Below you will find our backyard green tips:
1. A wise man once said "compost happens". Composting not only reduces waste but also provides a rich soil amendment for your garden or landscaped areas. For more information regarding backyard composting, including items that can be composted, check out this OSU Extension fact sheet. For a map of composting facilities where county residents can take yard waste, click here.
2. Use native plants in landscaped areas and the open yard. If you don't want to mow part of your property, save money by seeding the area with native prairie seed. Natives are well adapted to our area and generally require less maintenance than their ornamental counterparts. And they are colorful! For more information about native plants, check out this homeowners guide to the Oak Openings Region. Oak Openings natives are available through the Toledo Botanical Gardens,the Lucas SWCD tree sale, and Blue Weekend at Kitty Todd Nature Preserve. Some area retailers also sell native plants of not only Oak Openings, but of other parts of the county as well. One such retailer is Naturally Native.
3. Care for your lawn without the use of pesticides or herbicides. Pesticides and herbicides are both expensive to apply and can runoff into area waterways during rain events. To learn more about organic lawn care, consider attending the Lucas SWCD organic lawn care clinic on March 29th, 2009.
4. Use a mulching lawnmower. Mulching lawnmowers replenish your yard with a constant supply of "fertilizer" - grass clippings provide a fair supply of nitrogen and smaller amounts of potassium and phosphate. Even better, mulching lawnmowers eliminate the need to bag or rake clippings.
5. Save money and help the environment by capturing rainwater using rain barrels. The Toledo-Lucas County Rain Garden Initiative is currently offering discounted rain barrels, check out the sale here!
