Organic Lawn Care and Gardening

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Organic Lawn Care and Gardening

• Présented by Marc Landry CEPIT
• Organik Touch

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Keeping the lawn healthy

• Keep your lawn healthy using good maintenance
  practices
• Feed your lawn with compost and leave grass
  clippings where they fall for nutrient recycling.
• Aerate compacted soil in the fall. This helps
  oxygen, water and nutrients reach the roots.
• Overseed thinned areas or choose alternative
  ground covers in difficult spots.
• Replace grass with paving stones ormulch in
  heavy traffic areas.
• Check the lawn regularly to detect pests and
  other problems early.

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• Mow high
• Grass cut at a height of 6 to 8 cm (2 ½ to 3
  inches) will develop a deep, extensive root
  system, grow thicker and better retain soil
  moisture. Cut your grass when it's dry.

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• Sharpen your mower blade in the spring and keep
  it sharp. It is recommended to sharpen blades
  every 40 hours under normal circumstances.
• Grass can recover more quickly and easily from
  one clean cut than from many tears.

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• Water deeply and infrequently.
• Apply at least 2.5 cm (1 inch) of water. This can
  be measured by placing a container on the lawn
  while it is being watered.
• Water according to need rather than on a set
  schedule.
• Excessive watering can lead to poor growing
  conditions and disease problems.
• Consider the soil type and surface features.
  Grass on compacted fine soil and in sloping areas
  requires more frequent light watering.

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The lawn and fertilizers

• Your lawn needs fertilizing during the entire
  growing season
• In each period, the demand is different
• Organic matter is the lawn's best friend
• The pH of the soil will affect the lawn

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Fertilizing cycle for lawns

• Spring
• Add organic matter
• High demand on nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium
• Need for minerals

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• Summer
• Need for nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium
• Increase demand for minerals

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• Fall
• Need for nitrogen is reduce
• Still need phosphorus and potassium
• Still need minerals (dormant phase)
• Lime
• Add organic matter

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Lawn seed mixture

• 5 Mix (high content of Kentucky blue / red)
• 3 Mix (average Kentucky)
• Specialty mixes
• Golf course, soccer field, shade, slope.
• 3 Mix with clover

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The signs

• bad pH
• Weeds starts to appear
• Algae and mushroom start to appear
• Field strawberries
• Insects and animals
• Diminution of the good lawn
• Humidity is too high
• Algae and mushroom start to appear
• Diminution of the good lawn

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• Poor soil
• Weeds starts to appear
• Insectes
• Diminution of the good lawn
• Compaction is too high
• Weeds starts to appear
• Water does not infiltrate the soil
• Diminution of the good lawn
• Over fertilized
• Lawn start to turn black
• Overgrown with loss of water when cutting