How to take action- Weigh the facts: a few weeds won't kill you, but toxic pesticides could.
- Quit the habit. Many people use pesticides because they think they're essential, or are the easiest way to have a robust lawn and garden. However, cutting the use of pesticides in favour of beneficial gardening practices such as composting and companion planting, leads to a more vibrant, healthy and diverse garden within a few years than it would be with pesticide use.
- Forego the "perfect" lawn. A lawn that is all uniform, all the time, is actually far from perfect. Monochrome, monoculture lawns are as low in biodiversity as they are high in maintenance. Mix up your lawn with flowerbeds, vegetable gardens, trees, or wild grasses and flowers. For areas where you want to have grass, plant varieties that grow well in your region so that they will be naturally strong and pest resistant.
- Use natural weed control methods. Practices such as pulling weeds, dousing them with vinegar, planting your desired plants closer together, and growing winter crops will all work to keep weeds in check. As well, keeping your desired plants strong and happy goes a long way to minimizing negative impacts from weeds.
- Get a weed book. This can help you identify unwanted species early on, whether on the lawn or in the garden. Pulling weeds out in early spring, when they are tender, makes for light work – at least relative to later in the year when they are more firmly established.
- Learn about the birds and bees. Beneficial insects, with help from birds and bats, are the best way to fight off insect pests. These helpful creatures can also benefit your garden in other ways – as pollinators, soil builders, and garden fertilizers. Some garden care books provide images of beneficial insects in various life stages, to help you identify them.
- Chickens are incredible weed pullers and insect eaters. In fact keeping a few free range chickens can rid you of mosquitoes forever. Chickens need to be contained once you have tender greens in the ground, or their weed pulling abilities can go astray, but sending them into your garden early in the season, or using "chicken tractors" makes both feeding the flock and tending the garden a whole lot easier.
- Head to the library or the internet. Consult organic gardening and organic lawn care books and websites for detailed information on controlling plant and animal pests.
- Experiment. Try different things to see what works on your weeds, and works for you. Start by trialing the system in a small area, or on one plant, to ensure it works and doesn’t have unwanted side effects. Boiling water, gin, or cola are some ways to kill weeds (though watch out you don't splash any desirable plants). Remember, if you wouldn't put it in your mouth, think before you put it on your yard or garden.
- Ontario and Quebec have province-wide bans on cosmetic pesticide use. Contact your MLA to share your thoughts on banning pesticides in B.C.
Why it makes a difference- Pesticides are some of the most widely used chemicals in the world, and the most toxic to human health.
- Pesticide use and exposure is linked with many serious illnesses including cancers, damage to the immune system, and neurological problems.
- Children tend to be most affected by pesticides, possibly because they spend more time on the lawn.
- Pesticide use can also kill 60 – 90% of earthworms in the soil, so you could be killing your soil's richness and productivity as fast or faster than you are killing the pests that hinder your plants.
- Pesticides don't only affect the places where they are applied; they seep into ground water, storm run off, wells, and the air, where they can cause chronic and acute problems for human health and the environment. According to U.S. statistics, the average suburban lawn receives ten times as much chemical pesticide per acre as farmland.
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