You’re seeing it more every day, every year. Lawn care companies advertising “natural” treatment…i.e. organic…for nutritional supplement and weed control of residential and commercial properties.
And while this strikes a harmonious chord with many who want to believe that “natural” is a viable alternative to traditional fertilizers and chemical weed killers, here’s what you need to know…and what you need to ask about just what’s in those “organic” lawn and garden products.
The fact is that many are engineered from reconstituted manures…chicken, for example. Some others originate from a company in Milwaukee, Wisconsin (among others) called “Milorganite”, which takes sludge from the county waste treatment plant and makes it into “organic” fertilizer. So knowing that, consider the reality of putting that product on your lawn and walking barefoot through it.
Here’s some more reality. One of the reasons “synthetic” fertilizers are so popular is the fact of their efficiency. They’re much faster acting in terms of promoting green plant growth than the so-called “organics”, which may take weeks longer to become impactful. For that fact, organic products are fine for flower beds and gardens, where long-term results are the goal.
And, there has yet to be an “organic” weed killer that’s been proven to be effective, or cost efficient.
As for the “so-called” hazards of synthetic fertilizers, the one knock for years has been the issue of phosphorous runoff that gets into creeks and ponds and causes “algae”. But there is no phosphorous in the products that Ever-Green uses, therefore there is no such risk.
In conclusion, the idea of “organic” seems admirable. We’d all like to think that natural is best for the sake of the environment and human exposure. But when you know the facts, and when you consider its efficiency and cost…and the absence of any actual negative impact of the highly engineered synthetics, it makes you appreciate commercial lawn products in the same respect that we’ve come appreciate other products like soaps and fragrances.
It’s what you need to know…about “natural”!
