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Green Seattle Guide - In Your Yard

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Eco Action Specifics


Yards and gardens are extensions of our homes. Children play in yards and pets may spend much of their time outdoors. In taking care of our yards, we sometimes use water inefficiently. Often we use pesticides or fertilizers that can be harmful to humans and to the environment. We also can produce unnecessary yard wastes in the process.

Taking a natural approach to yard care can save time and money, protect your family’s health and protect the environment. The City of Seattle recommends five steps to a natural yard:

1. Build healthy soil.
2. Plant right for your site.
3. Practice smart watering.
4. Think twice before using pesticides.
5. Practice natural lawn care.



  #   Eco-Action Ecosystem Benefits
  35. Use electric or manual mowers and yard equipment instead of gasoline models
36. Don’t pour anything down storm drains
37. Plant and properly maintain trees on your property or planting strip
38. Reduce your use of pesticides
39. Don’t use moss killer or other herbicides on lawn or roof
40. Use open-grid paving systems for driveways or parking spaces
41. Consider a ‘green roof’
42. Reduce or replace lawn with drought-tolerant plants
43. Mow high and leave grass clippings
44. Be a salmon-friendly gardener
45. Plant native trees in your yard and planting strips
46. Compost yard waste
47. Use organic fertilizers
48. Water plants separately from your lawn
49. Use the right plant for the right place
50. Place trees and shrubs in clusters
51. Remove ivy and other invasive species
52. Don’t plant invasive plants
53. Limb trees, don’t top or remove them, to improve views
54. Use rain barrels or cisterns to capture rainwater for landscape use
55. Plant to match the sun, shade and soil in your yard
56. Let your lawn go brown in summer
57. Water lawns no more than 1” per week in summer
58. Add a rain sensor to your irrigation system
59. Water before 9 AM and after 7 PM to minimize evaporation
60. Use soaker hoses or drip irrigation in garden beds
61. Water to establish your trees and shrubs
62. Use compost to enrich your soil
63. Layer mulch on the soil surface around your plants
 
 
Office of Sustainability & Environment (OSE)
Mailing Address: PO Box 94729 Seattle, WA 98124-4729
Phone: (206) 615-0817, Fax: (206) 684-3013, Email: ose@seattle.gov
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