For over ten years, I used a national lawn care service to treat my yard. At least 5, if not 7 times a year, they treated my yard, sending me a $75-$125 bill for their services. Over time and many treatments, my yard began improving. However, I began questioning if all those lawn care treatments were truly necessary? I also wondered when I would be able to stop needing so many treatments a year if my lawn ad “improved” as the lawn care provider ensured me. When something improves it should not need the same “medicine” over and over again, right? More importantly I wondered what those chemicals they were using to treat my lawn were doing to me, my family and pets. When I would ask I would be told “they’re safe”. However, once I started looking into their definition of “safe” and mine, I began realizing the two were starkly different from one another.
Before agreeing to a lawn care treatment program, ask the provider for a complete list of ingredients their product contains. Beware of products that contain the following:
*Nitric acid
*Phosphoric acid
*Sulphuric acid
*Ammonia
Unfortunately, these chemicals will not fully dissolve or wash away, and overtime link to certain cancers. Many of these toxic chemicals are odorless and colorless. The safest fertilizers to use are certified organic (versus “natural”) products.
When using anything other than organic products, wear a mask, gloves, shoes and cover as much of your body as possible. Also, remove the shoes worn during application before entering the house and wash all clothing separately.
Organic lawn care products
Organic lawn care seemed a natural and healthy choice. As I began investigating the why, when and how behind the lesser known application, here’s what I found:
*Bladder cancer in dogs – Perdue University performed a study on the use of chemical applications for lawn care and found that lawns treated with nonorganic products produced significant evidence of bladder cancer in dogs.
“A significantly increased risk of TCC was found for dogs exposed to lawns or gardens treated with herbicides and insecticides or herbicides alone. In fact dogs exposed to treated lawns were seven times more likely to develop TCC.” (http://www.vet.purdue.edu/pcop/files/docs/CanineUrinaryBladderCancer.pdf)
*From allergies to immunities, birth defects, Cancer, ADHD, Autism, and BPA’s nonorganic lawn care treatments have been linked to various diseases/illnesses for quite some time. The following link covers this topic and more. (http://ecologicallawncareblog.com/2012/04/30/common-chemicals-that-trigger-allergies/)
A recent conversation with one of the owners of Green Cardinal Organics changed my mind about using typical lawn care applications. A few of the benefits for using an organic product was their environmentally friendly composition along with being harm free for animals and humans. Another, was their sustainability feature for the lawn, allowing the ground to absorb the nutrients while naturally replenishing back into the lawn over time. Anytime “Mother nature” needs a constant reapplication (kind of like a steroid) to sustain itself, something is wrong.
Why? The soil, at some point, should be absorbing the needed nutrients from the application. If the soil is nutritionally poor, then the application should be helping it to become enriched over time, slowly reducing the amount of treatment to bring the lawn up to a healthier condition. Just like healthy eating should help your body perform and improve, any application applied to your lawn should do the same.
An even better reason to use an organic lawn care treatment plan is the financial savings: The number of applications should reduce (versus continue at the same number of times per year) saving the consumer money. There certainly are seasons and reasons behind the why/when of an application, but the bottom line is this: If the lawn (at some point) is not gradually sustaining then the application is not performing as expected.
Very many lawn care products use the wording “natural” or “safe”. Some may even state their products are “organic”. Before buying an application applied to your lawn visit, “Organic Materials Review Institute” to see if your product is verified as an organic product (http://www.omri.org/omri-lists). Being a “safe” or “natural” product is a discretionary term that could represent a variety of opinions. However, organically certified products are truly the safest method to use.
If you are looking for a verifiable Organic Lawn Care company, I highly suggest starting with smaller locally owned businesses in your area. Why? Most national lawn care services gear their staff to increase lawn care services, repeating treatments and add-ons to your service needs. If you use a national chain, ask for if they use tested and verified organic products. However, I highly suggest using local small businesses. Best of all when employing a small business help your local economy grow. The following list will supply you with two locally owned (not franchised) lawn care businesses I found in Hampton Roads:
*Green Cardinal Organics (http://greencardinalorganics.com/)
*My sisters garden organic (http://mysistersgardenorganics.com/)
If you live in Virginia, the following link will take you to the organic provider in your area:
(http://www.novativemedia.com/organic_gardening/virginia-organic-landscapers.php)
If you prefer to use a national franchise, below are some suggestions for organic providers across the United States. Usually, these businesses offer both organic and nonorganic lawn care treatment based upon your preference:
Natural Lawns (http://www.naturalawn.com/). This company is truly “organic” even though their name says “Natural” (natural and organic are not always necessarily equal terms).
Lawn Doctor (http://www.lawndoctor.com/organic_lawn_care.html). This national franchise offers both organic and nonorganic treatments.
If you are a “DIY” (Do-it-Yourselfer) check out “Safer Branch” and follow this link to find organic products for your lawn care (http://www.saferbrand.com/store/organic-lawn-care/)
Quick Tips for Wellness: Organic lawn care = healthier living.
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