Natural Lawn Care

Greener ways to a greener lawn.

Natural lawn care can be achieved without resorting to harmful pesticides and fertilizers. It is a lot safer and environmentally friendly. With organic lawn care products, new methods and equipments now available, homeowners and lawn care providers can cultivate stunning and healthy lawns – the green way.

The entire system of natural lawn care consists of soil analysis and preparation, composting, planting lawn grass appropriate for the soil, mulching, and weed and pest control, using natural lawn products and environment-friendly tools, and conserving water.

Natural lawn care is the method of caring and maintaining lawns without the use of dangerous pesticides containing toxic substances such as benzene and xylene and other carcinogenic stuff that can endanger one’s health once inhaled and comes into contact with the skin.

These substances also leach into the soil and find its way to water sources. Caring for the lawn the natural way is using natural or organic products to keep lawn grass healthy and free of plant pests and the soil, contaminant free.

In conjunction with the green initiative, lawn maintenance equipment such as the traditional gasoline powered mowers have been redesigned to run on batteries and to operate with less noise. Both of these improvements have lessened air and noise pollution respectively.

New technology is also helping homeowners choose types of lawn grass that do not need much watering. According to recent statistics, a combined total of 90% of water from both the East and West Coasts are used to water lawns. Indeed, this is a big waste of water resources.

Getting Started with Natural Lawn Care

Getting started in caring for your lawn the natural way is relatively easy. The first step to take is improving your lawn soil after a soil analysis. Choose the natural fertilizers that would supply the lacking soil nutrients and be guided by the climate variations because this is a critical factor for lawn care and management. Lawns in warmer areas receive different lawn maintenance from those cooler or colder places.

Natural Lawn Care- Preparing the Soil

The type of soil is important to produce healthy lawn grass. Some types of soil may be too compact preventing the absorption of nutrients and makes it impossible for air and water to circulate freely.

The tightly packed pores make it difficult to grow lush lawn grass because their roots cannot grow enough to reach the nutrients way below the soil’s surface and water runs off easily taking along the necessary nutrients growth of lawn grass. If no option is available, compact soil can be loosened with the right tools and aeration.

With an aerator, the soil is turned, creating holes to make the soil more “airy”. Done on a regular basis, the soil becomes healthy enough to grow grass. Aerating allow water and air to flow and makes it a healthy habitat for earthworms. Earthworms burrow into the soil, making it loose and more absorbent of natural fertilizers and their droppings fertilize the soil.

Mulching

On the other hand, a relatively dry soil can be remedied with mulching and organic mulches are better than rubber, glass, and plastic mulch. Mulches keep moisture in the soil and prevent the rapid evaporation of moisture during hot weather. This method requires the covering of the soil to keep it moist. Grass clippings, dry leaves, and peat moss are fine organic mulch material.

The dry leaves of birch, willows, and poplars make good mulch during winter; while they decompose, they stick together, providing good cover yet allowing water and air to seep into the soil. These make good soil cover for winter and during the thaw. Nitrate rich dried grass clippings are mixed with other leaves to allow aeration and a high percentage of returns to the soil. With a combination of other leaves, grass clippings will not give off an undesirable smell.

Mulch from packaged sphagnum or peat Moss is packaged and therefore very convenient to use. Wet or dry it forms a thick crust that prevents water from getting into the soil. To produce crumbly mulch, this is mixed with pine needles. Peat moss reduces soil salinity and makes the soil perfect for azaleas, rhododendrons, hollies, and blue berries – plants that prosper in acidic soil.

Watering

No living thing can survive without water; plants wither and die for lack of water but too much of it drowns the grass. The proper amount of watering is critical in successful in lawn care. This is not done recklessly by hosing the grass, a little too much in some area and not enough in another corner.

After a rainfall, it is not advised to water the lawn, but it is recommended to water the lawn more often during hot weather. The ideal time to water the lawn is at the soil. You can also collect the water run-off from your roof with a simple rain collection system to then use to water your lawn and plants.

Mowing the Lawn

Mowing your lawn is essential in maintaining its aesthetic appeal but mowing can be a nuisance when one uses petrol-powered lawn equipment or tools because of the petrol emissions, the stench of gasoline, and the noise of the running motor.

An alternative to gas powered lawn mower is the push or reel mower which cost less. It does not punish one with the noise, fumes, and stench Reel mowers used to be bulky contraptions and required a lot of force to operate. The new breed of reel mowers is lightweight and less unwieldy. There are also solar-powered mowers like the Enviromower available in the market.

Battery operated solar powered reel mowers are not expensive to maintain and easy to operate. When the batteries are fully charged, the mower can work up to 2 hours. There are more reasons why a reel mower is the better choice:

• Cuts better because it shears the grass not tears it.
• Produces less noise.
• Low maintenance; no frequent oil changing and sharpening of blades.
• Cost efficient.
• Better for the environment.

Natural Lawn Care- Lawn and garden accessories

There are many beautiful and earth-friendly ways to spice up your garden. You can add solar garden lighting and solar fountains for example. Going the natural lawn care way gives more personal satisfaction from raising healthy plants and lawn grass at less expense and is alot healthier for the water tables and the environment in general. Go Green!

Return from the Natural Lawn Care page to the Living OffThe Grid page or to the Home page.