The Organic Lawn Care Manual (Hardcover)

~ Paul Tukey (Author)
Key Phrases: organic lawn care, natural lawn care program, lawn care system, Canada Soil, United States, North America (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

For homeowners tired of their chemical-saturated lawns, this book provides step-by-step guidance for "get[ting] your lawn off drugs." Tukey, a lifelong lawn lover, started mowing as a teenager, and as the owner of a successful lawn care company, he was well entrenched in the "weed 'n' feed" method prevalent since the 1940s: "With one pass of a lawn spreader, we could feed the grass" (with chemical fertilizers), "kill the weeds" (with pesticides) "and still have time for a round of golf at the course we so envied"). When, after years on the job, he began to experience nosebleeds and shortness of breath, his doctor ordered him to stop using lawn chemicals, and that was the beginning of his commitment to organic lawn care. His lively and passionate instruction—on soil structure and how to improve it; grass varieties; "starting a lawn from scratch"; natural lawn foods; "watering dews and don'ts"; and how to deal with moles, voles, grubs and bugs—are interspersed with inspirational tales of natural-lawn activists. With an appendix on lawn games, from croquet to badminton, this book will delight lawn fanatics and provide sound advice for those who simply want to maintain their yard. (Feb.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

From Booklist

Tukey, the editor and publisher of People, Places & Plants magazine, offers gardeners what he calls "how-to methods for safe, effective lawn care" and avoiding the use of chemicals. He explains how to evaluate lawn-care needs, how grass grows (what he labels grass anatomy), how to create healthy soil, and how to select grass that is drought tolerant and disease and pest resistant. There are chapters on starting a lawn from scratch or refurbishing an existing lawn, making the transition from synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, watering, weeding, dealing with pests and diseases, and mowing and maintenance. Included is a helpful glossary, a list of ground covers, and many color photographs. George Cohen
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Storey Publishing, LLC; 1 edition (January 30, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1580176550
• ISBN-13: 978-1580176552
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 8.6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #139,210 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thorough, balanced (and scary), February 19, 2007

By	A. Dolan (Malden, MA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Organic Lawn Care Manual (Paperback)

This is the first organic gardening book I've purchased. And I literally read it the same way I read fiction - cover to cover. I found Paul's narrative style, with family pictures and hardcore science simply fun to read. While many of the statistics are scary (e.g., more gasoline is spilled refilling lawn and garden equipment than was spilled from the Exxon Valdez!) Paul avoids being preachy. The book follows a logical sequence with chapters focused on specific steps -e.g. evaluating what you have, pros and cons of different transitions, watering, weeds, pests, and even games to play on nice grass! He provides plenty of warnings of how initially your lawn may not look as good, but the end result is worth it. Although Paul's base is in Maine, he seemed to cover the country pretty well. As a result of reading this book, I plan to make the transition this year.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Anyone can create a beautiful, healthy low-input lawn, May 15, 2007

By	Mark H. Follansbee (Scarborough, ME United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Organic Lawn Care Manual (Paperback)

Paul describes in plain English how to break the synthetic chemical addition for our lawns and gardens. In the book, Paul explains how organic methods can be used to work with nature (rather than against it) to create a beautiful, healthy low-input lawn. The book is clearly organized and can be used as a how-to manual for people who are new to organic methods or an excellent resource for experienced readers who want to try other apporaches. Paul's book also has some fantastic photos of brewing up some compost tea!

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Decent, but light on real information, June 8, 2008

By	riotbrrd "riotbrrd" (Los Gatos, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Organic Lawn Care Manual (Paperback)

This book is like too many "green" or "organic" books lately. It spends as much time arguing for its existence (i.e. why you should manage your lawn organically) as it does providing practical information for how to do it successfully. OK, I bought the book already -- you don't need to convince me!

It was frustrating that, when I needed a solution to a real problem, all the book told me was: if you plant your lawn the way we've told you, you won't have this problem. Not much help!

On the plus side, I did learn about some good techniques like dethatching.