Uggh - Lawn care service sprays my yard

12 years ago

Came home to a surprise a few days ago. Drake lawn service in Florida decided to spray my lawn for me. I do not have a lawn service???? I practice the natural lawn care of this forum. This was my third year and the soil was looking and smelling very sweet this year. Everything was growing like a dream. Started my butterfly garden this year and there were numerous monarch butterfly catepillars. My patch of organically grown watermelons are toast, I most likely was not going to eat them anyhow after the spraying.

What do I do now? The lawn is Empire Zoysia and is turning lime green in some areas. The grass was emerald green prior to the spraying. They said that they put down some granular ferts and weed killer. Kind and type unknown?

Can I do anything legally? I really worked hard for these last 3 years and I am really beside myself right now.

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Comments (4)

Kimmsr
12 years ago
You need to consult an attorney licensed to practice in Florida. I do know they should be able to tell you exactly what was used and how much.
dchall_san_antonio
12 years ago
Zoysia goes dormant very suddenly. Is there any chance you missed the watering schedule and it dried out? It sounds like it is going dormant right NOW for whatever reason. When it does it goes for the rest of the season, so I would not try to overwater it back to health. You might add more organic fertilizer now and water as usual, but that's about all you can do.

I would at least give the lawn care company the impression your attorney would be calling, whether you follow through or not. You might call your local police and ask if trespassing would be a valid threat. See what other ordinances you can come up with, but these would only be threats. It would cost you more to take them to court than it's worth. In the end you just want them to be responsible for what they do and not make mistakes. Maybe they need to fire someone who let this happen, but they won't unless it is taken seriously.

File a complaint with every business service you can find. BBB, Angie's List, whatever you have locally. For that matter, file a complaint with the police for trespassing or whatever.

Oh and take pictures right away.
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rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
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They must supply the chemical information to you at your request. Ask for the MSDS (material safety data sheets) on the chemicals. Ask for their pesticide applicators' license numbers.

Your can probably get the contact information you need to via your local extension office. Each state handles pesticide applicators differently.

I would certainly approach this company very firmly and grimly, and insist on obtaining the information I mentioned above. You can also ask for a record of how much the applicator actually used. They are supposed to keep accurate records.

If you notice any kind of damage, be sure to document with lots of good pictures. Not crappy cell phone pictures.

I observed a TruGreen truck emptying the contents of his tank down the street drains one day. I stopped and chatted him up a bit to get the name of the chemical, got his card, etc. I reported it IMMEDIATELY to the sheriff, to Alabama Dept. of Ag. and Industries, I forget who all. They were fined big time.
A3M0N
12 years ago
I don't want to be nosey, but I was just wondering what progress you've made on this issue.

Uggh - Lawn care service sprays my yard

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Kimmsr

dchall_san_antonio

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