It was by accident 10 years ago that an Iowa researcher discovered the effectiveness of using corn gluten to suppress weeds.  Since then, more organic lawn care companies and home owners are turning to corn gluten as a safe, organic way to control crabgrass, dandelions and other weeds in their yards.

What is corn gluten? It’s a byproduct of processing corn to make corn starch and corn syrup.  Corn gluten, often available in powder or pellets, contains about 10 percent nitrogen.

How does it work?  Corn gluten inhibits the root formation of sprouting seeds, according to Iowa State University researcher Nick Christians, who has been studying it for the past decade.  “The weed will germinate and usually forms a shoot but does not form a root,” Christians says on his Web site.

Experts say timing is everything if you want to effectively control weeds.  You have to get weeds as they’re germinating, broadcasting about 20 pounds per 1,000 square feet.  After the weeds germinate, a short drying period is needed to kill the weeds that have sprouted but haven’t formed a root.  If the area is too wet following the corn glutton application, the weeds will form a root and continue to grow.   Here at Ecoyards, we spread corn gluten in mid March – or around the time forsythia bloom – and again around mid August, to control fall dandelions.

While corn gluten will work well on pre-emergent weeds, it won’t kill established weeds.

Some of the weeds controlled include crabgrass, dandelions, smart weed, redroot pigweed, purslane, lambsquarters, foxtail, and barnyard grass.

Be sure to look for corn gluten that is produced from organically-grown corn.  To find licensed dealers in the country: http://www.techtransfer.iastate.edu/en/for_industry/technology_search/cgm_licensees.cfm

In Seattle, Walt’s Organic Fertilizer Company is a good source for organic corn gluten: http://www.waltsorganic.com/

To read about the research behind corn gluten: http://www.hort.iastate.edu/gluten/

For more information, read the Northwest Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides report: http://www.pesticide.org/pubs/alts/cgm/cornglutenmeal.html

Link to Industry News

From U.S. EPA Pesticide Environmental Stewardship Program

The National Lawns and Environment Initiative began in 2002 with the goal of encouraging environmentally-responsible lawn and landscaping practices in residential landscape design and maintenance. The U.S. EPA is a member of the steering committee, along with USDA, the Center for Resource Management, the San Antonio Water System, the National Gardening Association, the University of Florida, Audubon International, Professional Landcare Network, and Golf Course Superintendents Association of America.

In 2005 the Initiative produced the Environmental Guidelines for Responsible Lawn Care and Landscaping (28 pp, 428 K, about PDF). These practices include appropriate uses of pesticides, fertilizers, water, plants, and stewardship principles that will enhance the value and benefits of residential landscapes to homeowners, communities, and wildlife.

The Initiative’s mission is not only to develop consensus-based guidelines, but also to encourage the public to adopt them. It has supported demonstration projects in EPA’s Region 3 and the San Antonio Water System. These projects will measure their success in comparison to neighborhoods that do not undergo public education campaigns.

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Outdoor landscape lighting has many benefits. A well-designed landscape lighting plan will increase the aesthetic appearance of your home and garden and highlight the features of your property. Landscape lighting expands your living space by allowing you to enjoy your outdoor environment after dark. It also improves the safety of your home or business.

For years the only choice for landscape lighting was incandescent or low-voltage halogen. More recently, LED landscape lighting has become a viable and cost-effective option for outdoor lighting.

LED landscape lighting has several advantages over traditional outdoor lighting options:

1. Longevity. LED outdoor lighting has a useful life of up to 100,000 hours. If you operated your LED landscape lights for an average of 8 hours each night year-round the lights would last for 30 years or more. This means that you can enjoy your outdoor lighting rather than having to spend countless hours changing damaged or burned out bulbs. Traditional halogen replacement bulbs are also expensive so you will save a significant amount of money over the lifetime of the lights.

2. Energy-Efficiency. LED landscape lights are 80% more efficient than traditional outdoor lighting solutions. Over the long life of the LED light this will translate into substantial cost savings. Utilizing an energy efficient lighting option is also the sustainable and environmentally responsible choice.

3. More Lighting Options. Because of the size and longevity of the LED light, several luminaire designs are available that simply were not possible with traditional landscape lighting.

4. The Green Choice. Because of its super-efficiency and long-lasting bulbs, LED landscape lighting has much less of an impact on the environment than traditional outdoor lighting options. You’ll use less energy and create less waste.

If you would like to obtain more information about LED landscape lighting, or would like a free estimate for installation, please call (206-770-7879) or email us (info@ecoyards.com).

Seattle’s wet winters provide the ideal growth conditions for moss in lawns.  For many homeowners, moss is an unwelcome annoyance in their little patch of green

Too much shade

Most grass varieties do not like shade, even “shade-tolerant” varieties.

Pruning overhanging trees and shrubs may increase some sunlight on the lawn, but this is generally a losing battle, and may ultimately damage the trees and shrubs.

Why not replace the shady lawn with shade-tolerant ground covers or a shade garden? Many Western Washington native plants like wild strawberry, ferms and bunchberry, to name a few, are perfect for shady spots in our region.

Poor soil drainage/soil compaction

Think of all the footsteps that have walked over your lawn. Every step compacts the soil beneath lawn, and ultimately water and fertilizer can’t reach the grass roots. Give your lawn a lift by aerating it.

Core aeration, followed by topdressing, loosens soil and improves drainage.  How does it work?  Core aerators remove small soil plugs or cores from the lawn, allowing water, oxygen, fertilizers, and other nutrients to penetrate the soil and better reach the grass roots.

Topdressing is the process of adding a thin layer (1/8 to 1/4 inch) of soil or compost over the aerated lawn.  Over time, topdressing benefits the lawn by improving the fertility and drainage of the underlying soil.

Low fertility

Moderate lawn fertilization during appropriate seasons will improve the health of the lawn, which promotes denser grass cover and allows the grass to out-compete moss and weeds.  Be sure to use a “natural organic” or “slow-release” release fertilizer to reduce leaching or runoff into our local streams.