Historically, organic lawn care has been practised for far longer than chemical lawn care. From the 1700's to the second world war, lawns were maintained without chemicals. The lawns of eighteenth century Europe differed dramatically from those which now cover suburban North America. The mass production of chemical pesticides and fertilizers during the 1940's ushered in the lawn's transformation from an eclectic and dynamic collection of various grasses, legumes and wildflowers to a sterile monoculture. Since then, the chemical lawn care industry has grown enormously.
Many homeowners now believe that lawns require chemicals for survival.
This simply is not true. A traditional lawn can be maintained without chemicals. Chemical-dependent lawns are highly susceptible to pests and diseases. The guiding principle of organic lawn care is to nourish the soil. In this way, it differs fundamentally from chemical lawn care, which focuses on feeding the grass.