Introduction to Organic Lawns and Yards, Plus a Checklist for an Eco-Friendly Property

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Here are clickable links to the online resources listed in the booklet:

Organic Landscaping 

Northeast Organic Farming Association Organic Land Care Program

www.organiclandcare.net 

Northeast Organic Farming Association Organic Land Care Program, 

NOFA Standards for Organic Land Care, Practices for the 

Design and Maintenance of Ecological Landscapes, 5th Edition, 2011 

www.organiclandcare.net/accreditation/standards 

Garden Rant, website of current resources and discussions of ecominded gardening enthusiasts 

www.gardenrant.com 

National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service, clearinghouse for 

information on organic techniques 

http://attra.ncat.org 

Working with Ecosystems 

US. EPA ecosystem educational page 

www.epa.gov/highschool/ecosystems.htm 

US. EPA, native plants FAQs 

www.epa.gov/greenacres/faq.html 

New England Wildflower Society 

www.newenglandwild.org 

The Center for Biodiversity and Conservation 

http://cbc.amnh.org 

National Park Service, plants 

www.nps.gov/plants 

University of Rhode Island, choosing sustainable plants for the landscape 

www.pse.uri.edu/maynard_susplants/html_spl2000/index.htm 

Cornell University, community forestry 

www.hort.cornell.edu/commfor/resources/index.html 

Water 

U. S. Geological Survey, natural water cycles 

http://pubs.usgs.gov/circ/circ1139/htdocs/natural_processes_of_ground.htm 

Maryland Cooperative Extension, conserving water in the landscape 

www.dnr.state.md.us/ed/xcape.pdf 

EPA, our waters 

http://water.epa.gov/type 

EPA, learn about your local watershed 

http://cfpub.epa.gov/surf/locate/index.cfm 

Energy Conservation 

US Department of Energy, conserving energy in landscaping 

www.energysavers.gov/your_home/landscaping/index.cfm 

Secrets in the Soil 

U.S. Department of Agriculture, soil biology primer 

http://soils.usda.gov/sqi/concepts/soil_biology/soil_food_web.html 

U.S. Department of Agriculture, soil quality 

http://soils.usda.gov/sqi/index.html 

Virginia Cooperative Extension,planting shrubs 

http://pubs.ext.vt.edu/426/426-701/426-701.html 

Virginia Cooperative Extension, planting trees 

http://pubs.ext.vt.edu/426/426-702/426-702.html 

University of Massachusetts Extension, factsheets on planting and plant 

maintenance 

www.umassgreeninfo.org/fact_sheets/plantculture.html

Soil Testing Labs 

Compost, Fertilizers,  Mulches and other Soil Amendments 

Harvard University, organic landscaping with compost tea 

www.uos.harvard.edu/fmo/landscape/organiclandscaping 

Maryland Cooperative Extension, basic principles of soil fertility, plant 

nutrients 

www.growingforyou.com/images/SoilFertility.pdf 

Maryland Cooperative Extension, basic principles of soil fertility, soil 

properties 

http://extension.umd.edu/publications/PDFs/FS640.pdf 

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, compost 

www.epa.gov/osw/conserve/rrr/composting/ 

Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, composting 

information for homeowners 

www.mass.gov/dep/recycle/reduce/composti.htm 

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, global nitrogen cycle 

www.epa.gov/owow/watershed/wacademy/acad2000/nitroabstr.html 

Sustainable Phosphorus Futures, peak phosphorus report 

http://phosphorusfutures.net/peak-phosphorus 

Virginia Cooperative Extension, mulching 

http://pubs.ext.vt.edu/426/426-724/426-724.html 

Cornell University, toxic mulch 

www.gardening.cornell.edu/factsheets/mulch/toxicmulch.html 

Lawns 

Brooklyn Botanical Gardens, native grasses in lawns 

www.bbg.org/gardening/article/planting_a_native_grass_lawn/ 

www.bbg.org/gardening/article/sedge_lawns/ 

www.bbg.org/gardening/article/low_slow_fescues/ 

University of Massachusetts Extension, selecting grasses, soil management, 

cultural practices for lawn 

www.umassturf.org/publications/online_pubs/lawn_landscape_bmp.pdf 

New link:

http://extension.umass.edu/turf/sites/turf/files/pdf/lawn_landscape_bmp.pdf

Versicolor.ca, establishing white clover in lawns 

http://versicolor.ca/lawns/docs/clover.html 

Cornell University, lawn care without pesticides information bulletin 

http://nysipm.cornell.edu/publications/lawn_care/files/Lawn_Care_without_Pesticides.pdf 

Lawn Alternatives, website with current resources and discussions on eco-friendly lawns and yards 

www.lawnreform.org 

Pest Control 

Organic Pesticides 

Organic Materials Research Institute, lists of approved organic materials 

www.omri.org 

Baystate Organic Certifiers, list of Northeast U.S., local, approved or- 

ganic materials 

www.baystateorganic.org 

University of Massachusetts Extension, organic methods used in agriculture 

www.extension.org/organic%20production 

Cornell University, resources for organic pest and disease management 

http://web.pppmb.cals.cornell.edu/resourceguide

Plant and Insect Identification 

University of Massachusetts Extension, identifying weeds 

www.umassgreeninfo.org/fact_sheets/weed_herbarium/common_ 

name_list.htm 

University of Massachusetts Extension, identifying weeds, insects and 

diseases 

http://www.umassgreeninfo.org/fact_sheets/index.html

Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, plants and pests lists 

www.ct.gov/caes/cwp/view.asp?a=2823&q=377514 

Invasive Plants and Insects 

Regional and National Pest Alerts U.S. Department of Agriculture 

www.csrees.usda.gov/nea/pest/in_focus/ipm_if_pestalert.html 

Invasive Plant Atlas of New England 

http://nbii-nin.ciesin.columbia.edu/ipane/ipanespecies/current_inv.htm 

Invasive Aquatic Plants 

www.mass.gov/dcr/watersupply/lakepond/publications.htm#factsheets 

Eastern Forest Environmental Threat Assessment Center 

http://threatsummary.forestthreats.org/index.html 

Grubs 

Ohio State University Extension, identifying grubs 

http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/2000/2510.html 

Ohio State University, Insect Parasitic Nematodes, list of suppliers 

www.oardc.ohio-state.edu/nematodes/nematode_suppliers.htm 

Woolly Adelgids 

University of Massachusetts Extension, factsheets 

www.umassgreeninfo.org/fact_sheets/piercing_sucking/hwa_faq. 

pdf 

www.umassgreeninfo.org/fact_sheets/piercing_sucking/hem 

lock_woolly_adelgid.html 

Winter Moths 

Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources, fact sheet 

www.massnrc.org/pests/pestFAQsheets/winter%20moth.html 

University of Massachusett Extension, fact sheet 

www.umassgreeninfo.org/fact_sheets/defoliators/wm_id_man.html 

Ticks 

Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, tick handbook 

www.ct.gov/caes/lib/caes/documents/publications/bulletins/b1010.pdf 

Mosquitoes 

American Academy of Pediatrics, DEET alternative mosquito repellents 

www.aap.org/family/wnv-jun05.htm Link no longer available. 

Center for Disease Control on repellents:

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/RepellentUpdates.htm

University of Florida Extension, efficacy and duration of mosquito repellents 

http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/in419 

Other Pests 

Northwest Center for Alternatives to Pesticides, online resources for pest 

management 

www.pesticide.org/solutions/home-and-garden-toolbox