The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #70286   Message #1202784
Posted By: Stilly River Sage
08-Jun-04 - 12:57 PM
Thread Name: BS: Summer 2004--Yard & Garden
Subject: RE: BS: Summer 2004--Yard & Garden
John from Elsie's band, that sounds like an extremely noxious and caustic approach to lawn care. I did a search and find ammonia sulphate recommended for golf courses, which sets off alarms for me--golf courses are notorious for being bad neighbors as far as chemical and water use. All you'll have is a monoculture of grass, but not another living thing. Some of these chemical fertilizers are what go into explosives and if they aren't cleaned carefully they can rust or corrode metal and stain concrete, etc. Storing extra bags of this stuff down in the garden shed can get you marked as a terrorist if you're not careful! Store it incorrectly or have a small explosion near it and you'll take out the neighborhood federal building.

Sharp sand is a builder's sand, and can be contaminated, since there isn't a chemcial purity standard it has to meet. It's used in mortar and such. A better one to choose to help loosen clay soil and at the same time help hold water in soils that tend to dry out too quickly is lava sand, one that is made of ground up lava. For iron, try greensand, and be careful not to use too much because like any product that delivers iron, it can burn.

Here's a good resource for organic gardening that won't leave your yard gasping for nutrients or pollinators, and won't endanger your health to apply it. Just give it a thought!

SRS