Kermit the Frog is fond of saying “It’s not easy being green.”  But thanks to concerned companies and people all over the world, going green has risen from obscurity to the mainstream in recent years.

Gardeners and weekend warriors, along with the products they use, can be some of the biggest offenders in perpetuating a not-so-eco-friendly world. But today, more and more green-conscious products and tools are making their way into yards and gardens across America, leaving behind a smaller environmental footprint than ever before!

Traditional views
Typically, the first things people think about in an eco-friendly garden are compost and organic solutions to dealing with soil amendments and pest and disease control.

There’s no denying, compost is king when it comes to an easy, natural way to creating a nutrient-rich soil amendment for your lawn and garden.  Making compost is eco-friendly for several reasons. It:

• takes common yard and kitchen waste and recycles it into healthy soil
• reduces or eliminates the need for additional chemicals
• conditions the soil to become less water dependent
• improves soil percolation, reducing the chances of runoff
• keeps waste out of landfills and reduces trips there by collection vehicles

Organic pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers
These continue to be the most traditional way to reduce environmental footprints. They are also a highly effective way to produce a healthy, abundant, beautiful garden that’s not only safe for the Earth, but for people, too.

Beyond compost, natural products such as blood meal, bone meal, cottonseed meal, fish emulsion, greensand and rock phosphate are common ways to add organic nutrients to your garden. 

Responding to more environmentally responsible options, Scotts Miracle-Gro recently introduced a line of products called Organic Choice, and long-time player the Espoma Company has been offering natural and organic fertilizer solutions since 1929. 

Pest control
Natural products are available to fight off pests and diseases and kill weeds, too.

Traditional synthetic pesticides (a.k.a insecticides) are very effective.  In fact, that is the problem: Only about 3% of all bugs found in our gardens are actually even considered pests.  The others are either neutral or beneficial. Most pesticides are non-selective. meaning they will kill any bug. That includes not just the pests but the good bugs too, such as lady beetles and honey bees. 

A more responsible approach is to select products that are either very specific to the particular pest you are trying to control and/or ones that break down very quickly when exposed to the elements.

One synthetic pest control that does a good job at selectivity is an active ingredient called imidacloprid. What makes this product an acceptable compromise in the eco-friendly arena is that it is applied as a drench to the soil, not to the surface area of the plant.  As a drench the chemical is taken into the vascular system of the plant and is contained within the plant tissue, making it a non-threat to non-pests.  The only way for this product to reach a pest is when an insect actually chews plant tissue or ingests plant fluid.

These products are effective for up to one year, so an annual application is all that is needed to control most sucking or chewing pests. Bayer Advanced owns the patent on imidacloprid so look for that brand if seeking this product.

Examples of biological pest controls that target specific pests (selective) include:

B.t (Bacillus Thuringiensis): effective on many larval pests such as worms and caterpillars and mosquito larvae

Milky Spore (Bacillus popillae): A bacterial that resides in the soil and is fatal to the white grubs that become Japanese beetles.

Spinosad (spinosyn A and spinosyn D): This is a new chemical class of insecticides that are registered by the EPA to control a variety of insects. Spinosad must be ingested by the insect; therefore it has little effect on sucking insects and non-target predatory insects.

One of the greatest advantages to using organic products for insect control is not that they are less lethal or more selective.  Rather, it’s the fact that natural products typically break down very quickly when exposed to ultraviolet light, making the residual impact minimal.  However, because these products have little long-term effect, they must make contact with the pest in order to be most effective. 

Active ingredients in natural insect controls often include Neem oil, pyrethrins, canola oil, mild soaps and highly refined oils among others.

Disease control
Just as certain man-made insecticides have been engineered to be long-lasting and highly effective (not eco-friendly), disease control products can also leave a heavy footprint on the environment. 

Kinder, gentler products found to be just as effective for fighting plant disease include solutions made with milk, baking soda and some cooking oils. One of the newest and most effective products on the scene is called GreenCure.  The active ingredient is Potassium Bicarbonate, the same stuff that goes into food processing.  It’s been found to be effective at treating and curing over 25 plant diseases including black spot and powdery mildew and it’s a safe, organic product. 

Weed control
Herbicides are the generic term applied to chemicals that kill vegetation, either selectively, such as broad-leaf weeds only, or non-selectively, as in everything growing!

Although there are many herbicide products available to the homeowner, few are natural or considered eco-friendly. For serious vegetative control naturally, acetic acid (vinegar) at 20% concentration is an effective, non-selective control. Common household vinegar (5% concentration) lacks the necessary punch.

Other products used for this purpose include clove and citric oils to burn out the grass and weeds. Keep in mind these products will kill all vegetation, so use with caution around plants you are trying to keep.

Another non-chemical approach to weed control includes portable propane-fueled flame devices. These products are effective and easy to use — that is, if you don’t mind a jet-like flame by your toes! 

When using a flame device, it is not necessary to burn the offending plants to a blackened state. The damage is done when the heat of the flame destroys the cells within the plant. A few seconds per plant is usually all it takes. 

One of the more interesting discoveries has been the use of corn gluten as an organic pre-emergent herbicide. Today, corn gluten is the only organic, readily available consumer product used for pre-emergent weed control. A bonus to using corn gluten is that it has a 10% nitrogen component so natural nutrients are applied as well.

Of course the most eco-friendly option to controlling weeds is to promote the growth of a healthy lawn and garden.  A lush lawn or full beds will go a long way to out-competing fledgling weeds.

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