Keep Water Clean! Replace Lawn Pesticides with Compost

Did you know that…

Santa Maria’s storm drains do not go to the City's wastewater treatment plant? When surface water flows through streets from storms, any pollutants run into storm drains. Storm drains flow directly, without treatment, to the Santa Maria River or into the nearest local retention basin where the water percolates back into the groundwater. Both our river and our underlying groundwater eventually flow to the ocean. Any pollutants found in the water, stay in the water untreated, and causes ocean pollution affecting our beaches, our coast, and our ocean life.

A major contributor to the pollution problem is lawn pesticides. Think about it - if there was a way to make your lawn lush and green without using harmful pesticides and harsh fertilizers, wouldn’t you want to know about it? The key to a good lawn is healthy soil. It’s the foundation of a vibrant lawn. If your soil is dry and compacted or clay based your lawn won’t be able to get the oxygen and nutrients it needs. Root systems need room to grow and that won’t happen in tired, dry soil. Healthy soil contains high organic content and is teeming with biological life, supporting the development of healthy grass that is naturally resistant to weeds and pests. Once established, an organic lawn uses fewer materials, such as water and fertilizers, and requires less labor for mowing and maintenance. More importantly, your lawn will be safe for children, pets and your local drinking water supply. Follow these tips to start transitioning your lawn and you'll be well on your way to a lush, green, pesticide-free landscape.

Top-dressing – what is it?

The process of applying a layer of compost over the surface of a lawn is called Top Dressing. Top Dressing may be applied after lawn aeration, or alone as a Quick & Easy application. Golf courses and sports fields have always realized the value of top dressing the turf, but this practice has only recently become popular on home lawns. Top Dressing with Harvest Blend Compost is the most environmentally beneficial way to a greener, healthier lawn. Naturally!

When should I top-dress the lawn?

Spring and fall are the best times to top-dress, but in our temperate climate there's really no wrong time to improve our turf. Lawns based on poor soil will benefit from top dressing the soil twice each year. Lawns based on good quality soil might not need top dressing every year but if you want a lush, green lawn then once a year will keep it that way.  Professional greens keepers regularly top dress to ensure a top quality turf. If you want a beautiful lawn that can meet professional standards then you should top dress your lawn annually.

What product should I use for top-dressing?

Compost is the ideal material for lawn top-dressing. There are 2 methods we suggest; ‘Quick & Easy', simply spreading a thin layer of compost over lawns, and 'Professional'; aerating lawns before spreading compost. Instructions for both are available on our website. Harvest Blend Compost not only beautifies your landscape, it’s environmentally responsible and benefits your landscape by:

1. Improving soil structure, porosity and density to ensure a healthier root environment.
2. Infiltrating heavy soils thereby reducing erosion.
3. Increasing water holding capacity of soil so that water is used more efficiently.
4. Stabilizing pH and improving the soil's ability to hold nutrients.
5. Supplying valuable microbes, micro and macronutrients and organic matter to the soil environment.
6. Helping to suppress soil-borne plant pathogens.
7. Binding and degrading specific pollutants – so they stay out of our water system

For more information, please visit www.GotCompost.com or email info@HarvestBlendCompost.com

"KETCHUP" on the Million Tomato Campaign (pun intended)

Back in April we shared news of the US Composting Council’s Million Tomato Compost

Campaign - a nationwide drive to boost the soil health and growing power of community gardens across the country – just by adding compost to the soil.
Since then, the team from E&G and Harvest Blend has joined with 10 Central Coast community gardens; donating more than 2,500 cubic feet of premium Harvest Blend Compost, nearly 1,000 tomato seedlings (plus additional veggie transplants and gardening supplies) to this project!

Of course the main focus of the campaign was to grow fresh, healthy produce for donation to local food banks, and we’re happy to report some gardens will be harvesting soon, but there’s another side to this story. We’ve watched organic matter (in the form of compost) transform dry, compacted areas of land into nutrient rich soil; creating productive gardens that will soon be bursting with ripe, red tomatoes!

 

Participating in this campaign has been exciting and rewarding, and we thank all the hard working men, women and children who’ve joined together to help us reach our goal. Folks at the US Composting Council will keep us posted on ‘The Count,’ and let us know when we’ve reached ONE MILLION TOMATOES, so stay tuned.

Email for more info on this program, or to find out if your community garden qualifies for a compost donation.

 

 

 

 

GOT MULCH? Mulching protects plants from heat

Here on the Central Coast we seem to be experiencing a minor heat wave; this means a little extra TLC is needed for landscapes and gardens. Without some human help, a heat wave can wipe out a vegetable garden in just a couple of days.

The high temperatures of a heat wave damage a plant in several ways. First, there's the evaporation of soil moisture, which robs the roots of water. A heat wave will also dehydrate a plant by extracting moisture through the leaves and stem. Finally, the hot rays of the sun can sunburn the leaves, turning them a pale yellow-to-tan color which eventually die and fall off. Protecting your vegetable garden from a heat wave means slowing down the loss of water and minimizing sun damage. Here's how it's done:

Mulch, mulch, mulch │ Mulch is more than a pretty way to decorate a garden. It actually serves an important function in shading tender roots from the sun and slowing the evaporation of ground moisture. Mulch doesn't have to be expensive or fancy to work – bark, newspaper, straw, leaves, grass clippings and compost are affordable and do a great job. Just make sure to keep bark and compost a few inches away from the base of trees and shrubs to discourage insects.

Compost as mulch │ Applying compost to garden beds is a win/win. Not only are plants and soil protected from the elements, compost adds vital nutrients to the soil; increasing porosity and water holding capacity, encouraging a healthy root system. Premium STA Certified Harvest Blend Compost is the perfect choice; Naturally! Click for a map of our trusty dealers

Change how you water │ A vegetable garden can basically be watered in two ways, either at ground level or overhead. During a heat wave, overhead watering with an oscillating or other type of sprinkler head should be avoided. The combination of high temperatures and a hot sun can evaporate up to 90% of that water even before it hits the ground. A better watering solution is to use a soaker hose system, watering through channels, or hand watering the roots.

Other changes that need to be made include -

• Increasing the watering times to twice a day until the temps dip below 90 degrees.
• Avoid watering between 10 am and 7 pm, unless you have a soaker system or irrigation channels. Overhead watering when the sun is beating down on your plants can scald the leaves and kill them.
• Deep water when possible. Deep watering encourages deeper root growth.

Provide shade if possible. To protect more vulnerable vegetable plants, we set up a canopy to shade tender veggies during a heat wave. If you don't own a canopy, sheets draped over 5 foot bamboo stakes can also provide some plant relief.

Plants and soil sometimes need a little extra help from their human caretakers; and periods of extreme heat and/or cold are 2 of those occasions. For more info on compost uses and benefits, visit www.GotCompost.com or Like us on Facebook.