The Magic of Natural Lawn Care

The Magic of Natural Lawn Care 

Natural Lawn is an oxymoron because the lawn as modern Americans define it is not in any way natural. It mimics the grazed acreages of the great estates of Europe and the ranches of America. Without cattle to graze their little patches of grass, everyday folk tried to emulate the grand estate by trimming the grass around their homes with knife and shears. Later special equipment was developed to do the work faster and easier and an entire industry was born...just from trying to emulate pastureland of the great estates. But we can create a great lawn using methods that are as close to natural as possible.

To understand Natural Lawn Care you have to start thinking of the lawn as an ecosystem with little critters of all kinds living together in a lively community carefully tuned to leave no gaps or niches unfilled. Some of those little critters are plants, some of them microscopic, one-celled algae. Some of them are simple bacteria or molds or yeasts. The grass plant has its own place in the Natural Ecology of the lawn.

The lawn ecosystem works harmoniously until man comes along and imposes his own version of wisdom on Nature's Way. Too much nitrogen, phosphorus or potassium in the wrong form begins to kill one part of the lawn ecosystem or another. Incorrect watering drowns or suffocates some critters or the roots of the grass if too much is dumped onto a compacted soil low in organics. Or teasing the roots to grow up near the surface by shallow, insufficient watering and then leaving the shallow roots to fry in the heat of a July sun.

In some cases the man expects the impossible from the grass plants that populate his lawn. Bluegrass and fescue weren't designed to be mowed close to the ground and pop back up with vigor. Grass blades that get shredded by the bludgeoning of dull mower blades are certainly going to fall victim to bacteria and molds. The man responds by applying fungicides or bactericides which kill beneficial molds or bacteria in the soil ecosystem and vital functions are now missing from the well-tuned soil. You just can't game Mother Nature. You must understand Nature's Way.

Creating a soil ecosystem that will largely take care of itself and continue to delight for many years requires starting with a good base of rich organic soil. Laying sod over barely an inch of black dirt on top of heavy clay soil compacted by construction equipment and vehicles and strewn with buried construction materials...is NOT a good start. It does provide a quick veneer that will look like a lawn to get the real estate sold, but it is not going to hold up against the traffic of big feet, little feet, toys and lawn equipment. You should have a good 6 inches of black soil rich in minerals, humic acid and humus.

One enterprising man decided to delay creating his lawn. Instead he raised a garden on his lawn area so that he could bring in organic mulches, manures, compost and for one season he raised tomatoes, beans, peas, carrots....the whole range of vegetables in a massive garden. That fall he tilled it all into the soil and planted grass seed. The next spring the grass sprouted and by the time summer heated up, his grass plants were well rooted and ready for the challenge of meeting the sun each day.

Most people won't have the opportunity to begin from scratch as he did. They will have to try to build their soil with the grass already in place. There are some methods to do this in a more natural way.

Most significant, I believe, is the use of a mulching mower. I've seen some people's recommendations for using a good, sharp reel-type push mower. This might be OK for those who have small lawns with a deep, well-drained organic soil. But for those who are starting with the prevalent sodded lawn over compacted construction debris, a power mulching mower will make it easier to create the environment necessary for Mother Nature to do her thing. The mulching mower cuts the grass into tiny bits before it is scattered on the surface. This increases the surface area of the cut grass to increase the rate of decomposition into the soil. The reel lawn mower will just cut the grass blade once, perhaps twice, but the grass will not be shredded and will begin to create a mat through which grass must grow. The mat might make the lawn feel cushy and easy to walk on, but it can become thick and molds and mildews can begin to threaten the grass trying to poke through this mat. Vertical raking can pull this up and off the lawn, but this is either tedious and back-breaking work or it can be hired done with a power vertical rake. The undecomposed grass is a loss to the soil-building that is so needed on most lawns. A mulching mower can be an effective tool in growing a "Natural Lawn." Someday a reel-mower might be a useful alternative, providing good exercise without the polluting fumes of a gasoline engine, but only after the soil is ready.

There are two ways to get vertical movement of decomposing materials. For most people plowing or tilling the lawn soil are out of the question...expensive, labor-intensive, messy, and what would the neighbors think. An alternative is the use of aeration devices or equipment in late spring or early fall that cut cylinders of soil called "soil plugs" which are scattered at the surface. These soil plugs will be shredded and weathered and the mix of organic material and soil particles will be swept back into the holes by rain or foot-traffic. The holes made by the aeration obviously allow air to penetrate deeper into the soil and break up the compaction. Over several seasons, this slow, selective "plowing" of the soil, bit by bit, turns the soil over while maintaining an attractive lawn.

There are some goofy ideas that are often suggested for aeration. One of the dumbest is the use of spiked shoes or golf shoes. These gimmicks DO make holes in the ground but only by forcing the soil apart. There are no soil plugs or cylindrical holes. The wedge-effect of the spike presses soil particles together to make room for the spikes and therefore the net effect is greater compaction.

After a few seasons of aeration, mulch-mowing, and the use of organic fertilizers, earthworms will take over the aeration, gently plowing the lawn from underneath. Some people get upset over the clumps left at the surface by the worms not realizing that these worm castings are the richest fertilizer in the world. These people who have never learned Nature's Way often choose to poison the earthworms to stop formation of the clumps that are fertilizing their lawn.

The proper watering regimen is another significant part of Nature's Way. The roots of grasses grow to where they usually find water. If a quick spritz of water is all they get, the grass will grow its roots up near the surface to take advantage of the water it will get there. If watering is missed when the soil heats up, the tender roots near the surface will be killed and the grass will go into decline and perhaps, die. Watering should always be deep and in most climates it should be about once a week. I use a long, slender screwdriver to plunge into random spots on the lawn to see if it goes in easily to about 6 inches. This will invite the grass roots to grow down to get the water rather than toward the surface. Then leave the lawn for about a week to let it get a bit dry before watering again. But always water deeply to about six inches if you can. If it rains in the meantime take that into account in your watering schedule. You lawn will probably need about an inch of water each week. Get in tune with Nature by setting up a rain gauge and keeping notes on a calendar.

Never cut more than a third of the length of a blade of grass, because the grass plant needs sufficient food-making structures to continue to provide the nutrition the plant needs to thrive. Mow more often if you must, but don't let it grow to 4 inches and then wack it down to 1 1/2 inches in one go. If you do let it get too long, measure several grass blades in different parts of the lawn using a ruler or tape measure and then set your mower accordingly. If, in mowing, you leave windrows of cut grass, you are cutting too low. If necessary to catch up to a proper length of grass blade, reduce the length gradually without cutting more than a third over a week's time. Grass that is cut too short will be in shock, the roots will not grow as deep, and the plant can become more susceptible to disease.

Another way to increase the depth of the soil is to add compost and sand so shallow that the grass blades are not covered and the plant can grow up through the application. This is more labor-intensive but it can speed the development of a suitable soil depth for grass.

Some people believe that Mother Nature is very messy and that they must clean up after her. Leaves that fall on the lawn during autumn must be raked and carried away...they think. They haven't learned how to think like Mother Nature. Leaves require some mineral nutrition to be produced and that must be returned to the soil. Again, the mulching mower can be a very powerful assistant to help you clear the lawn of leaves and build soil at the same time. If the leaves are too thick on the lawn, they might be bagged and used on your vegetable garden or around your landscape plantings, but they should NEVER leave your property. They were made by the plants on the soil there and they must be returned to the soil there. A mulching mower can be a valuable tool in creating a Natural Lawn.

Keeping a lawn free of weeds is largely a matter of growing a dense stand of very healthy grass. Weeds have a hard time getting started with the root competition of the grass and the shading of a heavy stand of grass. Grass that is kept at about 3 inches will grow thicker with more shoots filling out around the start to create a dense population of grass plants, too thick for weeds to compete. Letting the lawn get a bit dry before watering also helps kill the germinating weed seedlings through the season. Hand weeding where weeds are found is far preferable to using herbicides if you are planning to grow a lawn that is healthy and that is healthy for you.

Corn Gluten meal is a by-product of corn syrup and cornstarch production. It contains nitrogen and protein and is sold as animal feed for cows, chickens, and is used as filler in pet foods. Corn Gluten meal can be applied as fertilizer and as a pre-emergent weed killer. It has been shown to inhibit the growth of dandelions, crabgrass and many other annual weeds. Used for a fertilizer, bone meal and potash will have to be added to balance the nitrogen in the corn gluten. Fertilize in May, June and September.

You can grow a beautiful lawn Nature's Way so that it will be a healthy place for you, your family, friends, and pets. I nearly lost my daughter to 2,4-D sprayed on a school playground before the school year was over. She survived Burkitt's Lymphoma but her classmate Steven didn't. He didn't make it to seventh grade. He died at the Children's Health Center in Minneapolis. I spent two years there off and on, watching over her and my family scattered to neighbors, grandparents, and friends while I tried to keep my job and the medical and health insurance to pay for her survival. We did it, but I learned some things very valuable to me. Among them was the importance of a Natural Lawn.

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