In Your Yard

Lawns

• Set your mower blades to high. The minimum height for grass is two and a half inches. Anything shorter is hard to maintain, encourages weeds and disease and requires more intervention. Longer grass also protects the roots, offering more shade and preventing water evaporation.
• Keep your lawn mover blades sharp. Dull blades will tear the grass, damaging the plant, making it require more water than healthy plants.
• Take the grass catcher off the lawn mower. The sun and rain will break down the grass clippings and reward you with instant compost or use the clippings in your compost.
• Choose well adapted and disease resistant varieties of grass such as ryegrasses and bluegrasses.
• In a drought, don’t waste water on a lawn beginning to turn brown, it will revive after normal rainfall resumes.
• Plant flowers, trees, ground cover and vegetables instead of grass. A lawn is an unnatural ecosystem. Planting one plant species over a large area encourages weeds, insects and other plant and animal life.

Organic Gardening

Organic gardening begins with your soil. Healthy soil breeds healthy plants which can fend off weeds, pests and diseases without chemical treatment. Have your soil tested in early spring; home testing kits are also available at most garden supply centers. These tests will tell you where your soil is deficient and what organic ingredients your lawn needs.

Compost, made from rotted organic material, is the best all around soil conditioner available. It improves the physical and biological condition of the soil, providing beneficial micro-organisms, excellent drainage and both major and minor plant nutrients.

Use a shovel or hoe to turn over and break up soil. Digging is an important part of conditioning your soil:

• It allows roots to reach deep, unimpeded by stones and clumps of hard earth.
• It adds to good drainage and air circulation in the soil.
• It works compost and other organic material into the soil.
• Digging discourages harmful root feeding insects.
• Companion planting is the cornerstone of organic gardening. There are many plants that repel insects and provide natural protection for other plants that are susceptible.
• French marigolds repel certain insects that are attracted to tomatoes and potatoes. You should plant them throughout your garden.
• Interplant potatoes and collards to reduce flea beetle damage.
• Garlic repels the larvae of many harmful insects and can be planted with anything else except onions.
• Onions repel many species of insects and should be dispersed throughout the garden. But some plants are bad for each other too. Avoid planting broccoli and cauliflower close to each other as well as other varieties of plants that are closely related.

Quick Tips

• If you must water your lawn and garden, water in the morning or at night to prevent evaporation. One inch of water a week is better than several short showers.
• Plant native plants in your garden - they need a lot less water and maintenance than introduced species.
• Grow ground cover or use mulch in your garden to cut down on water use (it also helps control weeds).
• Spend an evening outdoors weeding your lawn by hand early in the season.
• Put a barrel under your eavestrough downspout to catch water when it rains. You can use this to water indoor plants, your garden and wash your car.