I second that comment. Same scenario happened to me as well Raymondo. Going organic starting this year alone and taking the advice from the pros on this forum has transformed my lawn tremendously. I have gotten a lot of compliments from neighbors and visitors. From Sacramento California to Staten Island New York, organics is the way to go.

>From Sacramento California to Staten Island New York, organics is the way to go.Hear hear! :)

-R

How about some photos! I too have been Organic for 6 years and my neighbors are starting to take notice. 5 years ago they were having a field day laughing at me when I told them about my plan. Yard looked rough for a year or 2 while transitioning and repairing the lawn after the previous owners had 20+ years of lawn maintenance services blasting the lawn with chemicals. Now that my soil is alive, I don't have to do much to competed with my neighbors. Mow High, Water Infrequent (but deep), mulch mow.. and when I have time I hit it with some compost tea, soybean meal, ringers, CGM in the spring.

It's too bad, this forum is dead now. Too many agenda's. Even your mention of soybean meal usage could result in a lecture. But the historical content provided is great.

It's too bad, this forum is dead now. Too many agenda's. Even your mention of soybean meal usage could result in a lecture. But the historical content provided is great.

Not at all dead :-)) Just seasonally quiet, as many other forums get to be at this time of year. There are still those participants that look in on a routine basis but if the questions aren't there, the discussions peter out.

And not at all sure what agendas you are referring to. The only agenda that matters is the benefits from a move away from chemically-focused lawn care to natural lawn care.

>and when I have time I hit it with some compost tea, soybean meal, ringers, CGM in the spring.SC77, what are ringers?

Gardengal, while I'm giving thanks (tis the season), I gotta say thanks for the many, many replies I've gotten from you on Gardenweb over the years. I appreciate you always taking the time to respond.

-Ray

Ray, you are most welcome!! I am always happy to share my knowledge and experiences..........that's what GW is all about :-)

And Ringer is a brand name for a line of organic lawn care products.

Here is a link that might be useful: Ringer products

I disagree. I used to check this forum on almost a daily basis, and over the past year or so, I only pop in 1x p/week just to see if anythings going on, and it's always quite. On the other hand the lawn forum is very active, and ironically with a lot of folks or are Organic or nearly organic. There was just a fight over there the other day about it, trying to kick people back over here if they were going to only focus on organic solutions!

I think the reason why they go there, is because here it seems you can never be "Organic enough". Like the poster, I too use Soybeal meal, and without fail, every time it's mentioned someone has to make it clear that it's not organic because 93% of Soybean is GMO... I am aware!

I do the best I can, but I'm not going to search out local farmers who have somehow shielded their 7% of soybean from the wind of Monsanto seed... geez... it's hard enough finding affordable sources of organic fertilizers, that I don't need to worry about GMO... I'm not eating it!

I have also been challenged that I work for Logan labs, the one time I recommended them. 99% of the time I tell people to go to their local labs for testing, but the OP specifically talked about Logan.

I had to call Jonathan Green to confirm their product Love Your Lawn and Mir-I-Cal were indeed organic after a regular refused to accept that they were and scared away the OP that was trying to go organic....

Or that overseeding is a conspiracy by the lawn care companies to trick us into buying more seed... Uhh... Non-spreading Fescue thins out every year, that is a fact. And a good organic lawn program includes annual overseeding...

These comments are not directed at you Gardengal...just observations of the behavior on this forum of the years

@SC77

Yes, a few people have said soy beans are not organic enough as they contained GMO's. I ignored those responses as I too am not eating them. I purchase the "Bob's Red Mill" organic soybeans on Amazon and they worked very well. I soaked them then blended them into a crumbly mess then dried them out to disperse. I only used 12 ounces (2 packs) to cover my entire lawn which isn't huge to begin with and got outstanding results. $20 for 24 ounces goes a long way for me. Here's the link if anyone is interested:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B004VLVQHK/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1415310814&sr=8-1&pi=SY200_QL40

I understand your comments, SC77. And I know a few of the posters about who you speak :-)) It is bit trite but a little knowledge is indeed a dangerous thing and it seems limited information and unfounded rationale seems to be more prevelant in discussions about organic gardening than elsewhere on these forums. This seems to be a subject about which everyone has an opinion, regardless of what foundation of knowledge (or lack thereof) has formed that opinion.

Sometimes it's better to turn a blind eye (or ear) to these uninformed but very vocal yahoos. And just know that what they are saying comes primarily from a position of ignorance. GMO's are not by definition non-organic. 'Organic gardening' only means growing plants without the input of manmade chemical fertilizers and pesticides. It has nothing to do with genetic modification. In fact a good number of crops can be grown organically simply because they have been genetically modified to be resistant to diseases or insects, therefore not requiring chemical pesticides.

Unfortunately, a few of the more knowledgable posters that used to post here regularly seem to have disappeared but that is the way of GW - participants come and go. I for one always welcome those who have an earnest and well-informed vewipoint and who do not resort to parrotting back platitudes they have picked up word of mouth or through cursory readings of junk science.

And you certainly fit that bill. So keep on posting here and advocating organic methods and products. And don't let the dummies drag you down!