About Products or About Plant Husbandry

[Smallaxe]

Originally Posted by Green_Will

Just a note here, I am not attempting to start an argument with anyone who uses chemicals on lawns. I use chemicals on lawns. I'm switching chemicals where and when I can so I can become an 'Organic LCO'. I am just submitting my opinion based on my education, research and understanding.

I agree,,, arguing and bashing is for the ignorant...

I think back to the time b4 lawn chemicals were 'all the rage', the greatest thing since sliced bread or The Jones's Lawn was picture perfect, constantly manicured, even in the 'blue collar' class of people...

2,4d was the broadleaf weed killer and people grew grass, IF they got caught up in the Turf Fever sweeping the small towns across the country, because we want to be part of the elite...

What followed was abuse, abuse and more abuse... then the abuse was made standardized, so that today lcos don't have a very large window in which to grow grass because the 'chemicals' are ever present and even the ferts are spread on frozen turf... Pre-Ms applied months before they're needed, "Just In Case!!!"...

Healthy turf comes ONLY from healthy soils...
again,,, not trying to argue either, but I believe that if that one little concept were explored in depth, a lot of the anti-chemical hyperbole simply becomes a non-issue, just as it was back when the majority of the population knew how to grow plants...

[Green_Will]

[QUOTE=Smallaxe;4610968]
Healthy turf comes ONLY from healthy soils...

Couldn't agree more. And, you're right about the chemical vs. non-chemical stuff. I didn't realize you were as knowledgeable as you are until I was reading back through a thread on organics after I posted here and noticed that you were contributing to a soil health discussion in which Skipster and Deukster were arguing their beliefs regarding soil treatment... You seem to already know your stuff. More so than myself...

What is it that you still don't know? Or are you trying to teach?

[Kiril]

Thanks for the laugh GW.

[Smallaxe]

Originally Posted by Green_Will

... What is it that you still don't know? ...?

We don't know, what we don't know... What's interesting is the discovery that takes place from a well thought out, in depth discussion,,, that is built, thought upon thought and precept upon precept...

My view of organics, from my experience, is the Full Circle from before fertilizer/herbicide to after synthetics right back to where we were in the 50s and 60s...

Once the soils were built up very little fertilzer, if any was used even for pastures...

Then, the fert abuse lead to irrigation abuse and soils were ignored...

Now we look at "products"that are not synthetic and think we are once again looking at the soils, but that is really a very superficial view... understanding what the product does really doesn't matter to most lcos becuz that has never been part of the 'sales pitch'...

[Green_Will]

How long have you been in this business?

[Smallaxe]

Originally Posted by Green_Will

How long have you been in this business?

I started as a teenager, on a dairy farm, then after the USMC, GI Bill for some Horticulture and Botany,,, I decided it was the type of work that I enjoyed most, so I built up the business to full time...

If there was internet when I got going, it would have helped out a lot...
All we had in those days were books...

[Green_Will]

I'm sorry. I guess what I should have asked was what year did you start your business? I have seen several quotes by you that mention the 70's, 80's, etc. I was curious if you were running a business before chemical lawn treatments were popular or if you were speaking from things you read. Just curious by nature... If that is something you want to keep private, that's cool.

[Smallaxe]

Oh yeah, I was doing lawncare when ChemLawn came on the scene and got everyone all excited about lots of green grass and no weeds... It was brand new to our neck of the woods and I wasn't really surprised that a lot of people thought it was a silly excess or luxury...