Check out the web site for Gardens Alive! They have organic lawn care products that should be fine for your situation. We have used some of their products (not lawn care) with success.

Here is a link that might be useful: Gardens Alive!

The Organic Gardening forum FAQ has some good info on lawn fertilizing.

Here is a link that might be useful: Organic Gardening forum FAQ

No! All fertilizer adds excess nutrients to the soil, which washes down into the water table, causing excess nitrogen and algal bloom. It makes absolutely no difference whether the fertilizer is organic--it all breaks down to nitrogen in the end. I tmakes no difference who you buy it from--Gardens Alive is in business to make money, just like Scott's or whoever. Eliminate lawn by planting tree and shrub islands and perennial beds and connecting them. Fertilize lawn (and everything else) naturally, by using a mulching mower and letting the cuttings break down into the soil. Think about it--you use fertilizer, which promotes excessive growth, then you cut the lawn frequently, cart the clippings away, and use more fertilizer.

Lawn fertilzers are the cause of more environmental damage than agricultural chemicals. Do a google serach for "algal bloom" to learn more. Really. don't do it. We can all make a difference.

We don't use any fertilizer on our lawn but my husband swears by two things. He rents a dethatcher (sp?) in the fall and runs over the entire lawn with it. The dethatcher brings up all the dead grass and leaves the lawn looking somewhat bare looking but the next spring it looks great. He also uses a mulching mower set high as mentioned in another post.

He also does a couple of other things. He puts screened compost on bare areas and limes the lawn once a year (we live in New England where the soil is very acid).

I think our lawn looks great. He probably isn't as thrilled with it but agrees about not using any fertilizers or pesticides (we have two ponds as well).

Elaine, Gardens Alive sells mostly things like WOW (corn gluten), that prevent weeds from seeding while enriching the lawn, at least a little bit. Or lawn seed mixes that don't require much maintenance. Nematodes to reduce grub populations. That's about it actually. Their web site is quite helpful and informative, as well.

I completely agree that using a mulching mower is the way to go (actually, I don't do lawns) - but if someone wants a green sward, for whatever reason, pointing them to organic, nontoxic products to improve their lawn is better than a diatribe. Something like WOW might help her keep weeds from seeding after new grass establishes itself, for example. Or maybe she has grub problems. I don't know, and I don't assume. Notice I didn't say in my post that Gardens Alive! had fertilizers - I said lawn care products. There's a big difference.

Thanks to everyone for their input. I'm not concerned about bugs, grubs, etc. as I don't believe in using pesticides. I have many species of birds and animals (last count over 30 different species of birds)- nice birds too, not sparrows/starlings and I know they consume a lot of insects. The aeration and dethatching/lime regimen makes sense to me. If anyone else has any comments, I welcome. The comments so far have helped.

Cindy, just so you know, nematodes are not a chemical - they are a biological organism (kind of like a microscopic worm) that can kill grubs. Not a pesticide and fairly host specific. The WOW I mentioned is also totally natural - derived from corn gluten - it stops seeds from germinating, so if you have lots of weeds taking over the yard, this will stop their seeds from coming up while letting the grass spread vegetatively. A mulching mower is still your best asset, probably. Good luck.

Cindy: Interesting questions and comments. I don't have a picture of your area, nor am I am expert, but from your description I have a visual picture in my mind of your yard. I'm wondering if you limit the amount of lawn you have by planting some shrubs around the lawn area it may slow the runoff. Maybe the reason the lawn looks bad is because it is on the top of the hill and the rain continually strips it of nutrients. If you were to plant a border or two here and there, maybe the water would be slowed enough to keep some of the nutrients up at the top where you want them. It seems that whatever you put up there will likely end up in the ponds, so it may well be a losing battle.

Yup, I think we all agree that chemicals are not the answer.

It's not that hard to grow grass. Maybe your lawn was seeded with a variety that is not well-suited to the soil and climate. My approach would be to scout out other people's lawns in your area, and find out what kind of grass they are growing. Also, you might benefit from a soil test. It could be that your soil is too acidic for growing grass, given the close proximity to woodland.

Since all lawn grasses are alien, there's not much to choose from. I am gradually eliminating lawn by planting hedgerows, perennial beds, shrub island, etc. It will never all be gone, but the less there is,the better for the environment.

My solution for grubs in the lawn is to do nothing. If I notice that a spot has grub damage, the birds notice it too. They eat the grubs, and when they're no longer interested in that spot, I scatter some grass seed. It works every time.

I've replaced all of my lawn with ferns and mosses. No maintenance, except for a bit of water during summer dry spells.

IMHO--avoid the fertilizers! And yeay for you for being conscious of the little amphibs below! :) I would try to slow the run off too--follow the contour lines with beds or even small checkdams (bricks or stones stacked ~6 inches high will work) especially if you have any rills or gullies.

If you want to keep your lawn, have you considered replanting with native grasses or heathers? www.highcountrygardens.com has some great ideas for water-wise lawns and heather (You might get too much precip for some of these). I second (or third?) the dethatching and aerating ideas. And adding screened compost, while adding nutrients, might be a good way to go.

Have you done soil pH /macronutrient tests on your lawn soil? I'm a big dirt nerd, so I love doing these--you can get a test kit for $15 at Ace Hardware and find out if you have any nutrient deficiencies or pH issues...this way you will be better prepared for planting other plants or able to shop for products armed with more info about what your soil needs.

Good luck!

Good info DurtGrrl!

If you have and maintain a "buffer zone" between the pond and lawn you will be fine to judiciously fertilize the lawn. The buffer zone should be at least five feed wide full of taller perennials and shrubs to catch and utilize any excess nutrients from the lawn. The nutrients in an organic fertilizer will typically be less soluble and less likely to be carried by rainwater. Milorganite, compost, and the like would be better than mineral fertilizers but the key is the buffer zone. Don't sod up to the edge of a pond. Even the errant grass clippings will muck it up.

One point about lawns hasn't been mentioned. If you have some lawn (and some lawn is probably unavoidable), you can have thick, gorgeous, pristine lawn as in a Scott's Turfbuilder ad, OR you can just have a variety of grass and weeds that you walk across. The former certainly needs fertilizer, pesticide, and god knows what else, because it's totally unnatural. The latter merely involves cutting what grows and needs no chemicals. The resulting lawn will certainly not look like an ad, but it will serve the purpose of being something you can walk across. That's good enough for me.