Many people are becoming more interested in using landscape tactics that
do not harm the earth. In addition to being great for the environment, organic
landscaping can also provide benefits for your wallet and for your health.
One of the most alarming things to many people is the fact that some pesticides
and fertilizers can harm their children. When you have children or grandchildren,
it seems kind of a waste if they cannot play on the lawn because there is
fertilizer all over it. Likewise, the improper use of pesticides, or sometimes
even the proper use of these chemicals, can result in sickness. Another
benefit of organic gardening can also be felt in the wallet. If you make
use of the resources that you have at hand, you can actually save money
with do-it-yourself organic landscaping, rather than paying money for chemicals
to unnaturally enhance your plants.
One of the best ways to practice organic landscape is to make use of
native plants. It is much easier to naturally promote the health of your
landscape when the plants you use thrive in your area. Bringing in exotic
plants or non-native plants from areas with very different conditions
only results in frustration and the possible reliance on chemicals to
help you take care of them. If you want to keep a landscape that works
with the natural setting, native plants, or plants from areas with similar
conditions, can help you accomplish this.
The lawn is most often the most visible part of a landscape. It seems
as though many people thing it is necessary to use a great deal of chemicals
to keep pests from ruining the lawn or to help the lawn grow well. The
truth, however, is that by actively caring for the soil in your lawn
as well as the grass, you can create a healthier lawn. This can be done
in a number of ways that do not involve chemicals that can be harmful
to the environment and to your health.
One of these ways is the use of organic fertilizer. There are compositions
of fertilizer made entirely of organic materials. These fertilizers do
cost more up front, but as they are used regularly reduce long run costs.
The decrease the need for chemicals that can become expensive (and if
applied wrong can actually damage you lawn more than help it), and they
do not need to be applied as often. So, the cost often evens out eventually,
as you have to apply the synthetic fertilizer much more often.
Another way to take care of the lawn is to use practices that promote
healthy soil and better grass roots. One of these practices is aeration.
Aeration relieves soil compaction by punching holes in the ground. This
helps by making the soil easier to go through. This means that the roots
have more room to go deeper, and organisms, like earthworms, that actually
help the health of your grass, have more room to move about and make
their homes. This results in naturally healthy grass that withstands
pests better and keeps weeds out on its own.
Top dressing and over seeding are other organic practices that improve
the health of the lawn. Top dressing is the act of taking composted organic
matter and mixing it half and half with sand. A thin layer is then spread
over the lawn. This actually improves the lawn rooting, creating healthier,
hardier grass, without fertilizer. Over seeding is a method that makes
use of more than the recommended amount of grass seed — about one
and a half times more than the recommended amount. Over seeding promotes
quicker germination and results in a thicker lawn that fights weeds.
Fertilizer, organic or otherwise, is not even necessary if you practice
common sense in using organic gardening techniques. You can even create
your own compost and mulch by using grass clippings from the lawn mower
and leftovers from the garden. Raked leaves and pine needles and weeds
can also be used. By leaving them to decompose, you are creating nutrient-rich
organic matter than can be used to, in turn, improve the health of all
the plants in your landscape, not just grass. Organic gardening can be
a very rewarding and money saving effort when you do it yourself.
