This report was released today by Environmental Health News: http://www.environmentalhealthnews.org/ehs/news/farm-pesticides-linked-to-deadly-skin-cancer. ...

A radio station called this morning to ask me for some money-saving tips for all-around gardening. On a moment's notice, this is what I came up with: 1. Start your plants now from seeds. April 1 is the official start date for tomatoes and other seeds here in the Northeast, although warm-season gardeners probably already have a jump-start on this. 2 When seeds aren't possible, go with smaller seedlings in si ...

Sometimes I need to be reminded I'm too close to a subject. Yesterday, when I posted my "Free Lunches For the Lawn" book excerpt, I received a few private emails from folks who didn't understand how leaves, grass clippings and other materials could become food for the lawn. It seems evident to me, but that's only because I've been dealing with this subject for years. To help the lay person understand this, ...

SOUTH PORTLAND, MAINE — After visits to 25 states and four Canadian provinces in the past three months, the award-winning environmental and health film A Chemical Reaction and its producers will spend Easter week in their home state of Maine. Two shows are planned, beginning Wednesday evening at 7 at Jewett Auditorium on the campus of Southern Maine Community College. That will be followed by another 7 p.m. ...

[caption id="attachment_1150" align="alignnone" width="504" caption="If you do gather your grass clippings, be sure to add them to a compost pile like this one at Cornell University, so that they decompose for later use back on the lawn."][/caption] A radio station in Maine called last week with a question about how to save money on lawncare this season. For the response I trotted out my time-honored list t ...

This video and review aired last night on the NBC affiliate WCSH6 in Maine and New Hampshire: http://www.wcsh6.com/news/health/story.aspx?storyid=115916&catid=8. After our screening today at the Delray Beach Film Festival, the movie will appear Wednesday in South Portland, Maine, at Southern Maine Community College's Jewett Auditorium and Thursday at Yarmouth High School's Performing Arts Center. ...

Tom Kelly says he knows how Earth Day feels. The organization really wanted to believe it was doing something right by helping to promote earth-friendly landscaping, and only unwittingly got caught up in what we're calling TruGate — a rather scandalous attempt by TruGreen/ChemLawn to greenwash its tawdry business practices at the expense of Earth Day's reputation. Kelly, who lived on what I'll jokingly call ...

It still strikes me as odd, in this enlightened day and age, when I receive questions like the one a reporter asked yesterday: “Is there really any scientific proof that pesticides are bad?” Trying to be respectful, I did my best not to smirk, roll my eyes, or laugh out loud, especially since a TV camera was pointed in my direction. As someone who tries to stay on top of the news related to lawn pesticides, ...

Risa Edelstein didn't let a moment pass. As soon as she heard in our SafeLawns Weekly Update last Monday, March 15, that TruGreen/ChemLawn had sponsored Earth Day, she posted a Facebook page titled, simply enough "STOP TruGreen from Sponsoring Earth Day." Hundreds of other SafeLawns members didn't hesitate, either. The fan page was soon bustling with comments admonishing Earth Day administrators for accepti ...

[caption id="attachment_1132" align="alignnone" width="432" caption="Chip Osborne and Pat Beckett of Marblehead, Mass., earned environmental awards for their organic trial program."][/caption] On the eve of the New York state legislature considering Bill 4983-A that would ban pesticides on any school or daycare grounds, as well as athletic fields, our friend and colleague Chip Osborne has co-authored a grou ...