In Your Garden

General Practices
  • Grow various flowering plants to provide nutrients for beneficial natural pest predators, such as birds, ladybugs, lacewings, toads and garden snakes.
  • Remove ivy, standing water, animals wastes and rotting fruit, and manually remove eggs, larvae and cocoons to reduce the amount of pest occurrence.
  • Naturally eliminate snails by collecting them in an over-turned, propped up clay pot, or in shallow pans of stale beer. Prime times for this collection are in the Spring and late Fall.
  • Water the lawn early or late in the day and use water efficient devices. Check sprinklers for proper operation to eliminate runoff into streets and storm drains.
  • Make natural fertilizer by composting garden trimmings. Practice "grasscycling", or composting grass clippings.
  • Do not blow or rake leaves into streets because they will eventually wash into storm drains. Place into bags or containers for pick up on yard waste collection day.
  • Collect lawn and garden clippings, pruning waste and tree trimmings. Bundle or place into bags or containers for pick up on yard waste collection day.
  • Protect stockpiles and landscaping materials from wind and rain by storing them under tarps or secured plastic sheeting.
  • Prevent erosion by cutting the grass frequently and leaving at least 2 inches of the blade; this encourages deeper root growth which holds the soil in place.
  • Schedule grading and excavation projects during dry weather seasons. Prevent dirt from going into streets and storm drains.
Chemical Use
  • Read the labels and follow directions carefully when using insecticides, herbicides and fertilizers.
  • Look for less-toxic products such as biological pesticides, oil sprays and insecticidal soaps. And remember, more is not always better.
  • Use chemicals sparingly and never use them around water, drains, bare ground, or if rain is predicted within the next 24 hours.
  • Avoid spills and don't rinse them away if they do occur. Absorb them with sawdust or kitty litter and dispose of the absorbent from larger spills to a hazardous waste collection event.
  • Avoid using copper sulfate root killing products.
  • Use up pesticides completely. Rinse the containers and use the rinse water as a diluted product. Dispose of clean containers in the trash, or recycle if possible.
  • Dispose of unused pesticides as a hazardous waste.
  • Store pesticides, fertilizers, chlorine and other chemicals indoors or in a shed or storage cabinet.