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Environmental Tips for Your Yard
Ontario’s province-wide pesticide regulation bans the sale and use of cosmetic pesticides. Get your lawn and flower beds off drugs!
- Weeds: Dig up dandelions rather than using pesticides (hardware stores have diggers, water-lifters, burners). You need to dig or mow frequently in spring.
- Weeds: Kill plants between stones with a gallon (4L) vinegar, 1 cup salt, half teaspoon dish detergent. (Clean your coffee maker with the vinegar, then dissolve salt with it.)
- Weeds: Use corn gluten meal on lawns before weeds sprout, spring and fall. It's a pre-emergent weed killer as well as a source of nitrogen (about 10-0-0).
- Weeds between your patio bricks: Soak with vinegar before 3 days of dry weather.
- Weeds: Grow moss between patio bricks prevents weeds: Put a clump of green moss and water in a blender, then sprinkle the result between bricks or stones. Keep moist until moss starts to grow.
- Weeds: Replace all or some grass with native shrubs and flowers - this may take a few years but will result in less work.
- Bugs: Soak rhubarb leaves in a pail of water for 2-3 days to water flowers and vegetables (cover it as this is poisonous). Wait a week before harvesting food as this is poisonous to humans too!
- Bugs: Diatomatious earth (ground rock) sprinkled where bugs crawl - use only in problem areas as this kills "good" bugs too.
- Bugs: Look around your garden regularly and "pick" off bugs and caterpillars that are eating your plants. Use gloves and drop in soapy water if you are squeamish.
- Fertilizer: Seaweed concentrate, mushroom factory compost, farm manure (rotted), and of course, composted kitchen and yard waste.
- Fungus on plants: #1 Water plants with mixture of 5mL baking soda, 5 mL dishwashing liquid, in 1 L water. #2 Water plants with water soaked with horsetail weeds for 2 days.
- Bugs: Feed birds in the winter and they will eat insects in the summer.
- Bugs: Grubs in your lawn? Apply Nematodes (they eat grubs).
- Bugs: Chinch bugs live in "thatch" - convert lawn to organic, topdress in spring, and vacuum them up!
- If you have moles or shrews, rejoice - they eat insects, grubs and slugs without chemicals! Voles (field mice) eat grass, tubers, seeds and insects. (HealthyOttawa.ca)
"We know for instance, that a brand-new baby typically, out of the womb, has over 230 industrial chemicals in its blood, 190 of which have been linked to cancer."
... Guy Dauncey, 'Prevent Cancer Now'
- Related Pages:
- Recycling, Donating and Selling
- Rideau-Goulbourn Garbage & Recycling
- Waterfront & Rideau River Health
- "Fewer gardeners rely on pesticides (StatsCan)"
- Manotick's "100 Mile" Dinner
- Emerald Ash Borer results in wood Quarantine
- Links:
- Ottawa WaterLinks program - prevent water pollution info@ottawa.ca, 613-560-6086 x3292
- Rideau Valley Conservation Authority - regulates development along Rideau River
- Mississippi-Rideau Source Protection Region - source water protection
- Green Communities Canada - Pesticide-free lawn advice
- EnviroCentre 613-244-5624 - Resources for saving energy and water
- Ottawa Septic System Office 613-692-0160
- City of Ottawa tree program
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