Creating an Earth-Friendly Yard in Hamilton, NJ

If you want to make an impact on the "greening" of Hamilton and Mercer County, NJ, start in your own front or back yard.  According to Owen Dell, author of Sustainable Landscaping for Dummies, the U.S. is home to 32 million acres of lawn, or enough to cover the 100 largest U.S. cities almost twice.  Lawns drink 270 billion gallons of water a week and 800 million gallons of (mower) gas a year is used for their care. Add the impacts of pesticides and chemical-based fertilizers and the impact on our planet is huge.  How can you stop the dependence on lawns and their care?  Here are some ideas.

• Don't overwater.  Get a free water audit.  Watch the grass.  If it doesn't spring back when you step on it in the middle of the afternoon, it's time to water.  Even watering four times a week is too much in most cases.
• Water deeply.  Most do well with 15-20 minutes at a time, once or twice a week.  It's best to water for 10 minutes, let the water seep in to the roots, wait 20 minutes, then water again.  You may have to reset your automatic timer.
• Check the sprinkler coverage.  The water auditor can help you check this.  Look for dry spots or water-logged spots, and then reposition or turn the sprinker heads.
• Visit the soil once or twice a year.  Aerate the lawn in the Spring and Fall to loosen the roots and make fertilizers more effective.
• Let the grass grow longer, up to 3 inches.  Then the blades will shade out emerging weeds.
• Be stingy with fertilizers.  One fertilization in early Fall with an organic product should be enough.
• Use natural as much as possible.  Look for insecticides with natural ingredients like vinegar and orange oil.  Pulling weeds is also an option to spray.
• Use the grass clippings from your mowing for compost or even keep them on the lawn instead of raking them up.  They are rich in nitrogen.
• Consider a remake of your outside area to reduce the size of the lawn. Try a border of plants mixed with rocks or walkway, or low maintenance ground cover.
• When you study your outdoor spaces, also consider low-maintenance grass for the areas you want to keep as lawn.  Options are fescues and buffalograss for instance.  You want varieties that thrive with minimal water and mowing.

Enjoy your lawn and yard, but think Green when you do.  If each of us in Hamilton NJ takes small steps in our own homes, we can make Mercer County a more livable and greener place.

Joe Giancarli, Sales Associate
609-658-2612
jgiancarli@remax.net
http://www.joegiancarli.com/
http://www.njhomesource.net/
http://www.njhomesource.com/
http://www.newjerseynewhomes.blogspot.com/


(resource:  RisMedia.com)