{"id":816,"date":"2011-05-10T15:06:09","date_gmt":"2011-05-10T15:06:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/?p=816"},"modified":"2012-08-20T15:07:23","modified_gmt":"2012-08-20T15:07:23","slug":"maryland-farmers-offer-spring-fertilizer-tips-to-backyard-gardeners","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/press-release\/2011\/05\/10\/maryland-farmers-offer-spring-fertilizer-tips-to-backyard-gardeners\/","title":{"rendered":"Maryland Farmers Offer Spring Fertilizer Tips to Backyard Gardeners"},"content":{"rendered":"

ANNAPOLIS, MD (May 10, 2011) \u2013 Spring is in full bloom and now is the time to plan for your gardens.\u00a0 Maryland farmers have initiated a homeowner education campaign, \u201cTake it from Maryland Farmers: Backyard Actions for a Cleaner Chesapeake Bay\u201d to help gardeners by offering fertilizer tips and online resources available at\u00a0www.IWantMarylandsBest.com<\/a>.\u00a0 The campaign highlights the importance of soil testing and using fertilizers wisely for healthier gardens and lawns this growing season and a cleaner Chesapeake Bay. Additional topics include trying pesticide alternatives and composting, controlling soil erosion and rainwater runoff, and conserving water.<\/p>\n

\u201cFarmers, like homeowners and all residents of the Chesapeake Bay watershed, play an important role in protecting our soil and water resources,\u201d said Governor Martin O\u2019Malley.\u00a0 \u201cIt is a priority of the O\u2019Malley-Brown Administration to protect the health of the Bay for all to enjoy and to strengthen our family farms.\u00a0 I encourage all Marylanders to take backyard actions that protect the Chesapeake Bay so that we continue to create a smart, green and growing future.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFarmers are the first stewards of the land and they know that nutrients are essential for healthy crop and plant growth. They also know that over-applying fertilizers is not good for plants or the environment,\u201d said Agriculture Secretary Buddy Hance.\u00a0 \u201cMany routine farm-based conservation measures can easily be adapted to backyard lawn care and gardens.\u00a0 With soil testing, rainwater management, and appropriate plantings along with equipment maintenance, homeowners can reduce stormwater runoff while producing beautiful, thriving, Bay-friendly yards.\u201d<\/p>\n

Farmers use soil tests to determine the precise amount and type of fertilizer needed for a healthy crop to help prevent excess nutrients from polluting waterways. Homeowners should test new lawns after grading, but before seeding; vegetable gardens, every year; and established lawns, landscape plants and perennial gardens every three years. Apply only the nutrients needed according to the soil test results and never exceed the recommended rate. Be careful not to spread fertilizer on sidewalks and driveways and keep in mind that fall is the best time of year to fertilize lawns.<\/p>\n

Homeowners and gardeners can log onto\u00a0www.IWantMarylandsBest.com<\/a>\u00a0to download the informational brochures, listen to the audio pieces, find a list of soil test laboratories and link to additional resources.\u00a0 They can also call the University of Maryland Home and Garden Information Center toll-free 1-800-342-2507 (outside Maryland 410-531-5573) from 8 a.m.-1 p.m. to speak with a Certified Professional Horticulturist about easy-to-follow, Bay-friendly suggestions for their lawns and gardens.<\/p>\n

Take it from Maryland Farmers: Backyard Actions for a Cleaner Chesapeake Bay was developed by the Maryland Department of Agriculture, the University of Maryland Extension Home and Garden Information Center, the Maryland Sea Grant along with Maryland farmers through an agricultural awareness group. The program was made possible through grant funding that supports the implementation of the Statewide Plan for Agricultural Policy and Resource Management.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ANNAPOLIS, MD (May 10, 2011) \u2013 Spring is in full bloom and now is the time to plan for your gardens.\u00a0 Maryland farmers have initiated a homeowner education campaign, \u201cTake it from Maryland Farmers: Backyard Actions for a Cleaner Chesapeake Bay\u201d to help gardeners by offering fertilizer tips and online resources available at\u00a0www.IWantMarylandsBest.com.\u00a0 The campaign  Read the Rest…<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"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":[12],"tags":[124,193],"class_list":["post-816","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-press-release","tag-backyard-gardeners","tag-fertilizer"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/816","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\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=816"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/816\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":817,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/816\/revisions\/817"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=816"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=816"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/mda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=816"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}