Storms, fires, floods, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions keep
reminding us that we are not the boss.

To winterize or not to winterize lawn

"Winterize your lawn", the big sign outside the garden store commanded.
I've
fed it, watered it, mowed it, raked it and watched a lot of it die away.
Now
I'm supposed to winterize it? I hope it's too late. Grass lawns have to be
the stupidest thing we've come up with outside of a thong swimsuits! We
constantly battle dandelions, Queen's lace, thistle, violets, chicory and
clover that thrive naturally, so we can grow grass that must be nursed
through an annual four-step chemical dependency.

Imagine the conversation The Creator might have with St. Francis about this:

"Frank you know all about gardens and nature. What in the world is going on
down there in the Midwest? What happened to the dandelions, violets,
thistle
and stuff I started eons ago? I had a perfect, no-maintenance garden plan.
Those plants grow in any type of soil, withstand drought and multiply with
abandon. The nectar from the long-lasting blossoms attracted butterflies,
honeybees and flocks of songbirds. I expected to see a vast garden of
colors
by now. But all I see are these green rectangles."

" It's the tribes that settled there, Lord. The Suburbanites.

They started calling your flowers "weeds" and went to great extent to kill
them and replace them with grass".

" Grass? But its so boring. Its not colorful. It doesn't attract
butterflies, birds and bees, only grubs and sod worms. Its' temperamental
with temperatures. Do these Suburbanites really want all that green grass
growing there?

"Apparently so, Lord, They go to great pains to grow it and keep it green.
They begin each spring by fertilizing grass and poising any other plant that
crops up in the lawn".

"The spring rains and cool weather probably make grass grow really fast.
That must make the Suburbanites happy".

"Not exactly, Lord. As soon as it grows a little, they cut it-sometimes
twice a week".

"They cut it? Do they then bale it like hay?"

" Not exactly, Lord. Most of them rake it up and put it in bags."

" They bag it? Why? Is it a cash crop? Do they sell it?"



"No, sir. Just the opposite. They pay to throw it away".

"Now let me get this straight. They fertilize grass so it will grow. And
when it does grow, they cut it off and pay to throw it away?"

"Yes, sir."

"These Suburbanites must be relieved in the summer when we cut back on the
rain and turn up the heat. That surely slows the growth and saves them a
lot
of work."

"You aren't going to believe this Lord. When the grass stops growing so
fast, they drag out hoses and pay more money to water it so they can
continue to mow it and pay to get rid of it."

"What nonsense! At least they kept some of the trees. That was a sheer
stroke of genius, if I do say so myself. The trees grow leaves in the
spring to provide beauty and shade in the summer . In the autumn they fall
to the ground and form a
natural blanket to keep moisture in the soil and protect the trees and
bushes. Plus, as they
rot, the leaves form compost to enhance the soil. It's a natural circle of
life."

"You better sit down, Lord. The suburbanites have drawn a new circle. As
soon as the leaves fall, they rake them into great piles and have them
hauled away."

"No! What do they do to protect the shrub and the tree roots in the winter
and keep the soil moist and loose?"

"After throwing away your leaves, they go out and buy something they call
mulch. They haul it home and spread it around in the place of leaves."

"and where do they get this mulch?"

" They cut down trees and grind them up."

"Enough! I don't want to think about this anymore. Saint Catherine, you're
in charge of the arts. What movie have you scheduled for us tonight?"

"Dumb and Dumber, Lord. It's a real stupid movie about.

"Never mind I think I just heard the whole story."

On 4/3/05 5:26 PM, in article , "John A.
Keslick, Jr." wrote:

Storms, fires, floods, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions keep
reminding us that we are not the boss.

To winterize or not to winterize lawn

"Winterize your lawn", the big sign outside the garden store commanded.
I've
fed it, watered it, mowed it, raked it and watched a lot of it die away.
Now
I'm supposed to winterize it? I hope it's too late. Grass lawns have to be
the stupidest thing we've come up with outside of a thong swimsuits! We
constantly battle dandelions, Queen's lace, thistle, violets, chicory and
clover that thrive naturally, so we can grow grass that must be nursed
through an annual four-step chemical dependency.

Imagine the conversation The Creator might have with St. Francis about this:

"Frank you know all about gardens and nature. What in the world is going on
down there in the Midwest? What happened to the dandelions, violets,
thistle
and stuff I started eons ago? I had a perfect, no-maintenance garden plan.
Those plants grow in any type of soil, withstand drought and multiply with
abandon. The nectar from the long-lasting blossoms attracted butterflies,
honeybees and flocks of songbirds. I expected to see a vast garden of
colors
by now. But all I see are these green rectangles."

" It's the tribes that settled there, Lord. The Suburbanites.

They started calling your flowers "weeds" and went to great extent to kill
them and replace them with grass".

" Grass? But its so boring. Its not colorful. It doesn't attract
butterflies, birds and bees, only grubs and sod worms. Its' temperamental
with temperatures. Do these Suburbanites really want all that green grass
growing there?

"Apparently so, Lord, They go to great pains to grow it and keep it green.
They begin each spring by fertilizing grass and poising any other plant that
crops up in the lawn".

"The spring rains and cool weather probably make grass grow really fast.
That must make the Suburbanites happy".

"Not exactly, Lord. As soon as it grows a little, they cut it-sometimes
twice a week".

"They cut it? Do they then bale it like hay?"

" Not exactly, Lord. Most of them rake it up and put it in bags."

" They bag it? Why? Is it a cash crop? Do they sell it?"



"No, sir. Just the opposite. They pay to throw it away".

"Now let me get this straight. They fertilize grass so it will grow. And
when it does grow, they cut it off and pay to throw it away?"

"Yes, sir."

"These Suburbanites must be relieved in the summer when we cut back on the
rain and turn up the heat. That surely slows the growth and saves them a
lot
of work."

"You aren't going to believe this Lord. When the grass stops growing so
fast, they drag out hoses and pay more money to water it so they can
continue to mow it and pay to get rid of it."

"What nonsense! At least they kept some of the trees. That was a sheer
stroke of genius, if I do say so myself. The trees grow leaves in the
spring to provide beauty and shade in the summer . In the autumn they fall
to the ground and form a
natural blanket to keep moisture in the soil and protect the trees and
bushes. Plus, as they
rot, the leaves form compost to enhance the soil. It's a natural circle of
life."

"You better sit down, Lord. The suburbanites have drawn a new circle. As
soon as the leaves fall, they rake them into great piles and have them
hauled away."

"No! What do they do to protect the shrub and the tree roots in the winter
and keep the soil moist and loose?"

"After throwing away your leaves, they go out and buy something they call
mulch. They haul it home and spread it around in the place of leaves."

"and where do they get this mulch?"

" They cut down trees and grind them up."

"Enough! I don't want to think about this anymore. Saint Catherine, you're
in charge of the arts. What movie have you scheduled for us tonight?"

"Dumb and Dumber, Lord. It's a real stupid movie about.

"Never mind I think I just heard the whole story."



It took me awhile to change my thinking about stuff as described by the
above but I succeeded. I now rake the leaves around the trees and let the
worms suck them into the ground. I have found that by covering the leaves
with a little dirt helps...In the fall I collect the bags of leaves that are
put out by my many neighbours. If the leaves are dry I will run my lawn
mower over them to help in the break down process. (Next year I will ask
them to do it). I then put them in a large bin adding fresh chicken manure
and some soil to help things along.
My grass clippings go into a compost bin and I add fresh dry chicken
manure after each dumping of grass. My neighbours gladly contribute their
grass clippings also. I don't accept any that have used chemical sprays on
them. I will spread a little soil into the mix to help keep it loose. It
heats up and breaks down into amazing stuff.
I compost all my kitchen scraps and collect kitchen waste from some
local restaurants. This will include coffee grounds with filters, carrot
peels, lettuce, onions, potato peels, etc. etc. anything but not bones, fat
or bread. The restaurant owners are only too happy to oblige. In view of the
large amount of restaurant kitchen waste that is generated I barely make a
dent into that volume but I do what I can do and the taste and size of my
vegetables attest to the value of doing it.
As for the composted leaves? I use them under my trees (cedar) to
provide a natural leaf mould for my Trilliums. The Trilliums have grown to
an amazing height and the flowers last year lasted and lasted! Something is
working for them.
Not everyone will want to do what I do, but if you can relate to any of
the above then start. Start by composting your own kitchen vegetables and
enjoy the results.
I haven't purchased any synthetic (chemical) fertilizers for a long
time. I don't need them and in fact they are counter productive...they kill
the worms and certainly don't feed them. I just feed my worms with compost
and they do all the work.
Sorry about the long post but there are times when a story is a long
one.
Gary

----- Original Message -----
From: "Compost Nut"
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
Sent: Monday, April 04, 2005 2:09 AM
Subject: Lawn Care - please help=compost eh!


On 4/3/05 5:26 PM, in article , "John A.
Keslick, Jr." wrote:

Storms, fires, floods, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions keep
reminding us that we are not the boss.

To winterize or not to winterize lawn

"Winterize your lawn", the big sign outside the garden store commanded.
I've
fed it, watered it, mowed it, raked it and watched a lot of it die away.
Now
I'm supposed to winterize it? I hope it's too late. Grass lawns have
to be
the stupidest thing we've come up with outside of a thong swimsuits! We
constantly battle dandelions, Queen's lace, thistle, violets, chicory
and
clover that thrive naturally, so we can grow grass that must be nursed
through an annual four-step chemical dependency.

Imagine the conversation The Creator might have with St. Francis about
this:

"Frank you know all about gardens and nature. What in the world is going
on
down there in the Midwest? What happened to the dandelions, violets,
thistle
and stuff I started eons ago? I had a perfect, no-maintenance garden
plan.
Those plants grow in any type of soil, withstand drought and multiply
with
abandon. The nectar from the long-lasting blossoms attracted
butterflies,
honeybees and flocks of songbirds. I expected to see a vast garden of
colors
by now. But all I see are these green rectangles."

" It's the tribes that settled there, Lord. The Suburbanites.

They started calling your flowers "weeds" and went to great extent to
kill
them and replace them with grass".

" Grass? But its so boring. Its not colorful. It doesn't attract
butterflies, birds and bees, only grubs and sod worms. Its'
temperamental
with temperatures. Do these Suburbanites really want all that green
grass
growing there?

"Apparently so, Lord, They go to great pains to grow it and keep it
green.
They begin each spring by fertilizing grass and poising any other plant
that
crops up in the lawn".

"The spring rains and cool weather probably make grass grow really fast.
That must make the Suburbanites happy".

"Not exactly, Lord. As soon as it grows a little, they cut it-sometimes
twice a week".

"They cut it? Do they then bale it like hay?"

" Not exactly, Lord. Most of them rake it up and put it in bags."

" They bag it? Why? Is it a cash crop? Do they sell it?"



"No, sir. Just the opposite. They pay to throw it away".

"Now let me get this straight. They fertilize grass so it will grow.
And
when it does grow, they cut it off and pay to throw it away?"

"Yes, sir."

"These Suburbanites must be relieved in the summer when we cut back on
the
rain and turn up the heat. That surely slows the growth and saves them
a
lot
of work."

"You aren't going to believe this Lord. When the grass stops growing so
fast, they drag out hoses and pay more money to water it so they can
continue to mow it and pay to get rid of it."

"What nonsense! At least they kept some of the trees. That was a sheer
stroke of genius, if I do say so myself. The trees grow leaves in the
spring to provide beauty and shade in the summer . In the autumn they
fall
to the ground and form a
natural blanket to keep moisture in the soil and protect the trees and
bushes. Plus, as they
rot, the leaves form compost to enhance the soil. It's a natural circle
of
life."

"You better sit down, Lord. The suburbanites have drawn a new circle.
As
soon as the leaves fall, they rake them into great piles and have them
hauled away."

"No! What do they do to protect the shrub and the tree roots in the
winter
and keep the soil moist and loose?"

"After throwing away your leaves, they go out and buy something they
call
mulch. They haul it home and spread it around in the place of leaves."

"and where do they get this mulch?"

" They cut down trees and grind them up."

"Enough! I don't want to think about this anymore. Saint Catherine,
you're
in charge of the arts. What movie have you scheduled for us tonight?"

"Dumb and Dumber, Lord. It's a real stupid movie about.

"Never mind I think I just heard the whole story."



It took me awhile to change my thinking about stuff as described by
the
above but I succeeded. I now rake the leaves around the trees and let the
worms suck them into the ground. I have found that by covering the leaves
with a little dirt helps...

Rather than dirt whick would reduce oxygen needed by the tree for
respiration you could place "COMPOSTED" wood chips of top. That would be
better if you follow some simple instructions.
Look up "Proper Mulching" http://www.chesco.com/~treeman/sub3.html

You do have a good idead placing the leaves back but I would rather support
composted wood chips on top rather than dirt. Maybne you mean soil but its
still the same. Please see the above link for specific important notes on
PROPER Mulching. Any words you have trouble with may be in the dictionary
at www.treedictionary.com





In the fall I collect the bags of leaves that are
put out by my many neighbours. If the leaves are dry I will run my lawn
mower over them to help in the break down process. (Next year I will ask
them to do it).

OK

I then put them in a large bin adding fresh chicken manure
and some soil to help things along.
I would compost the chicken manure with you compost pile of composting wood
chips.
But please note anything fresh is not good. It should be composted first.
Adding soil reduces oxygen which is need for the trees respiration.




My grass clippings go into a compost bin and I add fresh dry chicken
manure after each dumping of grass. My neighbours gladly contribute their
grass clippings also. I don't accept any that have used chemical sprays on
them. I will spread a little soil into the mix to help keep it loose. It
heats up and breaks down into amazing stuff.
I compost all my kitchen scraps and collect kitchen waste from some
local restaurants. This will include coffee grounds with filters, carrot
peels, lettuce, onions, potato peels, etc. etc. anything but not bones,
fat
or bread. The restaurant owners are only too happy to oblige. In view of
the
large amount of restaurant kitchen waste that is generated I barely make a
dent into that volume but I do what I can do and the taste and size of my
vegetables attest to the value of doing it.
As for the composted leaves? I use them under my trees (cedar) to
provide a natural leaf mould for my Trilliums. The Trilliums have grown to
an amazing height and the flowers last year lasted and lasted! Something
is
working for them.
Not everyone will want to do what I do, but if you can relate to any
of
the above then start. Start by composting your own kitchen vegetables and
enjoy the results.
I haven't purchased any synthetic (chemical) fertilizers for a long
time. I don't need them and in fact they are counter productive...they
kill
the worms and certainly don't feed them. I just feed my worms with compost
and they do all the work.
Sorry about the long post but there are times when a story is a long
one.
Gary

Thanks for sharing

Sincerely,

John A. Keslick, Jr.
http://www.chesco.com/~treeman
Beware of so-called TREE EXPERTS who do not understand TREE BIOLOGY!
www.treedictionary.com
Storms, fires, floods, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions keep reminding us
that we are not the boss.
Some people will buy products they do not understand and not buy books that
will give them understanding.

On 4/4/05 3:52 AM, in article , "John A.
Keslick, Jr." wrote:
very big snip
I now rake the leaves around the trees and let the
worms suck them into the ground. I have found that by covering the leaves
with a little dirt helps...

Rather than dirt which would reduce oxygen needed by the tree for
respiration you could place "COMPOSTED" wood chips on top. That would be
better if you follow some simple instructions.
Look up "Proper Mulching" http://www.chesco.com/~treeman/sub3.html

You do have a good idea placing the leaves back but I would rather support
composted wood chips on top rather than dirt. Maybe you mean soil but its
still the same. Please see the above link for specific important notes on
PROPER Mulching. Any words you have trouble with may be in the dictionary
at www.treedictionary.com
Hello John,
You could be right and probably are to some degree but my focus is not
on providing a mulch. What I am doing (or trying to do) is feed the worms
that are in the ground already. The soil I add on top of the leaves is not
put on so thickly that it will cut off the oxygen. (I put about a quarter of
an inch of soil on top).
The soil, put on top of the leaves, is to allow the worms to eat 'in
comfort and safety'. Having worms in the ground around the tree with plenty
of food for them to eat will provide a natural oxygenation of the soil
because of their movement through it. This particular tree has a flower bed
around it extending out 8 to 10 feet or so. The annual flowers have already
grown through the leaves and the soil I put on top.
This is an experiment that I started two or three years years ago when I
decided not to remove the leaves but instead to leave them on the ground
around the tree. I have seen where worms have actually pulled the leaves
into their burrows and eat them from under the ground. A little pile of
leaves 'pointing' upwards with worm casts around is the tell tale sign.
Gary

Compost Nut wrote:
On 4/4/05 3:52 AM, in article ,
"John A. Keslick, Jr." wrote:
very big snip
I now rake the leaves around the trees and let the
worms suck them into the ground. I have found that by covering
the leaves with a little dirt helps...

Rather than dirt which would reduce oxygen needed by the tree for
respiration you could place "COMPOSTED" wood chips on top. That
would be better if you follow some simple instructions.
Look up "Proper Mulching" http://www.chesco.com/~treeman/sub3.html

You do have a good idea placing the leaves back but I would rather
support composted wood chips on top rather than dirt. Maybe you
mean soil but its still the same. Please see the above link for
specific important notes on PROPER Mulching. Any words you have
trouble with may be in the dictionary at www.treedictionary.com
Hello John,
You could be right and probably are to some degree but my focus
is not on providing a mulch. What I am doing (or trying to do) is
feed the worms that are in the ground already. The soil I add on
top of the leaves is not put on so thickly that it will cut off the
oxygen. (I put about a quarter of an inch of soil on top).
The soil, put on top of the leaves, is to allow the worms to eat
'in comfort and safety'. Having worms in the ground around the tree
with plenty of food for them to eat will provide a natural
oxygenation of the soil because of their movement through it. This
particular tree has a flower bed around it extending out 8 to 10
feet or so. The annual flowers have already grown through the
leaves and the soil I put on top. This is an experiment that I
started two or three years years ago when I decided not to remove
the leaves but instead to leave them on the ground around the tree.
I have seen where worms have actually pulled the leaves into their
burrows and eat them from under the ground. A little pile of leaves
'pointing' upwards with worm casts around is the tell tale sign.
Gary

Worms do not pull leaves into their holes.

--

Travis in Shoreline (just North of Seattle) Washington
USDA Zone 8b
Sunset Zone 5

On 4/5/05 10:23 AM, in article sQz4e.25751$k66.2200@trnddc03, "Travis"
wrote:
snip
I have seen where worms have actually pulled the leaves into their
burrows and eat them from under the ground. A little pile of leaves
'pointing' upwards with worm casts around is the tell tale sign.
Gary

Worms do not pull leaves into their holes.
Travis, can you expand on that? What do you mean? You have never seen it? I
guess it would depend upon what kind of trees you have and whether you have
dew worms around. They do like some tree leaves more than others...
Gary

"Travis" expounded:

Worms do not pull leaves into their holes.

As a matter of fact yes, they do. they 'eat' them into their burrows.
--
Ann, gardening in Zone 6a
South of Boston, Massachusetts
e-mail address is not checked
******************************