Who doesn’t like a lush and green lawn! If you could opt for a weed-free and healthy lawn, as a homeowner, you’d surely jump on that offer. But is your green lawn really “green”? i.e. Is it earth friendly ? Is it in harmony with nature?
The quest for a green lawn need not be at odds with wanting to be “green” or “earth friendly”. Here are some ideas for lawncare and ideal of the green lawn .
Select the grass that is right for your lawn
Start with the kind of grass in your lawn. It is important to choose grass that will thrive in your climate. If you are living in the North or Pacific Northwest, you should plant fescue and Kentucky bluegrass, which survive well in these cooler and humid climates. For those living in the warm and humid South or Southwest, zoysia, Bermuda and St. Augustine grasses are the best choices. In the semi-arid plains or other cool areas, your best best is Buffalo grass.
Get your soil nourished
Ok. Now you have the right grass to use. How’s is the state of your soil? Is it nutrient rich? Is it healthy? Use organic products instead of synthetic fertilizers to feed your lawn. Though more expensive in the beginning, organic products will pay off over the long haul. Synthetic fertilizers do not last as long as organic ones, which means you have to reapply a synthetic fertilizer more often. Make sure to sweep your fertilizer off the sidewalks or driveways and back onto your lawn to prevent water pollution. Both synthetic and organic fertilizers can cause water pollution if they wash down into storm drains instead of feeding your lawn.
Keep the weeds under control
Pests are pesky. But before you reach for the toxic synthetic pest control product, give an organic, non-toxic pest control product a try. There are plenty of such safe alternatives in the market these days. There is no excuse any more to add more toxic chemicals to our lawns to control weeds, and increase the pollution to our streams and rivers and ground water in the process. This helps maintain an organic lawn.
Use water wisely 
Most people over-water their lawns. Look for tell-tale signs of moss growing on your driveway or the edges of your sidewalk. This is a sure sign that you are over-watering your lawn. A cheap solution is to use an inexpensive lawn moisture meter to know for sure how much water you are giving your lawn. If you can afford it, an intelligent lawn irrigation system may be your best bet.
The other smart eco-friendly thing to do is to collect and reuse rain water. Just put a barrel under your gutter’s downspout and you will see just how easily it fills up with “free” rain water, nature’s own gift to water your lawn when you need to!
Another smart water habit is to avoid hosing down your driveway with water . Every time you hose your driveway, you are also washing away oils, toxic chemicals etc. which end up in rivers and other water sources, polluting them.
Watch your lawn mowing
Who knew that the exhaust from lawn mowers is a major contributor to air pollution? Now that you do, it’s time to choose a push mower. For health or other reasons if you can’t pick a push mower, you can do well to choose a plugin mower. It has a better (smaller) carbon footprint compared to gas-driven mowers.
Are you throwing away those grass clippings from your lawn mower? Most people do! But that is a fantastic resource you are wasting. Choose a mulching lawn mower instead. Crushed grass clippings left on the grass by a mulching lawn mower provides food the grass, and conserves the amount of water needed for the grass to grow. Amazing isn’t it?
Eliminate your gas-powered blowers
Gas-powered blowers have a major carbon footprint. Use old-fashioned rakes and brooms instead. If that seems daunting and too much work, you might want to consider that the raking activity will give you plenty of exercise easily. That’s a win-win. You help yourself while choosing a method that is earth-friendly.
Don’t waste your yard waste
If your city doesn’t collect yard waste (and even if they do), you can collect your yard waste and use it for composting. Composting is a simple way to transform yard waste, and other organic household waste like vegetable and animal product waste into a nutrient-dense compost for your soil.
And one real good reason to choose “synthetic” to go “green” …
Surprised by this suggestion? Consider this. Let’s say you are living in a high drought area, but have a serious addiction to lush, green grass in your lawn. Choosing the conventional way, you will be consuming huge amount of water, a scarce commodity in your region – that is certainly not friendly to the place you live in. What choices do you have if you still wanted to be “green” with your lawncare ? One suggestion : Choose synthetic grass. Synthetic grass looks lush and can bring the green you wish to your yard. It can last for 10 years , and uses little water . And it does look amazingly real ! Who would have thought! A synthetic solution to go “green”!
All in all, these are practical ways in which to ensure that your lush, green lawn is also “green”, and friendly to the environment of which we are a part .
