{"id":29677,"date":"2026-04-01T10:48:02","date_gmt":"2026-04-01T14:48:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/?p=29677"},"modified":"2026-04-01T10:48:02","modified_gmt":"2026-04-01T14:48:02","slug":"news-release-protect-local-streams-that-feed-our-chesapeake-bay","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/press-release\/2026\/04\/01\/news-release-protect-local-streams-that-feed-our-chesapeake-bay\/","title":{"rendered":"NEWS RELEASE: Protect Local Streams that Feed our Chesapeake Bay"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: center\"><b>Protect Local Streams that Feed our Chesapeake Bay<\/b><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><b><i>Follow Maryland\u2019s Lawn Fertilizer Law<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<p><b>ANNAPOLIS, MD (April 1, 2026)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> \u2013 The<\/span><b> Maryland Department of Agriculture<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> is reminding residents and lawn care professionals to follow <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/mda.maryland.gov\/resource_conservation\/documents\/fertilizerwebpage.pdf\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Maryland&#8217;s Lawn Fertilizer Law<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> when caring for lawns this spring. This law is designed to protect local streams, rivers, and the Chesapeake Bay from fertilizer runoff originating from non-agricultural sources. These include golf courses, parks, recreational areas, athletic fields, businesses, and hundreds of thousands of home lawns.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cFertilizer products provide nutrients for healthy grass, but overusing them can harm local streams and the Chesapeake Bay,\u201d said Maryland Agriculture Secretary Kevin Atticks. \u201cBy following Maryland&#8217;s Lawn Fertilizer Law, residents and lawn care professionals can maintain healthy lawns and cleaner, healthier waterways.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">If you hire a lawn care professional to fertilize your lawn, be sure they are certified by the department&#8217;s Turfgrass Nutrient Management Program or work under the supervision of a certified professional. The department&#8217;s <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/mda.maryland.gov\/SiteAssets\/Pages\/fertilizer\/CertifiedLawnCarePros.pdf\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">website<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> has an up-to-date list of certified lawn care professionals. These individuals have been trained and tested in sound application techniques and Bay-friendly fertilizer practices.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">If you care for your own lawn, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/uzn30t7TkdM?si=uk6NVDBmC1xZ8pXw\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">watch our video<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">. Here are some highlights:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Skip the spring fertilizer, especially if your lawn is healthy. Fall is the best time to fertilize cool-season grasses like fescues and Kentucky bluegrass.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Sharpen lawnmower blades to avoid tearing and weakening the grass.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Mow the grass high to shade out weeds and conserve moisture. Three inches is an ideal height for most lawns.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Leave grass clippings on the lawn. They provide free fertilizer all season long.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">If you decide to fertilize your lawn:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Test your soil to see if your grass will benefit from additional nutrients or lime. The University of Maryland Extension has <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/extension.umd.edu\/resource\/soil-testing-and-soil-testing-labs\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">information on soil testing<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Read and follow the directions on the fertilizer bag.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Follow the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/extension.umd.edu\/resource\/lawn-fertilizer-schedule-table\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">University of Maryland Extension&#8217;s lawn fertilizer schedule<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Do not apply phosphorus (indicated by the middle number on the fertilizer bag) to lawns unless a soil test shows it is needed.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">If fertilizer lands on sidewalks or driveways, sweep it back onto the grass or clean it up.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Keep fertilizer applications 10 to 15 feet away from waterways.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Do not apply fertilizer if heavy rain is predicted.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Obey fertilizer blackout dates: November 16 to March 1.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Additional information on Maryland\u2019s Lawn Fertilizer Law and fertilizer best management practices is available on the department\u2019s <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/mda.maryland.gov\/Pages\/fertilizer.aspx\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">website<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">. You can also visit the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/extension.umd.edu\/resource\/lawns-maryland-home-landscape\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">University of Maryland Extension website<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> for lawn fertilizer recommendations and additional tips.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"># # #<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Protect Local Streams that Feed our Chesapeake Bay Follow Maryland\u2019s Lawn Fertilizer Law ANNAPOLIS, MD (April 1, 2026) \u2013 The Maryland Department of Agriculture is reminding residents and lawn care professionals to follow Maryland&#8217;s Lawn Fertilizer Law when caring for lawns this spring. This law is designed to protect local streams, rivers, and the Chesapeake<a href=\"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/press-release\/2026\/04\/01\/news-release-protect-local-streams-that-feed-our-chesapeake-bay\/\">&nbsp;&nbsp;Read the Rest&#8230;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":251,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[403,12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-29677","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-mda-newsroom","category-press-release"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29677","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/251"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29677"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29677\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":29678,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29677\/revisions\/29678"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29677"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29677"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29677"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}