Cornell and Suffolk County Launch New Lawn Care Website
In January 2008 Suffolk County enacted a law to reduce the application of fertilizer to turf. According to this law - turf is defined as "any area of earth principally vegetated by grass." The law prohibits applying fertilizer on any non-County owned real property (with a few exceptions) between November 1 and April 1. The purpose of the law was to reduce the amount of nitrogen that could potentially be released into groundwater or surface water. Between November 1 and April 1 is when the potential for nitrogen leaching (nitrogen moving down through the soil) to the groundwater and runoff to our surface waters is greatest in Suffolk County.
To help Suffolk County residents stay informed on the latest research-based information on lawn care Cornell University colleagues Dr. Martin Petrovic, Joann Gruttadaurio, and Bob Portmess worked on a project funded by Suffolk County called the Nitrogen Reduction Initiative. The purpose of the project is to educate Suffolk County citizens (including lawn and landscape professionals) about the importance of groundwater protection (which is the source of drinking water for Long Island) by reducing the amount of nitrate nitrogen that can be leached into the groundwater through fertilizing practices. This project focused on best management practices for Suffolk County (Long Island).
Two "products" of this project that will be of interest to homeowners and lawn and landscape professionals are the "Healthy Lawns Clean Water" website and the "Healthy Lawns Clean Water" brochure.
Homeowners will find the section of the website titled "How to Care for Your Lawn" particularly valuable. Here you will find research-based information on: whether your lawn needs fertilizer; protecting our water; assessing your site; how to mow properly; how to water properly; over-seeding lawns; and when aerating a lawn may be beneficial. In addition there is a section on seasonal tips and best management practices.
A lot of emphasis is put into the fertilizer section of the website. Here you will find information on how to determine whether your lawn needs fertilizer, what choices you have when it comes to fertilizer, how to properly apply fertilizer, how to calibrate your spreader for accuracy, along with information on how to determine when to apply fertilizer. Another important feature of this section is how to determine the percent of water insoluble nitrogen (WIN) in a fertilizer product. The percent WIN determines whether your fertilizer is considered a slow release product - an important feature of lawn fertilizers.
To keep lawns green during the summer months proper watering during extended periods of hot, dry weather may be necessary. Based on inquiries received at the Cornell Cooperative Extension - Suffolk County (CCE) Diagnostic Labs, how to water properly is an area of much confusion. The key to effective watering is to replace only the water lost by the grass plant and the soil. Evapotranspiration (ET) is the amount of water lost from the soil through the leaves and through the soil surface. Knowing the rate of ET for your area can help you determine more precisely how much water is needed and when it is needed. A link to the CCE website provides residents with daily and weekly precipitation and ET rates for a number of locations throughout Suffolk County. A link is also provided to the Northeast Regional Climate Center's Lawn Watering Input site, where the user enters their zip code and an estimate of the amount of water needed is provided.
Need help in selecting grass seed for a new lawn or renovation? Go to the informative section on over-seeding your lawn. Here you will find descriptions of the common grass types used for lawns in Suffolk County. Which do best in full sun or shade; which tolerate low maintenance conditions; how to determine a good seed mixture based on your site and desired maintenance; and how much seed is needed per 1000 sq. ft. are but a few of the topics discussed in the over-seeding your lawn section of the website.
The "seasonal tips" section provides information on lawn care practices that may be needed during the spring, summer, fall and winter. Some practices like mowing are required for most of the growing season. But others such as watering are not. The emphasis in the seasonal tips section is to provide you with information on how to determine the need for practices such as watering, weed control, insect control, etc. It is important to first determine whether a practice or an application should be made to your lawn.
Best management practices (BMP's) emphasize lawn care practices designed to promote healthy lawns while keeping the environment in mind. Homeowners are encouraged to always follow BMP's when caring for their lawns. The Healthy Lawns Clean Water website and brochure will help you achieve this goal.
Click here to visit the Healthy Lawns Clean water web site.
