5 Ways to Reduce Your NJ Water Footprint

Because water is readily available from the faucet, we rarely think twice about how much goes down the drain each day. According to National Geographic, it takes 1,800 gallons a day to support the typical American lifestyle—and that number peaks in the summer when the sprinklers are on full blast.

Many NJ residents make the mistake of drowning their yards in order to achieve a plush, green lawn. While water is vital to maintaining healthy turf, you can reduce the amount you use and conserve a precious natural resource by watering smart--not more! Here are a few changes you can make to reduce your NJ water footprint.

1. Landscape creatively. A smaller lawn equals lower water usage; and shrinking your patch of natural grass also reduces mowing, fertilizing and related pollution. Instead of seeding or sodding your entire yard, plant a healthy mix of ground cover, shrubs, trees and other low-water-use greenery.
2. Select drought resistant or native plants that thrive in the New Jersey climate. If you don’t want to pour a lot of sweat and tears into your yard, consider xeriscaping to incorporate plants that are beautiful--yet require little water and attention.
3. Add mulch and rock. Applying 2-3” of mulch helps retain moisture longer and keeps weeds out. Replace natural turf with mulch or gravel around decks, patios, and playgrounds. This change makes for a virtually maintenance-free and water-free solution.
4. Mow higher, and practice “grasscycle.” Keep blades sharp and adjust your lawn mower to a higher setting. Lawn experts at Natural Turf recommend mowing at a height of 3-4” in the spring and summer and 2 ½” for the last cut in the fall. Taller blades shade the turf roots, hold soil moisture better and crowd out weeds. Also, leave the grass clippings when you mow. It's a free way to fertilize and return valuable nutrients to the soil.
5. Water deep, not often. Water in the morning, and only when needed: about an inch per week to penetrate through to the roots (and less if it’s cloudy or rainy). Overwatering can lead to turf diseases, wash out nutrients and contribute to runoff and waste.

Remember, every drop counts! The less you use, the more green you save—not only in terms of money, but also the environment. A natural lawn care maintenance program is the sensible choice if you desire a beautiful, healthy lawn but don’t want to jeopardize your family’s health or strip precious natural resources.

At Natural Turf, we exclusively use natural and organic lawncare products that strengthen your lawn to handle summer stress while helping to reduce your water consumption. Call our natural lawn care specialists today for a consultation, or to learn more about our seasonal and year-round lawn care programs.

Reducing Summer Water Consumption with a Natural Lawn

In the summer months, your yard is an outdoor retreat. So, it’s no wonder New Jersey homeowners spend a great deal of time and energy creating a lush, carpet-like lawn. But achieving that patch of heaven comes at a price. Two of the culprits in draining the pocketbook are overwatering and over-fertilizing. Conventional lawn maintenance causes summer water consumption to spike to nearly double normal levels. Even more staggering: Safelawn reports that Americans apply 80 million pounds of pesticides and herbicides to their grass each year. That’s 10 times more than farmers use on their crops, per acre.

Attaining beautiful, healthy and sustainable turf doesn’t require throwing your hard-earned money away on quick fixes and toxic chemicals that deplete your lawn of necessary nutrients. For example, beneficial microbes help break down organic matter into food for your grass. Pesticides kill these good microbes, preventing normal, healthy processes from occurring. Synthetic fertilizer contains high doses of nitrogen, which greens your lawn and speeds growth. However, most of the fertilizer’s energy is spent on the blades, causing roots to stay close to the surface instead of tapping deep into the ground. So, during droughts, this weakened grass can easily wilt away. This forces homeowners to turn on the sprinklers more often—and forces turf to become dependent on chemicals for survival. It’s a vicious cycle that can be avoided with a natural lawn care program.

Natural and organic lawn care reduces the time spent tending to your yard, minimizing the need for harmful chemicals. A natural, slow-release or organic fertilizer delivers safe nutrients to grass over an extended period of time, promoting stronger root growth and increasing the ability for soil to retain water. Using chemical-free products helps grass to maintain its healthy natural growth cycle –and a healthy lawn can fend off diseases, pests and the elements. In the long run, a sustainable backyard lightens the burden on the environment, your health and the watershed.

At Natural Turf, we believe you can have it all—a thick, beautiful, natural yard treated with chemical-free, effective products that are safe for your family, pets and friends. Call our NJ lawn care experts today to learn how to reduce your summer water bill with naturally and organically maintained turf!