FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Marty Jo Henry
Manchaug Pond Association
508-476-7580

HEALTHY LAWNS AND LANDSCAPES COME TO SUTTON, MA

You can have a beautiful yard without using chemicals that may harm children, pets and the environment. On April 17th the Manchaug Pond Association through a DEP funded 319 Grant will present a free Healthy Lawns and Landscapes Workshop led by Ann McGovern of the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). The workshop is open to everyone in the Blackstone Watershed and will be held at the Sutton Senior Center from 7 PM – 8:30 PM. To register for the workshop, email MPA319Grant@charter.net or call the Sutton Highway Department at 508-865-8743.
Pesticides and lawn chemicals may have unforeseen impacts on human health and can move through the soil into drinking water supplies, ponds, streams and rivers. Children and pets are especially susceptible to harmful effects of pesticides because of their size. Birds and other wildlife suffer injury and even death from long term exposure to traces of pesticides in the environment.
“With a few simple changes, you can have a beautiful lawn and landscape without the use of harmful chemicals,” notes Ann McGovern, Consumer Waste Reduction Coordinator for the DEP. “By developing healthy soil, choosing plants that are appropriate for your site conditions and following some basic guidelines in caring for them, you can have a very rewarding, attractive landscape that contributes to the health of your family, neighbors, pets, wildlife and water quality.”
David and Phyllis Charpentier don’t bag and carry their leaves to the Sutton transfer station. They save time and money by recycling their yard waste back into the soil. “We make mulch and compost out of the leaves, and that enriches the soil so much we don’t need to add anything else. We don’t need to water as often as we used to either,” said David , “ and the compost makes a rich, dark mulch around trees and shrub and in our gardens.”
Bill Wence leaves the clippings on his lawn at their Douglas cottage on Manchaug Pond and Sutton home when he mows. He hasn’t needed to use any fertilizer in years because his lawn is green without it. Pests aren’t a problem because the grass is healthy. “I used to think the clippings might cause thatch to build up,” he told us, “but it hasn’t. Bagging clippings was a pain in the neck. This is much easier.”
Come and learn some simple techniques you can use in your own yard. Working with nature, you can create conditions in which life in and beyond your yard can thrive. YOU can be part of the solution to pollution. Materials will be provided for volunteers who wish to promote sustainable landscaping in their neighborhoods.
All attendees can enter the raffle for a compost bin donated by the Sutton Highway Department and gift from Worm’s Way in Sutton, MA. Refreshments will be served.
For more information on the workshops and healthy landscaping methods, visit www.mass.gov/dep. The Manchaug Pond Association Grant has been financed with Federal Funds from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection under an s. 319 competitive grant.

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