As native grasses such as little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium and cvs., Zones 3–9) and prairie dropseed (Sporobolus heterolepis and cvs., Zones 3–9) increasingly gain traction in gardens, exotics such as miscanthus (Miscanthus sinensis and cvs., Zones 4–9) are losing favor because of their invasive tendencies. But not all exotic grasses are troublesome and need to be avoided. Feather reed grass (Calamagrostis × acutiflora and cvs., Zones 5–9) is a natural hybrid of C. arundinacea and C. epigejos, which are both nonnatives and prolific self-sowers, but the hybrid rarely sets fertile seed—a major plus for an exotic grass, right? So why are other reed grasses—‘Karl Foerster’ aside—so underused? To answer that question is to understand the phenomenon of ‘Karl Foerster’ feather reed grass (C. × acutiflora ‘Karl Foerster’).
organic lawn care with paul tukey: crabgrass control, reducing compaction
21.07.2023 - 23:07 / awaytogarden.com
MY LAWN GOT HAMMERED by 650 pairs of visiting feet, but I knew who to call. For almost a decade, I’ve turned with lawn-care issues to the work of Paul Tukey, author in 2007 of “The Organic Lawn Care Manual,” and founder of SafeLawns.org, an advocacy and education nonprofit. Paul relocated in 2013 from New England to his new post as Chief Sustainability Officer for Glenstone, a museum in Potomac, Maryland, where the vast grounds have been maintained since 2010 without synthetic chemical pesticides or fertilizers–a sort of living classroom for organic landscape stewardship. He answered our pressing questions on my latest public-radio show: controlling crabgrass and other weeds; reversing compaction; overseeding, and does corn gluten meal really work as a weed-and-feed? Read, or listen in.the background: why go organic?IF YOU ARE STILL USING any synthetic chemicals on your lawn, I hope you will stop. So does Paul Tukey. When he founded SafeLawns in 2006, Paul says, “It didn’t occur to people that their lawns could be dangerous.”
“The sad reality is that we know that a lot of the chemicals used to grow the lawn (the fertilizers), or the chemicals used to control weeds or insects or fungal diseases—all of these chemicals are designed to kill things, and they can make us very sick, and they make the water very sick, and the soil very sick, and the air very unhealthy.”
Giving up chemicals doesn’t mean you have to pave over your front yard.
“We will have lawns long after all these chemicals are banned in the United States, as they have been banned in Canada,” says Paul—explaining that more than 80 percent of Canadians cannot use weed and feed products, or glyphosate (the active ingredient in Roundup herbicide) because they are
How to Grow and Care for Braeburn Apple Trees
How to Grow and Care for Braeburn Apple Trees Malus x domestica ‘Braeburn’
Pruning Deciduous Azalea and After Care
This species of plants originate in central China. The closely related species R. molle japonicum come from Japan. Both these deciduous varieties are relatives of the popular Ghent and Knapp Hill hybrids.
Maintenance Guide For A Lush Southeast Lawn
Most lawn maintenance chores coincide with the mowing season. If you live in Florida, lawn care can be a year-round task. Luckily, most other Southeast gardeners are able to take a break during the winter. Yet, no matter how many months of the year you tend the yard, proper lawn care is essential to grow lush, green turf in Southeastern US states.
Poinsettia Care
Poinsettias are a classic holiday plant used to decorate homes from November to December. When South Carolinian Joel Poinsett, the first U.S. Ambassador to Mexico, introduced the poinsettia to the United States in 1825, it is doubtful he had any idea how popular this plant would become.
Reducing Food Waste at Home
Food waste and how to reduce it is a big topic with big implications. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) estimates that food waste each year totals 133 billion pounds which includes 31 percent food loss at the retail and consumer levels. Food is lost at all stages of the supply chain and for a variety of reasons that might include produce that is discarded because of flaws in appearance or restaurants serving large portions that may not be finished.
Weed of the Month: Crabgrass
It’s late summer and crabgrass weeds have invaded some lawns. Unfortunately, crabgrass is very difficult to control with most herbicides once it develops a few tillers or branches. There are several species of crabgrass (Digitaria spp.): tropical crabgrass, smooth crabgrass, India crabgrass, large crabgrass, Southern crabgrass, and blanket crabgrass. All of them are summer annuals that germinate primarily in spring, grow during the summer, set seeds, and then die with the first frost.
How to Grow and Care for Organ Pipe Cactus
Icon of the southwest, organ pipe cactus (Stenocereus thurberi) is one of the best known species of cacti in the United States.Reaching up to 26 feet in height and 12 feet wide, this slow
Better beans, tough tomatoes, with prairie road organic seed
All of it will be grown organically, starting with organically farmed seed, like in her family farm and home garden (below). “Our seed system is brittle,” says Theresa, who farms in Fullerton, North Dakota, on the cusp of Zone 3b and 4a. Not brittle in the way a perfectly dry seed must be to store well over the winter for next season–but brittle as in ecologically and politically fragile, and potentially broken.We’ve all heard: Years of industry consolidation by a few big corporations has reduced the d
Bee balm: make room for monarda, with mt. cuba’s george coombs
Read along as you listen to the June 26, 2107 edition of my public-radio show and podcast using the player below. You can subscribe to all future editions on iTunes or Stitcher (and browse my archive of podcasts here).evaluating monarda with george coombs of mt. cubaQ. We’ve talked before on the show about your past trials of other native plants like Baptisia and Heuchera—and native plants are the mission of Mt. Cuba, which is both a garden for visiting and a research center, right?A. Mt. Cuba Center is actually a former du Pont family estate, the Copeland family estate, and they left their estate to become a public garden. What kind of sets us apart from others in the area is that we focus on native plants. We broadly define our nativity region as the Eastern United States.We do a lot of work promoting plants in a display capacity in the gardens itself, and then we also do research like what I do, trying to help
Links: poison lawns, a cubic foot of diversity, and help wanted at sissinghurst
NO SURPRISE here, but sort of a brutal reminder: The Great American Lawn in its most traditional sense (loaded with anything-but-green additives such as pesticides) is no place for your children. Early life exposure is linked to “pediatric cancers, decreased cognitive function, and behavioral problems.” So warns the American Academy of Pediatrics in a new report. SafeLawns.org, as ever, distills the takeaways. Make this the year you give up the weed and feed for good, please.christmas bird countTHE 113th annual Audubon Christmas Bird Count begins December 14, running through January 5. Sign up to help here by counting birds at feeders, or along with a nearby group out in the field (search by zip code for contact information for local groups to accompany at this link). Participation is free; no registration fee.the diversity in one cubic footI HAVE A fascination with the intercon
Dragonflies and damselflies, with dennis paulson
SOME SPECIES MIGRATE to warmer wintering grounds, and oh, how deftly they do fly—whether on their way south, or on the hunt for supper, or perhaps to meet up with that someone special, and mate in mid-air. But I’m not talking about some feathered creature with a mere single set of wings; I’m talking about dragonflies—as I did in a radio segment and podcast with a leading American expert on the subject, zoologist, Princeton Field Guide author and photographer Dennis Paulson. Share in the four-winged wonder.