Atherton Ranch Gardening Club

Never use chemical fertilizers on lawns. Well it is possible to avoid these patches if you use a proper spreader but why bother? There are plenty of natural fertilizers that work just as well if not better and will not cause this unsightly if temporary problem. Natural also means renewable so better for the environment. Say no to chemical fertilizers.

Never use chemical fertilizers on lawns. Well it is possible to avoid these patches if you use a proper spreader but why bother? There are plenty of natural fertilizers that work just as well if not better and will not cause this unsightly if temporary problem. Natural also means renewable so better for the environment. Say no to chemical fertilizers.

Fire Prevention at Home Or What can YOU do? The first five feet from the walls of your house is where to start first. Walk around your house. Take some photos because we generally do not see our own stuff. Ask yourself is there anything I can do to harden my house from flying embers. Imagine the sky filled with millions of tiny embers and then look at what they might land on. Are there some things that a single ember could ignite that could then burn and possibly dest...roy your home? If you can, move these items away from the 5 foot protective zone. Examples; Woody plants like tall shrubs and woody hedges. Hedges planted up against house walls (a 1970s landscaping design favorite) need to be removed. Replace with fire resistant species. Flammable mulch and even bark can be replaced with non inflammable material such as stones. Remove any wood piled up for storage such as leaning against your house walls or under decking. Brooms are very susceptible to embers. Taking your time to make some changes now will harden your home against fire and give you the satisfaction of knowing you did what you could to protect your home and your loved ones. Photos from a recent HOA fire seminar. See more

Bartlett Tree Service are one week into a two week thinning and clearing operation for fire safety on Atherton Knoll Open Space just behind the Ranch Drive Townhouses. Better to see this getting done now than see the fire engine later. Our neighbors to the north have graciously allowed Bartlett’s to remove the dead trees and inflammable brush like Coyote bush through their parking lot. This work is long (decades) overdue and will add to Atherton Ranch’s fire preparedness. We will be addressing what individual homeowners can do for themselves in later posts.

How Not to Care for Your Lawn Here we see the classic mistake in early summer. Clearly the grass is cut way too short. The clippings are caught and taken away instead of mulching and returning the phosphorous back into the soil. It is not getting enough water and badly needs fertilizing. Easy to correct now before the mid summer sun stresses the grass to death. First apply a natural fertilizer. Increase regular watering and raise that mower right up to its highest level after taking off the catcher. It will be beautiful and green in a few weeks. Cut at this higher level once a week.

WHEN TO SPRINKLE? To minimize disease and pests in your lawn and garden and not encourage night time lawn destroyers like Skunks, Rats and Raccoons, change your sprinkler settings to water between 4:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. The very worst time is in the early to late evening when most of us have our timers set to water. Watering at night is just an invitation to these nocturnal creatures to come down from the hills and rip up your lawn looking for the grubs and worms stimulated by your late night watering. So do yourself a favor and water in the early morning and you will have a healthier and better looking lawn and garden with less damage to repair. Your neighbors will thank you.