organic lawn care service in nj?
emmgus
16 years ago
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rutgers1
16 years agoemmgus
16 years agoRelated Discussions
Vent about Lawn Care Services (Sorry)
Comments (5)"We have sandy soil. Drainage so good that unfortunately when it rains or we water we can see where it isn't staying. Even though we did have 4-6 inches of topsoil put down prior to sod & seed." This is not necessarily a bad thing. Sandy soils can grow very nice grass (Yankee stadium, most golf courses, football fields, etc). Good drainage also reduces fungal outbreaks. Sandy soils allow for deep roots as well. Where you run into issues is water and nutrient holding ability. You will have to tailor your irrigation to be more frequent with less water, as one inch all at once will be wasted. Maybe one inch spread out over 2 to 3 waterings per week will be better. Also applications of fertilizers should be broken up, again so less of it is leached away and wasted. The good thing with sandy soils is they require less amendments to correct deficiencies, but without a soil test (one better than "you need lime") those levels are unknown. When our pasture (behind house) was tested at Rutgers it needed lime. Front yard - full sun. Back yard - gets mostly sun, then to partial shade. Our land is flat. The problem is - we really don't know what chemicals to buy - when and how much. What kind of chemicals? You mean fertilizers, lime, and weed killers? It's not that hard. Most cool season grasses use 3-5 lbs of nitrogen per 1000 square feet per year. Most of this should be applied in the fall. If you go organic, which will add organic matter to your sandy soil, you can use it more often, and the rules don't apply as much. Other amendments can only be determined with a soil test....See MoreOrganic Lawn Care Info
Comments (2)The very best way to reduce impact on the environment is to not buy "bags" of OM of any kind, and instead make use of what ever is nearby and free. Including, quite obviously and logically, one's own effluent. How does packaging and shipping heavy stuff around make sense, when OM grows all around in most climates in NA? What can be missing is certain minerals, and those are much more effectively moved in concentrated form rather than in compost. Compost should be made on-site....See MoreLawn care schedule in central NJ?
Comments (9)Creeping charlie - try a solution of borax (do a web search) or fertilize using Espoma's Plant Tone which contains boron in the proper percentage. It might take a couple of applications over a couple of seasons to start to bring it under control. If you're not averse to chemicals, brush-b-gone can also help to control creeping charlie (ground ivy) - it might brown or yellow your grass for a while but should not kill it. As I posted in the stilt grass thread, when I lived in CA, ground ivy was sold by the flat for $15 as a ground cover!...See Moreorganic lawn care for dummies?
Comments (20)There are several places that I know of where you can buy the grains. You usually have to have them order it for you, as they don't always have it in-stock. The first is Westwood Feed in Westwood. It is probably a 20 to 30 minute drive for you, but you can order once and fill your car with everything you need for the year. I was at another once, and after searching on Google a bit, I think it is Mikes Feed Farm in Riverdale. I think that would be closer to you. I find that the NJ feed stores don't quite compete on price with the feed stores in the more rural parts of the country, especially on corn gluten meal. Westwood Feed only stocks the commercial brand corn gluten meal, and they charge a bundle for it, yet their soy bean meal is moderately priced. Having experimented with organics a bit over the past year and watching others in my neighborhood, I have concluded that the fastest way (though not the most ORGANIC way) to get there is to cheat the first year and use a synthetic preemergent in the spring. Then you can breath a bit without all of the weeds and plan your attack for the fall. I didn't do that this year, and I paid the price. I am getting nice results from my overseeding, but I think the whole summer and overseeding process would have been easier had I used a preemergent in the spring. Going forward, I am going to use a preemergent as long as I still have bare spots in my lawn and any sign of disease (I moved in last September and have since found out that historically my lawn dies out in spots late every summer despite getting adequate water - I think it is some type of fungus). All of my other feedings are organic. Once the lawn comes in thick and the soil is amended properly, I will stop using the preemergent....See Morerutgers1
16 years agoemmgus
16 years agoalb36
9 years agoshovel11
9 years agoshovel11
9 years ago
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