Posted by Savneet Singh on May.13, 2010

ⓒ iStockPhoto - MattJeacock

You might have heard people saying that lawns are bad for the environment. The lush expanse of golf-course greenery comes at a staggering environmental cost. It is not the grass which is bad, but it is the resources used to maintain the bigger lawn makes them harmful for the environment.If you decide to turn too much area of your backyard into lawn, you are reducing the space for wildlife habitat as well as polluting the environment.

A bigger lawn needs a more powerful mower which can create pollution equivalent to 10 to 12 times what the family car produces in an hour. In addition,  an estimated 8 million gallons of fuel spills each year. Seventy millions tons of artificial fertilizers, herbicides, insecticides and pesticides are applied in the lawns per year that effects the environment in one or the other way. These chemicals keep the lawn green but create underground water pollution and surface water pollution when run off with water and find their way to streams and rivers. Thus, we really have to rethink the way we care for our lawn that works with nature instead of against it and also saves the money, time and resources.

You can avoid unnecessary mowing and water & fertilizer application with a little planning and knowledge which can keep your lawn green and give you more time to spend sitting in lawn and enjoying with your family. You can make some smart choices about how and when to mow, water and add chemicals.

Mowing

Making one or two simple changes in your mowing habits can improve the quality of your lawn area and reduce your efforts to maintain it as well. When you mow, keep in mind what kind of grass you have, when you mow, how high you mow and how often you mow.

Mow as high as possible, and highest during drought because the longer grass blades will help to shade the soil, which in turn will keep roots cool and reduce the need for the water and also, prevents the weeds from sprouting.

Don’t cut too much off the grass at once. People generally let the grass grow 5-6 inches and then mow, but letting the grass grow too much between mowings make the grass roots weak. Moreover the clippings of the grass will not be small enough to decompose quickly. Follow a plan to cut the grass in stages, if the grass is too high. Cut the grass with mower at the highest setting initially and then cut the grass at lower setting after a few days. You can reduce the blade height progressively with each mow until you reach the desired height.

Leave grass clipping in the lawn to decompose, add nutrients and moisture to the soil and thus reducing the need for water and fertilizers.

Don’t mow the soggy grass. Wet grass is heavy and it becomes heavy for the mower to cut it. In addition it also makes grass susceptible to diseases. Wet grass is slippery so there are always chances for spills and serious injuries from sharp and rotating blades of the mower.

Choose the mower taking into consideration the noise it makes, engine efficiency and the pollution created by it. For a smaller lawn, you can use reel mowers which do not create noise or air pollution but if you have a bigger lawn you need a power mower. Solar rechargeable mowers are a fine eco-friendly option.

Keep your mower clean and blades sharpened to reduce running time and rpms. Clean the underside of the mower deck and remove any grass build up there.

Use a funnel when you refuel the mower so as to avoid spills and overfills. Do not forget to recap the mower gas tank and gas containers tightly.

Clean and replace the air filters and the oil in you mowers at manufacturer’s recommendation intervals.

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Posted under GDM Lifestyle, Living, Organic Garden.