A healthy NJ lawn should be something you and your family enjoy together. That especially includes your pets - who revel in the chance to play fetch, have a run, or take a rest on your emerald-green grass. Hey, don't we enjoy that, too?
Dana Farbman, ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center (APCC) pet poison prevention expert, says "Keeping animals safe from accidental poisonings should not end once you've stepped outside. Protecting your pet from potential hazards is just as critical." Unfortunately, the APCC's expert team fields thousands of calls each year involving pets who've had potentially hazardous contact with insecticides, weed-killers and pet-toxic plants.
According to the APCC, here's the 8 critical areas to watch out for when protecting your family's furry companion:
1. Poisonous plants - When designing your lawn space, remember that many popular outdoor plants (especially sago palm, rhododendron and azalea) are toxic to pets. Checkout the full list of plants here.
2. Fertilizer - The chemicals and fertilizers that keeps plants "healthy" can be particularly harmful to our furry friends. Ingesting large amounts can upset their stomachs, potentially causing life-threatening gastrointestinal obstructions.
3. Cocoa mulch - Although it's popular for it's odor and color to humans, it attracts pets, too who are allergic. Depending on the amount ingested, symptoms can include vomiting, diarrhea, muscle tremors, elevated heart rate and even seizures.
4. Insecticides - This is rough stuff. The most dangerous are snail bait with metaldehyde, fly bait with methomyl; and systematic insecticides with disyston or disulfoton, mole or gopher bait with zinc phosphide and most forms of rat poison. You should always keep these out of Fido's reach.
5. Compost - Food and garden waste make prime additions to the garden soil; but, watch what you put down. Coffee, moldy food and certain fruits and veggies can be toxic. Here's a list on what to avoid.
6. Fleas and ticks - Keep your lawn trim since fleas and ticks hangout in the tall brush and grass. In addition to excessive scratching, hair loss, scabs, hot spots and tapeworms; they can also lead to more serious tick-borne diseases like Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever and Babesia.
7. Garden tools - Be sure your essential lawn tools are secured safely away. They could cause accidental trauma to your pets, especially dogs who tend to be outside more than cats.
8. Allergy-causing flora - Pets have allergies, too. Yup. Your pets' allergic reactions can cause life-threatening anaphylactic shock of severe enough. Also, try to keep your pet out of other people's yards.
Pesticides impact both outdoor and indoor pets — since a lawn care service using toxic or misapplied chemicals will leave residue that you or your family can track inside. Dogs or cats are then exposed to it, ingesting it as they clean their fur.
The key to avoiding these hazards is to use a natural NJ lawn care company that understands the risks. At Natural Turf, we use organic fertilizers and pesticides that not only guarantee seed germination to make your lawn look its best; but, are also pet safe. Contact us today to learn more - your lawn and your family's furry companion will thank you!
The lawn season is getting closer...and closer. Without question, having the right tools for the job will make the job of lawn maintenance easier, and will help make your lawn as beautiful as it can be.
There are so many tools, manufacturers - at all ranges of prices - that it's difficult to determine what the best way to go is. So what should be in your green cabinet?
Here's a good list of 10 essentials:
1. A spring tined rake
2. A garden fork
3. A spade or shovel
4. A pair of edging shears5. A half-moon edging tool
6. A besom (a.k.a. a witch's broom)
7. A push spreader
8. A trimmer or edger
9. A long-handled shear
10. A mower
For more information, you can checkout the entire article from our friends at Enjoy-Your-Garden.com. Or, better yet, visit our website to learn about our services and contact a Natural Turf professional today. We're happy to help you fill out your green lawn cabinet with the tools to The Better Way to a lush, healthy lawn.
There are some things that go perfectly together: peanut butter and jelly, yin and yang, baseball and spring. But in the case of our kids and lawn chemicals...they don't.
Most of the popular lawn chemicals are dangerous carcinogens and mutagens. Chemically-treated lawn toxins stick to shoes, get tracked indoors and are deposited on rugs, kids’ toys, blankets and clothing. Also, walking barefoot on a chemically-treated lawn affords direct absorption of toxins into the skin through their feet and toes.
Beyond Pesticides has a great fact sheet on why children and pesticides don't mix. Here's some highlights:
1. The National Academy of Sciences reports that children are more vulnerable than adults to the dangerous lawn care pesticides.(1)
2. Studies have linked pesticides to cancer, asthma, hyperactivity and other ailments.(2, 3)
3. A study published in The Journal of the National Cancer Institute finds that household and garden pesticide use can increase the risk of childhood leukemia as much as sevenfold.(4)
4. Scientists believe that the amount of toxic chemicals in the environment that cause developmental and neurological damage are contributing to the rise of physical and mental effects being found in children.(5)
5. A 2005 study published in The Journal of the American Medical Association found that students and school employees are being poisoned by pesticide use at schools and from drift off of neighboring farmlands.(6)
Sobering news. On the other hand, Natural Turf’s organic programs approach is a completely safe, life-affirming process. Compost, seaweed, garlic, corn gluten and other 100% natural products are used to feed the micro-organisms in the soil. These organisms then help make available all the nutrients your lawn – and your family – needs to grow safe and sound.
Contact us to learn more about The Better Way to organic and organic-based lawn care. We look forward to hearing from you.
Sources:
(1) National Research Council, National Academy of Sciences. 1993. Pesticides in the Diets of Infants and Children, National Academy Press, Washington, DC. 184-185.
(2) Leiss, J., et. al., 1995. Home Pesticide Use and Childhood Cancer: A Case-Control Study. American Journal of Public Health, 85: 249-252.
(3) Repetto, R., et. al., 1996 March. Pesticides and Immune System: The Public Health Risk. World Resources Institute. Washington, DC.
(4) Lowengart, R., et. al., 1987. Childhood Leukemia and Parent's Occupational and Home Exposures. Journal of the National Cancer Institute. 79:39.
(5) National Research Council. 2000. Scientific frontiers in developmental toxicology and risk assessment. Washington, DC: National Academy Press; Physicians for Social Responsibility, The National Environmental Trust, The Learning Disabilities Association of America. 2000.
(6) Alarcon, WA., et. al., 2005. Acute illnesses associated with pesticide exposure at school. Journal of the American Medical Association. 294(4); 455-465.
"Winter" - wherever it was for the past season - is slipping away, and Spring will be here before we know it.
To prepare for a healthy lawn, be sure to get your lawn mower and lawn mower blades ready. This way, your grass is cut cleanly, allowing the roots to remain intact and the blades to grow evenly.
For more info, here's a great refresher from eHow.com.
What are some of your helpful tricks for prepping your lawn mower?
Happy mowing!
Everyone here at Natural Turf - especially Sparky - are all very excited to share something with you! We've got a NEW AND IMPROVED Facebook and Twitter pages!
Like and follow us to:
1. Stay in touch with the Natural Turf team for all your lawn care needs.
2. Get great, timely insights on The Better Way to organic and organic-based lawn care.
3. Take advantage of special promotions and deals.
4. Connect with the leading local, state and national organizations that also believe in The Better Way to organic and organic-based lawn care.
And much, much more! Click on the Facebook and Twitter buttons below to connect today! We look forward to seeing you!
Here's to a great upcoming lawn care season!
Lawn season is right around the corner! And, if you're thinking of going organic or organic-based for your lawn, there's definitely a lot to think about. Where do you start? Like any worthwhile project, getting the right foundation is key.
Here's a great foundation from our friends at SafeLawns.org:
THE 10 ESSENTIAL TIPS FOR A NATURAL LAWN
1. Obtain a soil test - Never spend money on any fertilizer or soil amendment without first consulting the results of a soil test first.
2. Grow the right grass - The most common lawn grasses in North America, Kentucky Bluegrass and Bremudagrass, also need the most water and fertilizer to grow well. Other species such as perennial ryegrass, fescue, seashore paspalum and centipede grass may be better for your region of the country.
3. Water well - Morning watering is always recommended so that the surface of the lawn dries off during the day. Water deeply and infrequently so the roots of the grass learn to grow down into the soil to get the water they need.
4. Think of your soil as alive - "Dirt" is what you track into your house. The material that grows on your lawn, the soil, is alive with organisms large and small. Nurturing that life through proper use of natural materials will lead to a successful natural lawn.
5. Mow properly - Recycling your grass clippings by leaving them on the lawn will provide approximately half your lawn's fertilizer needs for the season. Keep your mower blades sharp. Depending on the species, lawns should be mowed no lower than 2.5 inches, even higher in the summer.
6. Avoid synthetic materials - Fertilizers manufactured in a laboratory often burn lawn grasses and soils. Fertilizers and soil amendments should come from materials that were once living plants or animals, or mined materials such as lime or sulfur.
7. Add compost - Nature's most magical soil additive, compost, contains all sorts of beneficial microorganisms that add life to the soil. These organisms will interact with the organic fertilizers to provide the green lawn many of us covet.
8. See weeds as messengers - Weeds usually appear on lawns only when something is wrong with the soil. Even if we kill the weeds, they'll come back unless we fix the underlying problem with the soil.
9. See insects as messengers - A rush of new grass growth caused my synthetic fertilizers will often attract insects. Predatory insects are rarely a problem in a natural system that's in balance.
10. Overseed regularly - In nature, all plants produce seed to reproduce themselves. In a lawn system, where we mow regularly, grass is not allowed to reproduce and even the healthiest plants get tired. By overseeding in spring and fall, you're introducing robust young plants that will fill in bare areas and compete aggressively against weeds.
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.
