March 2008 Jeff Brower

12 Steps to Detox Your Landscape

Some 100 million pounds of pesticides are used by homeowners in homes and gardens each year, even more when commercial companies are added in. Suburban lawns and gardens are known to receive far heavier pesticide applications per acre than most other land areas in the U.S., including agricultural areas.

The best that can be said is that it is a great coup for the chemical companies because once you begin using their quick fix silver bullets it is hard to stop. We are actually making our lawns chemical junkies that will go through terrible withdraw pains if we back off. The reason is that these chemicals and acidulated petroleum based fertilizers have killed all the beneficial soil microbes God placed in the soil to keep a balanced functioning system. The soil is seen as nothing more than a medium to hold our plants up and into which we dump things to receive the desired affect.

The amount of chemicals needed to sustain such expectations is staggering. They are making us, our children, and our pets sick. Studies show that these hazardous lawn chemicals are also drifting into our homes where they contaminate indoor air and surfaces, exposing children at levels ten times higher than preapplication levels.

Healthy living soil is the key to your success in landscaping or gardening. A properly managed soil is a healthy living system that will feed your plants while discouraging and destroying pests. Spring is a great time to transition your lawn to a more sustainable system that will be healthier for your family and the environment. Follow these simple steps to begin the process of restoring the beneficial life to your soil and ending the toxic waste dump in your lawn. You can end the addiction in your landscape!

1. Have your soil tested by a reputable lab that does a complete soil analysis. You wouldn’t allow the dentist to start drilling your teeth before taking an x-ray. The same principle applies to fertilization. Don’t add anything to your soil until you know what is there and what is missing. Adding too much of one thing could cause problems, deficiencies, or toxicities with something else. Only add what you know you need. Take soil from surface level to about three inches deep in 10-12 spots around your landscape to make up a good composite. Use a lab that provides the following information in a soil analysis: pH, Total Exchange Capacity, Base Saturation, desired calcium to magnesium ratio, exchangeable hydrogen, the amount of nitrogen, sulfate, phosphates, calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium, boron, iron, manganese, copper, zinc, salts and chlorides present. From this, you can plan accurate applications for correcting the soil in order to give you a healthy landscape requiring less time and money. A good lab report will make recommendations for balancing your soil.
2. Balance your soil according to the recommendations from the soil test. Now you can safely add the nutrients and amendments that will correct deficiencies and repair the biological and physical structure of your soil. It can take months to change the soil chemistry so it is important that you get started right away.
3. Stop using artificial pesticides and synthetic fertilizers. These products will destroy beneficial soil microorganisms and earthworms. While they may bring temporary relief, they guarantee you will have to keep using them and create an environment ripe for other attacks. Do not apply anything to your soil that does not encourage life. You can use a 100% organic bagged fertilizer once your soil is balanced. The best analysis will be determined by your soil test but generally a 10-2-10 with Calcium, Magnesium, and the micro elements (boron, manganese, iron, copper, zinc, and molybdenum) is excellent for maintaining the proper nutrition for soil microbes. There is a change in thinking required here. We usually think in terms of fertilizing plants. The best way to fertilize is to feed the soil so that it can feed roots as they are needed. Soil microbes are required to process fertilizer elements and actually carry them across cell walls into the roots. The more and healthier the microbes the better nutrition your lawn will have available.
4. Aerate soil. Increase the air in the soil through mechanical aeration or conditioners if it is compacted. This can be expensive if your entire lawn needs air but soils and microbes need oxygen to be healthy. In many cases this can be done by balancing the soil chemistry and using organic soil conditioners and bio-stimulants.
5. Build soil organic content. Soils that have been maintained with artificial fertilizer are almost always too low in organic matter. You can add compost or apply compost tea to prepare beds and gardens, and to stimulate lawns. Stimulation of microbiotic activity in the soil is the most important way of building soil organic matter. A great way to use what you already have in your landscape is to stop collecting lawn clippings when you mow. Let the chopped up leaves and grass remain on your lawn to decompose and build up your soil. This will provide food for soil microbes, improve the soil structure and air content, improve drought resistance, and provide free nitrogen and other nutrients to the soil.
6. Add mulch to all bare ground. Natural mulch preserves moisture, helps to eliminate weeds, and keeps the soil surface cooler which benefits earthworms, microorganisms, and plant roots. Cover bare ground under trees and shrubs and in vegetable and flower gardens with 1” of compost and 3” of shredded tree trimmings or bark mulch.
7. Plant only adapted species. Always plant varieties that do well in your specific environment. Native species are always a good choice as they will be resistant to pests in your area. Make sure you get plants in their best environment as well. Shade lovers will burn up in the sun and sun lovers will be spindly and flowerless in the shade.
8. Watering. Irrigate your lawn and landscape deeply and infrequently to encourage deep roots. An application of .75”-1” every week or tow is sufficient in the winter, depending on the temperature. In the summer time you may need two applications per week. Shallow frequent watering results in shallow root systems that are susceptible to drought and pests. Less water will be required as you increase the mineral level in your soils. Use your yearly soil lest to keep the mineral level where it needs to be.
9. Foliar Spraying. Spray lawns and shrubs during periods of stress with compost tea or a good biological stimulant. This encourages healthy growth and reduces pests. A good stimulant includes molasses, compost tea, vinegar, kelp, and other ingredients. These applications will reduce plant replacement and pesticide requirements. Kelp either as meal or in a soluble form is the best fungicide available. It is also full of growth stimulants that produce healthy foliage and more blooms. Try it!
10. Encourage biodiversity. Introduce beneficial insects and protect those that exist by ending toxic insecticide applications. You can plant herbs that attract these insects and install bat and purple marlin houses. Use only organic fertilizers.
11. Mowing . Lawns are frequently mowed too low. Most lawns thrive when cut to 3-4 inches tall. Some species, like Bermuda, are best kept at 1-1.5 inches tall. This will give you a strong healthy root system that is resistant to drought, heat, and freezing. Never remove more than 1/3 of the grass height in one mowing. The grass clippings and some finally chopped leaves should remain on the lawn. They are a great source of nutrients and will add to the soil structure. Only use sharp blades for a clean neat cut that does not damage grass. Consider ground covers instead of lawns to reduce your water consumption and maintenance costs.
12. Pruning. Never remove more than 1/3 of the plant at any one pruning. When ever you are mowing or pruning keep the 1/3 rule in mind. Anything more will cause stress and make the plant susceptible to pests and temperature extremes. Azaleas are pruned right after flowering. Later pruning will remove next years bloom. Please don’t perform Crape murder on your Crape Myrtles! Yearly pruning will encourage more blooms but severe pruning weakens the tree.

Remember, stress can lead to addiction. Keeping your soil healthy and using products that are easy on the environment will reduce plant stress. Oh, and your stress will be replaced by the peace of mind in knowing you are doing the right things for your family, plants, pets, and neighbors.

So get out there and enjoy the beautiful spring weather, get some fresh air and exercise, and break the chemical habit. You will breathe easier!

Great gardening,

Jeff Brower, President Organic by Design, LLC

Please visit us at: www.GoOrganicbydesign.com
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