As the expansion of natural yard care products and social awareness continues to push chemicals and toxins out of the garden, Magnolia Garden Center stands out as one of the greenest nurseries in King County.
Magnolia Garden Center, 3213 W. Smith St., is one of 24 nurseries to make the list of 2010 Natural Yard Care Nurseries, based on the dedication to decreasing the use of hazardous pesticides and chemicals by offering less toxic solutions.
"It's recognizing that number one, the nursery sells low or no-toxicity gardening product," said Carl Woestwin, landscape conservation team lead at Seattle Public Utilities. "We're also recognizing the fact they educate customers, they educate their employees and they have these practices going on in their own nursery."
Garden centers qualified for the list by carrying products for natural yard care such as natural fertilizers, less toxic pest and weed control products and smart watering tools. Seattle Public Utilities also looked at how the nursery informs customers and staff about natural yard care.
Though the list distinguishes nurseries that promote green gardening practices, the promotion of green techniques has become increasingly easier with the growing interest in natural lawn and gardening products.
As the owner of Magnolia Garden Center, Margaret Flaherty said she's definitely noticed the changes among customers as far as interests in green products go. When Flaherty started, organic products were hard to come by. Now, just about every chemical product has a green alternative.
Seattle Public Utilities has a "Grow Smart, Grow Safe" guide that analyzes lawn and garden products and rates their harmful effects. The guide can be found at lhwmp.org/home/ChemToxPesticides/growsmartgrowsafe.aspx.
But, Flaherty warns, natural does not mean perfect.
When using natural products, Flaherty said, "They should expect some imperfection in their yards. Nature isn't perfect. Bugs are supposed to live with us in most cases. Just don't try to kill everything that flies."[[In-content Ad]]
