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YardScaping

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Some call it 'Sustainable Landscaping' or 'Ecological Landscaping' We want to keep it simple ... Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus licheniformis, Bacillus pumulis, Bacillus ... – PowerPoint PPT presentation

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Title: YardScaping


1
YardScaping Green yards that keep our
waters blue
Gary Fish, CoordinatorMaine YardScaping
Partnership (207) 287-2731gary.fish_at_maine.gov
2
The Partnership is very diverse!
3
YardScaping
  • A new paradigm?
  • Some call it Sustainable Landscaping or
    Ecological Landscaping
  • We want to keep it simple

Back Cove Demonstration Site
Back Cove Demonstration Site
4
YardScaping Mission
  • To inspire Maine people to
  • create and maintain healthy landscapes
  • through ecologically based practices that
  • minimize reliance on water, fertilizer and
    pesticides

5
Why worry?
6
Maine yard care fertilizer and pesticide use more
common than perceived
7
An almost 8 fold increase in home pesticide use
in 12 years!
8
Urban water sampling
  • Friends Of Casco Bay did some detective work in
    2001 - 2008
  • Sampled runoff water from intensive lawn care
    areas in Cumberland, S Portland, Westbrook,
    Falmouth, Yarmouth, Brunswick, Freeport, Portland
    and Cape Elizabeth Back Cove area
  • Sampled sediments for pyrethroid insecticides in
    Falmouth and Portland in 2008

9
Friends of Casco Bay sampling
  • Pesticide residues detected in surface water
  • Diazinon up to (2.6 ppb)
  • 2,4-D up to (36.4 ppb)
  • Dicamba up to (4.1 ppb)
  • MCPP up to (26 ppb)
  • MCPA up to (0.45 ppb)
  • Clopyralid up to (0.91 ppb)
  • Propiconazole up to (0.075 ppb)
  • Chlorothalonil up to (0.22 ppb)
  • Found Excess Nitrogen Phosphorous in most
    samples
  • Pesticide residues detected in sediments
  • Bifenthrin up to (16.6 ppb) 100 of samples

Values in red exceed
Aquatic Life Criteria
10
USGS National Water Quality Assessment 2006
Report
  • Sampled urban streams
  • Insecticides occurred more frequently in urban
    streams than they did in agricultural area
    streams
  • Herbicides detected in 99 of Urban stream
    samples
  • Phosphorous found at same levels as in
    agricultural streams
  • 70 of those samples exceeded the EPA level for
    causing excessive algal growth

11
What can gardeners do?
  • Be a YardScaper
  • Improve the soil
  • Reduce the need for irrigation
  • Slow the flow
  • Reduce the need for weed and insect control
  • Apply fertilizers and pesticides properly
    sparingly
  • Avoid invasive plants

Back Cove Demonstration Site
12
Improve the soil
  • Know your soil - Soil test
  • Separate samples
  • Lawn
  • Perennials
  • Shrubs
  • Veggies
  • Basic or advanced
  • Basic University of Maine
  • Advanced Solvita Woods End Lab, Mt. Vernon

The Soil Food Web
13
Improve the soil
  • Add low nutrient composts
  • Avoid nutrient banking
  • Apply compost tea
  • Avoid products with animal manures
  • Keep off edible portions of plants

14
Improve the soil
  • Aerate lawns
  • Return lawn clippings
  • Keep clippings off impervious surfaces

15
Reduce irrigation needs
  • Right plant right place
  • Hardiness zone
  • Sun exposure
  • Soil type
  • Use drought tolerant plants
  • Fescues instead of KBG

Tall Fescue
16
Reduce irrigation needs
  • Mulch properly
  • Organic mulches conserve water
  • Not too deep (2 4inches)
  • Dont use impervious weed barriers
  • No volcano mulching
  • Shred your leaves and use as mulch under trees
    and shrubs or as winter cover for bulbs
  • Mow high
  • 3 4 inches is best
  • Taller has deeper roots

17
Reduce irrigation needs
  • Reduce lawn area
  • Water properly

My own wildflower field
18
Slow the flow
  • Capture runoff
  • Rain barrel
  • Rain Gardens
  • Pervious walks driveways
  • Resist the neatnik inside you

19
Slow the flow
  • Curves are good
  • Reduce lawn area
  • Create buffers

20
Reduce the need for weed and insect control
  • Plant resistant varieties
  • Right plant right place

Bunchberry shady and moist site
21
Reduce the need for weed and insect control
  • Mow high and sharp
  • Sharp blades reduce disease stress
  • Feed the need
  • Healthy plants resist problems
  • Seed, seed, seed
  • Seeds are the best weed control

22
Reduce the need for weed and insect control
  • Keep air circulating
  • Prune plants properly
  • Encourage beneficials
  • Provide continuous blooms
  • Apply beneficials

23
Apply fertilizers and pesticides properly
sparingly
  • Test the soil
  • Use slow release (No P)
  • Spoon feed
  • Apply ½ rate
  • Apply once or twice only
  • No weed feed

24
Select slow release fertilizers
  • GUARANTEED ANALYSIS
  • Total Nitrogen (N)......................8.00  
        1.0 Water Soluble Nitrogen      7.5
    Water Insoluble NitrogenAvailable Phosphate
    (P205)...........1.0 Soluble Potash
    (K20)....................1.0 Derived from corn
    gluten, steamed bone meal sulfate of potash
  • NON PLANT FOOD INGREDIENTS Bacillus subtilis,
    Bacillus licheniformis, Bacillus pumulis,
    Bacillus megaterium, Paenibacillus polymyxa,
    Paenibacillus durum each _at_ 275,000 CFU per gram
    of finished product

Look for Water Insoluble Nitrogen (WIN)
25
Apply fertilizers and pesticides properly
sparingly
  • Practice IPM
  • ID pests
  • Think first Spray last
  • Choose least toxic but effective products
  • Apply properly
  • Keep off hard surfaces
  • Measure areas
  • Calibrate equipment

26
Proper application
  • Base applications on soil test results
  • Never apply when there is standing water
  • Never apply to saturated soils
  • Never apply to frozen ground

27
Proper application
  • Never apply until soil warms to 50 - 55F at 3
    soil depth
  • Never apply between December 1 and April 1
  • Do not apply pesticides if rain or irrigation is
    imminent, unless specified by label
  • Do not apply if moderate or heavy rain is
    imminent regardless of label statements
  • Never apply to impervious surfaces

28
Proper application
  • Never apply near areas prone to runoff, i.e.,
    culverts, drains, drainageways or wells
  • Never apply to bare ground unless establishing
    seed
  • Cover seed to prevent erosion
  • Clean up spills immediately
  • Lightly water-in fertilizers
  • When the label directs, assure that pesticides
    are watered in as directed

29
Avoid invasive plants
  • Some can ruin lakes
  • Others change wetlands
  • Native plants not a panacea

30
Avoid invasive plants
  • Control can degrade water quality
  • Erosion causes siltation
  • Must replace with new plants
  • Nature always fills open spots

Garlic mustard
31
Where to learn more
http//www.yardscaping.org
32
Where to learn more
http//www.gotpests.org/
33
Where to learn more
http//131.128.91.217/maynard_susplants/html_spl20
00/index.htm
34
Where to learn more
http//orb.at.ufl.edu/TREES/index.html
35
Other resources
http//www03.cmhc-schl.gc.ca/b2c/catalog/products.
do
http//dspace.library.cornell.edu/bitstream/1813/3
574/2/LawnCarewithoutPesticides.pdf
36
YardScaping Protecting the beauty of Maine
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