating. Since dandelions live about five years, the mature dandelions will struggle with the tall, thick turf and die off in two to three years. I now think that a few dandelions poking up once in a while are kinda nice and I leave them alone.
Black Medic is a sign of low nitrogen soil. Refer to fertilizing above. The above methods will keep black medic in check. You will occassionally see a little once in a while, but it is kinda pretty when it isn’t taking over your lawn. This stuff is sometimes called “yellow clover”. When it’s taking over, it will choke out grass and make flat mats about a foot in diameter. I found a litte in my current lawn and it was a single tiny strand with little yellow flowers.

Canadian Thistle

admin — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 11:35:00 +0000

Canadian Thistle
This is a good time to talk about soil quality too. There is a big difference between dirt and soil. Soil is rich in microbial life and has a lot of organic matter in it. Dirt comes in many forms and it’s a challenge to get anything to grow in it. If you are getting “topsoil” delivered to your house, be prepared for it to bear more resemblance to “dirt”. You may want to have compost also delivered to your house so that you can mix the two and have the beginnings for “soil”. One part compost to two parts dirt is a good mix.
The above lawn care advice will eliminate 95% to 99% of your weed problem. But there are some weeds that are almost impossible to get rid of, no matter what. Some of these are even resistant to the chemical army. The two to be careful of in my area are BINDWEED (looks like white or pink morning glory) and CANADIAN THISTLE. These two have HUGE root systems that might go as deep as thirty feet into the soil. They spread with rhizomes, just like your grass. The above techniques will discourage them enough to go to your neigbor’s instead. They don’t like tall grass or mowing. They might try to pop up on fences or other lawn borders. Fifty outcroppings could all be part of the same plant, so you really have to get as much of them as you can. The key is to remove the green plant that provides it with sugar. It needs sun and sugar to support that massive root system. Repeated digging will weaken it to the point that bugs and bacteria can take over.

Encounter an organic

admin — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 11:36:20 +0000

Encounter an organic
I have never had to personally deal with grubs. And I have yet to encounter an organic grower that has had to deal with them. But I have had many people write to me and ask how to deal with grubs organically. Nearly all of them have mentioned “Last year I sprayed toxic goo to get rid of the grubs and now they’re back”. While I did not see what happened, my guess is that birds and other natural grub control ate the dead grubs and died. No more natural grub control.
So the trick is to kill the grubs, but don’t harm anything that eats grubs. The answer is to bring in more grub predators.
Having done a little reading on this topic, “Milky Spore” (Bacillus popilliae) and/or predatory nematodes appear to be the organic control. “Milky Spore” is naturally occurring bacteria that makes the grubs puke their guts out, but it doesn’t seem to bother anything else. So if a bird eats a dead grub, the bird will be fat and happy. Predatory nematodes (also called “beneficial nematodes”) are like micro worms that crawl through the soil and eat a variety of different organisms, including grubs.
In the horticultural world “rot” almost always mean “composting”. To properly compost, you need a certain mixture of carbon heavy organic matter (wood, dried leaves, straw, etc.) and nitrogen heavy organic matter (manure, grass clippings, table scraps, weeds, etc.). If you get just the right mix, you get hot composting happening. Too much nitrogen and it gets a little stinky. Too much carbon and the composting takes a very long time.

Serious weed infestation

admin — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 11:34:56 +0000

Serious weed infestation
If you have a serious weed infestation, consider mowing twice as frequently as you normally do. The sensitive growing point for grass is near the soil. The sensitive growing point for most weeds is near the top of the plant. So when you mow, it’s as if you are giving your grass a haircut and cutting the heads off of the weeds.
Finally, when mowing, be sure to leave the clippings on the lawn. It adds organic matter and nutrients back into the soil. If you don’t leave the clippings, your soil will begin to look more like “dirt” than soil. Soon it will be a form of cement that nothing will grow in and you will have the world’s most pitiful lawn. Some people are concerned about “clumping” - that only happens when you mow too short or when you don’t mow often enough.
This will force your grass roots to go deep into the soil. Deeper than most weed roots. As the top few inches of soil becomes bone dry, the weeds and weed seedlings up there die while the grass still enjoys moisture from a little deeper.
Shallow, frequent watering encourages “thatch” (the grass propogates with above-soil runners (like strawberry runners) rather than rhizomes under the soil - there gets to be so many runners that they weave a mat that chokes out water and air). Since the roots are in the top inch or two of soil, a hot day will quickly dry the soil and much of the grass will brown. Weeds and weed seedlings looooove a daily watering. It’s just what they need for a good start.

Organic Care Is The Best

admin — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 09:09:16 +0000

Organic Care Is The Best
Organic care is the best that you can give to your beautiful lawns. It is natural and that is why it cannot harm the lawns. Organic lawn fertilizer has come as a new option for those people who care not only about nurturing their lawns but also about the environment. Organic fertilizers can be used by as an alternative to the chemical products. One should remember that originally there were only these organic products, and we gave place to the chemical ones, thereby spoiling our environment. Now, we should go back to the old times again to save it.

There are several benefits of using lawn fertilizers that are organic in nature, and they are highly effective. You do not have to doubt their capabilities as they are much more beneficial than their chemical counterparts. First of all, these organic fertilizers are biodegradable products.

On the other hand, the chemical fertilizers react with our environment in unnatural ways. However these natural fertilizers can break down and return to their original value. Consequently they do not harm anybody as they are easily dissipated. They are toxin free unlike the man made fertilizers.

Another benefit of using organic lawn fertilizer for your lawns is that they are safe for your family. The chemical fertilizers have poisonous chemicals that can harm your family and pets in various ways. The only way out is to go natural. Besides these reasons, organic care leads to less wastage.

Watering encourages your lawn

admin — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 11:34:58 +0000

Watering encourages your lawn

Thorough watering encourages your lawn to develop deep root systems which make the lawn hardier and more drought-resistant. Let the lawn dry out before re-watering; as a rule of thumb, the color should dull and footprints should stay compressed for more than a few seconds. When watering, put a cup in the sprinkler zone; it should get at least one inch (2.5cm) water.
The best time for watering is early morning - less water will be lost to evaporation. Ideally, it’s better to water the first half-inch or so, then wait for an hour or two before watering the second half-inch.
There is a fight for sun. If the grass doesn’t shade the weed, the weed will shade the grass. Sun is food. Food is strength and life. Shade is weakness, disease and death. Grass will shade the weeds only if it is tall enough. The shade of tall, dense grass turf will prevent essential light from reaching most weeds and, will aid in the destruction of new baby weed seedlings (such as the notorius dandelion).
MYTH: “If I mow short, it will be longer until I have to mow again.” False! Wrong! Your grass needs grass blades to do photosynthesis (convert sunshine into sugar) to feed the roots. When you whack the blades off, the grass has to RACE to make more blades to make sugar. It then grows amazingly fast. This fast growth uses up a lot of the grass’s stored sugar, and weakens the plant. It is now vulnerable to disease and pests! Tall grass is healthier and can use the extra sugar to make rhizomes (more grass plants) thus thickening the turf. Have you ever noticed that short grass in the summer is always riddled with dead brown patches?

The first step is to test the soil’s pH

admin — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 11:33:26 +0000

The first step is to test the soil’s pH
It should read between 6.5 and 7.0, which is slightly acidic. Soil that is too acidic will need a sprinkling of lime; sulfur can be added to soil which is not acidic enough. You can buy a pH tester (see below, this page) for $40 - $60. Another solution is to have your soil tested professionally; first call your extension office - they often provide soil testing as a free service.

Lawns grow best in loamy soils that have a mix of clay, silt and sand. Too much clay in the soil mix, or heavy use, can compact the soil and prevent air and nutrient flow. Compacted soil may need aeration, a process of lifting small plugs of turf to create air spaces in the soil. For best results, rent an aerator or hire a lawn service to do the job - this will remove “finger size” plugs which improves aeration. Aeration is best done before top dressing and fertilizing.
Organic matter, such as compost and grass clippings, will benefit any type of soil; it lightens soil which is heavy in clay, and it builds humus in sandy soils, which helps retain water and nutrients. Grasses vary in the type of climate they prefer, the amount of water and nutrients required, shade tolerance and the degree of wear they can withstand. Ask your local garden center to recommend grass which is best adapted to your area.

Giving your lawn a “Marine cut” is not doing it a favor. Surface roots become exposed, the soil dries out faster and surface aeration is reduced. As a general rule, don’t cut off more than one-third of the grass at any one time. Most turf grass species are healthiest when kept between 2.5 and 3.5″ tall.

Watering Provides A Healthy Plant

admin — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 09:08:20 +0000

Watering Provides A Healthy Plant

Also known as aerating, most yards need to be cultivated once a year to help reduce soil compaction and thatch build-up. Rent a core cultivation machine that removes plugs of soil and run it over the yard a few times in early spring or fall.

This will help loosen the soil and allow sun, air and nutrients to penetrate the ground. Cultivating is especially helpful for yards with compacted soil due to new construction or high clay content.

The next step with an organic yard care approach requires a little more effort because it requires applying natural products to feed the soil and control weed and insect pests. Keep in mind these products are not well-suited for areas where quick grass growth is necessary, such as newly seeded areas or sections of lawn that are recovering from heavy use.

Their slow-release characteristics struggle with providing the necessary amount of nitrogen to the plant in this condition. However, if the products are used diligently the results are quite positive.

The first and easiest step to take is to leave grass clippings on the lawn when you mow. A good mulching mower can make this effortless. Doing so will return up to 2 lbs. of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet annually to the yard (not bad considering 3 to 5 lbs. of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet is the normal recommendation).

With The Tightening Of Environmental

admin — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 09:07:49 +0000

With The Tightening Of Environmental
With the tightening of environmental restrictions becoming a reality over more and more of the United States that tell you what you can and can’t put on and into your lawn, it is no wonder that organic lawn care is becoming a natural alternative.

For those that aren’t familiar with the concept, organic lawn care is the use of 100% natural and organic chemicals and solutions on your lawn to help your grass and flowers grow naturally. Just like organic farming doesn’t use any harmful, man-made pesticides, organic lawn care is dedicated to using only natural ingredients to keep your lawn green!

Maybe the best argument of all to switch to organic lawn care is the fact that everything you put on your lawn gets absorbed into the ground below. Do you really want to be spreading possibly dangerous chemicals right below your water pipes so that these chemicals get absorbed into the water table? Of course not, and it is this realization, more than anything else, that makes people switch over to natural grass-growing and fertilization.

The first step that most people take when they decide to go green is to change the fertilizer they use on their lawn and on their flower beds. A trip to the lawn care store can be quite the experience if you’ve never been before.

There are literally hundreds of different types of fertilizer made for home and lawn use, some of them are natural but many of them are not. The most obvious fertilizer to use for your lawn would be manure.

Try Seventh Generation Or Other Natural Brands

admin — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 09:04:12 +0000

Try Seventh Generation Or Other Natural Brands
Soap (try Seventh Generation or other “natural” brands) with water and spraying on plants will take care of many bugs. Grubs, fungus larvae, weevils and borers and other pests can be eliminated with nematodes, a natural, biological control (See sources, below). Put in a birdfeeder and birdbath as birds also eat up bugs. Vinegar (3 tbsp. per gallon of water) can help control fungus.

Sprinkle grass seed throughout your lawn in the spring and fall. This will help fill in bare spots and help choke out weeds. If filling in bare areas, first loosen soil and spread peat moss, compost or top soil. Walk over lawn to help push seeds into soil, then water.

Soil pH may be contributing to weed problems or poor grass health. Checking soil pH (once every four years)–inexpensive testing by the county extension office is available–may be worthwhile. Many Ohio soils (about 70%) could benefit by adding lime to counter excess acidity. (Note: Elsewhere, if soil is too alkaline, sulphur is usually recommended). Your county extension service wll usually make suggestions based on testing. Having at least 10 earthworms per square foot of soil is an indicator of soil health.

If you have a good feel for how often your lawn needs watering and it is almost that time and there is a rain shower - maybe a quarter of an inch - that is the BEST time to water your lawn and give it that other 3/4 of an inch. Remember, the grass roots are down deep and most weed roots are near the surface. The idea is to keep the top three inches of soil as dry as you can for as long as you can.