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<br />Pn',\"cnmrioll of laudfill capacity
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<br />Yard wastes (dippings, fanen Icavl,;s, trimmings,
<br />imJ uprooted wecch) can m<lkc up 20.25% of house-
<br />hold gnrhagc (Kolh I ~(1), A one <ll:rc lawn generates
<br />;Jlrnost six tons of grass clippings a year, or nearly a
<br />thousand bags worth (Jenkins IY94). Jt is estimated
<br />thnt YJrd waste fills up 10.50% of the nation's landfills
<br />(Jenkins 1994). Although grass clippings decompose
<br />rapidly on the lawn, they often persist for a long time
<br />in landfills. In 19& I the city of PIano, Texas, inSlilu[cd
<br />a program thnt encouraged residents to leave clippings
<br />on home lawns to provide nutrients <lnd moisture,
<br />Knoop and Whitney (1989) reponed the results: The
<br />city saved $60,000 in disposal costs in the tirst year,
<br />even though the number of households served in,
<br />creased 12% over the same period. Residents parlici-
<br />pating in the program saved $22,000 in plastic bag
<br />purchases. In 1989, it was estimated that Fort Worth,
<br />Texas could save about $200,000 in annu<ll disposal
<br />costs if all homeowners stopped bagging grass clip-
<br />pings, By 1991,34 states had enacted restrictions on
<br />yard waste dumping or were debaling such laws (EPA
<br />1991). In Seattle. an education program encouraged
<br />urban citizens 10 compost yard and food wastes. About
<br />5,300 tons of yard waste were removed from disposal
<br />annually, for a net savings of $378.000 (EP A 1991).
<br />
<br />Reduced cost for management of public lands
<br />
<br />Integrated pest management (a pest control ap~
<br />proach that minimizes pesticide use) is an excellent
<br />investment on public lands. Raup and Smith (1986)
<br />reported that integrated pest management (lPM) re.
<br />duced community p~st management costs by 22%,
<br />even though more pests were controlled under the new
<br />progrnm. The use of expensive chemicals to control
<br />weeds can also be substanti<ll1y reduced, Simply chang-
<br />ing mowing height can, by itself, reduce weed levels by
<br />over 50% (Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay 1994).
<br />Finally, convening lawns to plantings which require
<br />(ess intensive maintenance can also generate savings,
<br />In Maryland, a program to landscape highway inter-
<br />changes allowed the state to reduce mowing by 10%
<br />for a $300,000 savings (Rod bell 1993).
<br />
<br />Stees Toward the Low Incut Lawn
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<br />""'d' .. '. ":..,.,.- .....-.,-:'...i..'.....-;... .-,'
<br />'Step 1: Lawn ConverslonQh<.(.'.",,;"',;{':.,
<br />'''',>,:' ,;'~\ ,,'_-~: ,', :':~"'-:- . 'i/-_,- '~,:;.~;~"'~i(ii<:,:--:; ""-,', "", ",~-,:
<br />;:";-;(Convert I awn' ;-n~eas;~~nt'o" grouridcaver,- trees,
<br />
<br />:slm.b;,"(ir,'mead~w.;'pIfml~ngs~'.F6r a ;[ow~: in"put ap-
<br />.....'''-.: '. ,>.,-,.' ". _ ..; --.:. ,,_~, '. ~,':'. "ll":". ,.,.,." ",.' ,,' '. ".' '-,~',o. . - . ,
<br />proac~, replace the grass underneath'l1ihturetrces \vith
<br />groundc9ver. Foran:e_ven ,[o_Wf:r.,ill~ut.~ppto~ch, ~xam-
<br />ine yo~r bwnfo~ pot~riti~lconvedonare~sand plant
<br />'g~oU"h-dc~)'vers, :i~~_e~;' sh;~b178? peren_riTals1Irl'all' areas
<br />. w ge~e:~: g;,"+~s'il_h'rird ,to :g~'6:w.;_.- For :tBcj;j"wrs t.; input
<br />approacli,'-~se__turf ~nly:whci~j_t",!s'-th~'b€~t plant .to
<br />fulfiila ,particular: function, such "as. jifovidiilg a
<br />. children's' sports area, .
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<br />}Jow Mrcc:h 1.L111'f! ,\'houltllJe COf{V('ftl'J?
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<br />Mo:-;t lawns have arc~,... that ;lfc not wlted 10 grass
<br />gruwlh, These inchllk frost pockeLs, cxposcJ an.::;\s,
<br />dense Shillk. stCl:p slopes, anu wet. boggy areas, \Vhilc
<br />it i:-; possihle 10 grow grass in any of these areas, highl:r
<br />inpuls of fcrlililer and/or waler arc needed III COmpl:ll-
<br />sate for inhospitahk r.:onditions, In addition. thc:sc
<br />"reas may he difficult to safely muw, Even in moue rate
<br />terrain. lawns <:IUU up lo largc maintenJncc invest-
<br />Ill~nts. The: avcr;Jge: homcowncrspc:nus 40 hours a ycar
<br />simply mowing, so a large lawn may take about as
<br />much time as the traJitional family summer v<lcation
<br />(Schultz I ~H9), Les;:; lawn results in 1C:::lS work. Tltc:
<br />shape of an area should ;)Iso be considered, since small.
<br />edge areas suo:.:h as narrow strips or tight corners can be
<br />difficult to mow, water, and fertilize evenly. For lawns
<br />with the same surface area, water use rises as (he
<br />perimeter increases (Ellefson 1992). Converting lawn
<br />edges to less intensive plantings is a particularly effec~
<br />tive strategy for reducing inputs.
<br />
<br />Once a lawn area has been targeted for conversion,
<br />alternative plantings must be selected. Existing
<br />flowerbeds or groupings of trees and shrubs can simply
<br />be expanded. or groundcovers can be used to replace
<br />grass. Another option is to establish plantings that
<br />mimic native plant communities such as forests, mead-
<br />ows, and wetlands, In addition, some areas of the lawn
<br />can be converted into mulched beds.
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<br />~Step~:\SOI[BJllding
<br />....:...'. -'",'",".... " --", '- -"
<br />'!,f};tt~1-r,r~\7jdea 's~iong "foundatio~ fo~ the Iawri,;' For a
<br />':;lq'';' iiipudawn; ge'ta soillesl todete'ririine the soil.s pH
<br />~$kc!;fei'\TIitY.,:Wum~y,notfneedlo'addany. lime or
<br />~_",:-"'.ii.>." ./-".y.._____~-'>-'....'..,..., .' . ..'~
<br />'fertilizer.to youdawi1.'For alowednput lawn, test for,:
<br />.}soil compat?tion." Can you sink a screwdriver into the
<br />:'ground:withoutpounding or is the soil compacted? If
<br />'the.:sojLi~,compacted.aerate with a hand corer or
<br />,.m,,"haniC:i.1aerator. FOrthelowesiinput lawn, exam.
<br />"ine'thesoil:s~teXture~~eiiHerextremely sandy. soils
<br />'. nOrex~en1ely heiivy do.r-solIs ritake for good lawns;
<br />Next counreanliwoi-ffi~;"if:l\()ne can be found in a
<br />s<i.iiarefpol of soil. ther.'s. ti problem. A healthy soil
<br />~commiiiiily has over 10 persquarefoot. With this basic
<br />understanding of soil' oddity, feniiity, c~""paction,
<br />tex'lure. and earthworms, one can build soil that sup-
<br />ports dense, healthy, lurf.
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<br />The first step in hllilding gllod soil i:-; to lak~ a ~oil
<br />le~l to dctcflllinc pH and fertiliLy, Soil slwuld be h.:s{cd
<br />~VL'ry threc ycars. wilh cilhl.'r ;lll inl.:xpl.'llsi\'1.' test kil
<br />pUH.:hast;d at ;1 g;irdcll l'l'lHl..'"f or a s.nil s;\lllpk 1(.'::->ll.'d hy !
<br />the local Coopl:ralive E.\tl:llSion ScrviCl: (found 10 1111.'
<br />nlue Pages). ^ suil ll';';[ is I.'ssential [n ~ktcrll1il1l'
<br />whdhcr any fcrtili/.cr or liml.' is actually nl'l'~kd. Til..:
<br />flexl step ill suil builtJillg is 10 h'::SI I'm l,,'llIlIP:U.:llllJ\,
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<br />COlllp:1Cliflll keeps ~lir. \V~Hcr alld 11111fll'nl.'i IrOlll
<br />enll'ring the ~oiL <. 'Illllp;l~'t~'d Sllils h;I\'~' kss lllilruhi,d
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