TIPS FOR HOMEOWNERS"  Building Compost Spotsylvania  Fredericksburg Stafford

Building a compost pile is a great way to recycle your garden and kitchen waste. It's also an organic way to give your lawn plants the nutrients they need. It's a relatively easy process that requires little maintenance, so it's advisable that homeowners practice composting.

First, find a good spot for your compost pile. It should be out of sight, and equally accessible from your lawn and your kitchen. Build your compost bin out of wood or wire mesh fencing. Wire mesh fencing can work well since it can stand up on its own. Recycled wood will make for a permanent compost bin, but the pieces have to be arranged or connected carefully. When building your compost bin, don't cover the top.

When layering your compost pile, start with a 4-inch layer of leaves, then an inch of good soil. Add 2 inches of grass clippings or old plants. Make sure that fungi, weeds, and other lawn diseases didn't contaminate the green material you add to your compost bin. Repeat alternating these layers a few times.

A week after you start your compost pile, turn it with a spading fork. You can start adding kitchen waste such as ground coffee beans, eggshells, and other green waste. Don't forget to turn your pile weekly to make sure that the waste and moisture gets distributed evenly. In two months, you'll start having usable compost. You can dig out your compost when you can't distinguish the components of the waste material you added. Don't add animal excretions, meat, and oils in your compost pile.

Healthy compost is made up of one part green lawn debris and one or two parts of healthy garden soil. Healthy compost is also damp, although it is not soaking wet. It should also give out an earthy smell.

 

"TIPS FOR HOMEOWNERS"  Organic Lawn Care

Most homeowners, especially those with pets and kids, are worried about the safety of the products they use on their lawns. Chemical pesticides, fertilizers, and herbicides might make your lawn more attractive, but they have negative effects on your family's health and the environment at large. Because of the hazards from commercial lawn care products, most gardeners turn to organic methods. You too can implement organic lawn maintenance in your own home.

Instead of choosing chemical fertilizers, try to purchase slow-release organic fertilizers. They provide nutrients to your grasses without the harmful effects of artificial fertilizers. Another advantage of using an organic fertilizer is that they lessen your need to use pesticides. Their positive effects on your lawn are also more long lasting than conventional fertilizers. Also, when cutting your grass, leave some of the clippings behind. These clippings also serve as natural fertilizers for your lawn.

 YEARLY TIPS FOR HOMEOWNERS!   "Managing Your PH"

 When you think about lawn care, you probably think of mowing, trimming and using soil additives to enhance the condition of your grass. You probably don’t think about soil pH, but it’s just as important when it comes to lawn management. There are a number of things that can affect the pH of the soil your lawn depends on – if you aren’t careful, incorrect pH values can kill off your expensive plants and grasses. Therefore, it’s important to check the pH of your lawn every year in order to design an appropriate watering and fertilization regiment.

For the most part, grasses do best in neutral soil with a pH range of 6.5 to 7. Think of your lawn as an aquarium. If you’ve ever kept fish, you know that the acid or base salts dissolved in the water affect the pH value of the tank and play a significant role in whether or not your fish will survive. Or if you aren’t a fish enthusiast, maybe you’ve heard about azaleas and other plants that require enrichment with coffee and tea grounds in order to provide additional acid to the soil. As in both of these examples, the plants that make up your lawn require a specific pH in order to grow and thrive.

 

"TIPS FOR THE HOMEOWNERS"

USING ORGANIC FERTILIZERS FOR A HEALTHY LAWN   Many people want to have a beautiful lawn without all of the harmful effects of synthetic fertilizers. If you live in an area that has storm drains, the chemical-laden water draining from your lawn will go directly into a sewage treatment plant, which may not be adequately equipped to process the chemicals found in synthetic fertilizers. Consequently, the treated water released from the plant may be released into waterways and nearby streams, causing enormous environmental harm.

Aside from the environmental impact of synthetic fertilizers, studies show that organic fertilizers are a better choice because they help build up the delicate local ecosystem that helps keep your lawn healthy. This includes making a healthier habitat for the helpful bacteria, fungi and earthworms that aerate the soil. Fortunately, organic fertilizers are now widely available, easy to use and come in a wide variety of application methods and products you can choose from.

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