The intoxicating scent of freshly mowed grass tickled my nostrils as I proudly looked at my lush green lawn. A flush of happiness soothed my body and mind because I knew the sight I was staring at was the result of organic fertilizers and absolutely no lawn pesticides. I felt confident that I had overcome challenges and was now performing a new, better way of lawn care. A method of lawn maintenance that was saving money on my water bill, keeping neighbor children and pets safe, and protecting the environment while still having a beautiful healthy lawn that made my jealous neighbors wonder why they haven't made the switch to organic lawn care yet.
The debate continues whether lawn pesticides are harmful to young children, pets, and the environment. It isn't much of a debate these days with numerous new studies coming out providing evidence that many of the materials that were and still are being used in "traditional" lawn care will cause cancer and other health problems while harming our environment. My goal of this article isn't to scare homeowners into using safer products or to provide statistics and scientific research on if lawn pesticides are bad. My goal is to educate, and let folks know that there is a better way of maintaining a lawn through the use of organic materials and inform them why it is beneficial for them to make the switch. Hopefully with the help of this education, consumers will start demanding that companies such as Scott's begin to put more of their large R&D budgets toward safer and more natural products that are as effective as the chemicals we have been blasting our lawns with for years.
The first thing I would suggest is to adjust your mentality to what a perfect lawn looks like. Residential lawns are never going to look like the fairway at your local country club. The sooner you realize this, the better. A couple of dandelions showing their yellow heads is not the end of the world. It is actually natural and common even on the most expensive lawn program out there. I'm not saying your lawn can't look similar to that fairway, but weeds come and go. That's nature. Work with it and not against it.
The second thing I would suggest is adjust your cultural practices such as mowing and watering techniques. Without practicing these two things properly, your lawn will continue to fight nature instead of working with it. Visit to read more on Best time to aerate and overseed lawn
Mowing your lawn to short lengths like your country club fairway is not beneficial or correct. Those fairways are usually bentgrass and the correct mowing height is under an inch. Most residential lawns in the Midwest and the northern part of the U.S. are blue/rye/fescue cool season grass mixes. These types of grasses should be mowed at 3-4 inches after being cut. If they are mowed down to lengths below this you will exponentially create an environment that is more prone to crabgrass, broadleaf weeds such as dandelions, and a shallow root system that can't fight off drought, insects, and disease very well.
Watering your lawn everyday is not smart and your root system will hate you for it. The roots of the grass want to dive deep into the ground to search for minerals and water. By watering everyday you are keeping those roots close to the surface and creating a weak root system more prone to stresses. The proper way to water if you need to, is to provide the grass with water when it needs it. Every lawn is different, but I usually suggest watering every 4-7 days for about 1-1.5 hours per spot. You want to water deeply and infrequently to train your roots to dive deep into the ground.
Now let us get into the fun stuff. How can switching to an organic lawn maintenance program save you money? This is what everyone wants to know these days with the economy struggling. Well, the main reason you can save money through a more natural program is because you are actually improving your soil structure instead of just juicing the lawn up with unsustainable top growth through synthetic fertilizers. How does this occur? A lawn is only as good as its base, the soil. You can grow grass on concrete, but it would cost a lot of money, cause you plenty of headaches, and it would be silly since growing grass in 6-10 inches of quality soil is much easier and less expensive. So let's address the issue of how to develop a high quality soil first and then I will explain how this can save you money