Pet Friendly Lawn Fertilizer
Pets can become ill from chemical lawn fertilizers. Family pets can ingest chemicals when eating grass, by inhaling fertilizer fumes or dust, through skin absorption or by drinking water runoff contaminated with fertilizers. Lawn owners today have a variety of organic fertilization alternatives, including nontoxic products and lawn-produced fertilizers. Does this Spark an idea?
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Benefits of Organic Fertilization
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Chemical fertilizers pose a threat not only to animals, but to people as well. Humans can ingest harmful chemicals in the same way animals do. Turning to organic fertilizers reduces health risks for pets and humans. Lawns properly fertilized with organic materials can be just as healthy and attractive as lawns treated with chemicals, but without toxins, according to .
Chemical Fertilizers
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The majority of chemical lawn fertilizers contain nitrogen and phosphorus. Soil needs nitrogen and phosphorus in order to produce a healthy lawn covering. Chemical spray fertilizers can coat grass blades, while granulated fertilizers can remain on top of the soil. Without adequate watering, spray and granulated fertilizers do not penetrate the soil, where fertilization is needed. Select organic fertilizers contain the same nutrients as found in chemical fertilizers.
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Lawn-Produced Materials
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Select plants that grow naturally in lawns, such as clover, to produce nitrogen. Allow clover to grown in the lawn, nitrogen can reach the soil naturally. Grass itself produces nutrients that can fertilize a lawn, including nitrogen, manganese, phosphorus, iron and potassium. After mowing, grass clippings can be spread over the yard and used as a natural fertilizer. As grass clippings decompose, nutrients can penetrate into the soil below. Grass can contain up to 85 percent water, which also reduces the amount lawn watering necessary.
Composting
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Lawn owners can produce compost at home, which offers an alternative to chemical lawn fertilizers. Grass clippings and kitchen scraps can create rich compost for a variety of lawn and garden uses. Just as gardeners spread compost over flower and vegetable gardens, it can also be used to enrich lawn soil.
Manufactured Products
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Lawn product manufacturers produce nontoxic, organic fertilizers designed for use on lawns. Manufactured products come in spray and dry forms. Organic fertilization products, available in lawn and garden stores, can contain such materials as blood meal, feather meal and corn meal.
Stores also sell traditional natural fertilizers, such as cow, sea bird, bat and chicken manure. Organic products can carry a certification from the Environmental Protection Agency, informing consumers that ingredients are safe for use around humans and animals.
Application Methods
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The means of applying organic fertilizers varies, depending on the type of fertilizers used. Dry, granulated or powdered, fertilizers can be distributed by using a fertilizer spreader. Liquid fertilizers can be applied with a hand-held, pump sprayer or by using a liquid fertilizer attachment that works with a garden hose. Compost, wet manure and grass clippings can be distributed over a lawn by hand, or using a shovel.
After applying fertilizers, lawns require thorough raking, in order to work the fertilizers down to the soil level. Follow any type of fertilization application, with a thorough watering in order to soak the fertilizer past the surface and into the soil below.
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References
- Photo Credit grass,lawn image by Greg Pickens from Fotolia.com
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Comments
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A majority of the problems with fertilizers being safe for pets is making sure the fertilizer has settled into the soil. Products like Pet Safe Lawn Fertilizer solve this problem by providing a highly soluble fertilizer. Within minutes of watering it in, your kids and pets can play safely on the lawn.
