Lawn Laws

It seems like we’ve been on the precipice of spring for several months but the reality is that it is just days away. This means that in a few short weeks the lawn guys will be out, just waiting for the first opportunity to make their first cut and begin their billings. But there is change in the wind and there are new regulations and laws set in place that will affect your lawn care. There’s also a new “head set” about how lawns should be managed and I think (and hope) this may be a turning point for all of us.

We’ve known for a long time that our suburban lawns have been a major source of environmental pollution. The fertilizers and chemicals used on lawns from coast to coast and border to border simply boggle the mind in terms of cost and tonnage. It’s become evident in the past 10 years though that most of this is completely unnecessary, but the chemical companies and fertilizer producers have fought change at virtually every turn.

A number of years ago, several states that border the Great Lakes sought to ban the use of lawn fertilizers that contained phosphorus. Higher ups at several state environmental agencies believed that there was enough scientific evidence that the phosphorous component of these fertilizers, along with other sources, were prime candidates for the rapid deterioration of the water quality in the lakes. Additionally, they had ample proof that there was plenty of phosphorus naturally available in most soils so that including it in fertilizers was pointless except for some very special circumstances. So, they sought to ban all lawn fertilizers with phosphorus.

Initially, these states were told by the fertilizer producers that if they continued to pursue such bans they would tie up all these attempts in the court systems for years, costing the states dearly in litigation costs. The states persisted and in the face of nearly irrefutable scientific evidence, the fertilizer companies gave in and the bans have now been in place for nearly a decade.

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation was also seeking to ban the inclusion of phosphorus in lawn fertilizers and that effort was then taken up by the State Attorney General’s office.

Again, the fertilizer producers cried loudly that removing phosphorus from lawn fertilizers would be an undue burden on them and that they would spare no effort to fight any attempt by the state to institute such a ban. For a while it appeared that the state had caved in. But then several counties began to institute bans on certain fertilizer components.

Again, the fertilizer industry made threats and claimed it would be even more unwieldy to try to market phosphorus-free fertilizers in one county and then be able to sell it in the county right next door.

But, because of phosphorus pollution issues in ground and subsurface waters in Westchester, that county instituted a ban for most uses of lawn fertilizers containing phosphorus. At the same time, Suffolk County, which had a different pollution problem that was traced back to the use of high amounts of nitrogen in lawn fertilizers, instituted its own regulations on how much nitrogen could be included and used on residential lawns in this county.

This year, new state laws went into effect throughout New York that controlled not only phosphorous in lawn fertilizers but the law also sets date limits on when you can begin applying fertilizer and when you must stop. The law also includes rules on setbacks from streams and water courses where fertilizer could not be applied at all.

In effect, the state has forced us to use common sense. We can’t apply fertilizers to our lawns after November 1 and then not again until after April 1. Gone are the days of dormant feeding, when lawn service companies would show up in November to apply fertilizer and again in March. Not only were those feedings next to useless but in most cases they led to fertilizer being washed off of frozen ground and into our sewers, drains, streams, creeks, bays and so on.

But we’ve learned even more about our lawns in the past 10 years. It wasn’t uncommon to have a lawn service company, your gardener, or even you and I, to apply 3 to 4 pounds of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet every year. But then we learned that if we use a mulching mower with mulching blades that finely chop up the grass clippings and return them to the soil, we essentially return the nitrogen to the soil and can reduce our fertilizer use by nearly 50 percent. The lawn is healthier for the added organic matter and the reduction in fertilizer protects our groundwater as well as our surrounding marine environment. It’s a practice I’ve been using for nearly 10 years and I’m a believer.

There’s more. Every year, many of us treat our lawns for grubs. More of us probably treat our lawn for crabgrass. More chemicals, more pollution, more issues.

But wait, now we’re being told by the researchers that we really don’t need to apply grub control every year. Most lawns can tolerate a white grub population of over 10 grubs per square foot without noticeable damage. And when damage does occur, proper treatments for one or two years can solve the problem for the next five or more years.

The same seems to be true for crabgrass control. Once you have the crabgrass controlled, your lawn should be thick and full. That’s the single best cure for crabgrass. It simply won’t grow in a healthy lawn and if a few crabgrass plants pop up, just dig them out or spot spray. Don’t let them go to seed, keep your lawn cut high and healthy and crabgrass suddenly becomes a spotty problem at best with no need for annual applications of a crabgrass preventer.

Which brings me to the lawn care company that I used to use. I had a company come in to take care of about 5 acres of lawn. They’d do the grub control, the weed control and disease control. But only when I wanted it and asked for it and needed it.

It was great, but last year the company was sold to TruGreen, a nationwide lawn care company formerly known as ChemLawn. I was dubious. And with good reason.

TruGreen was absolutely and unequivocally unable to think outside the box—or printed sheet as the case may be. I tried to work with them, tried to explain my goals to them, even tried to get them to respond to emails and phone calls. But in the end, I realized that TruGreen has a printed sheet of services offered and that’s it. And if your dates, your needs and your program didn’t fit the service sheet, the relationship was doomed.

I asked around and found someone local who would put down the amount of fertilizer when I wanted it, would spray when and if I needed it, and agreed that there was no reason to treat for grubs if they weren’t present and not to treat for crabgrass unless and until it was a problem. Yes, you can take great care of your lawn with a lot less.

So here’s my warning: don’t let your gardener, lawn care company or landscaper sell you a bill of goods that you don’t want or need. Ask how many pounds of nitrogen they are applying per year, per 1,000 square feet. It should be less than 3 and closer to 2.

If the company applies a pre-emergent herbicide every year for crabgrass, there shouldn’t be any crabgrass. So, ask them why you need it. And if they’re applying grub control every year without any evidence of grubs being present, ask them why? Better yet, tell them not this year.

The company may make less, your lawn may never know the difference, and we may all live a little longer. And while you may not be able to skip grub control and weed control every year, if it’s been done for the last two or three years in a row, skipping one year certainly won’t hurt. Keep growing.