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Corn Gluten Meal -     a safe herbicide

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   Corn Gluten Meal - a safe herbicide

When tackling weed problems in your lawn, it is tempting to buy toxic chemicals to handle the problem quickly. However, with a little patience the weed problems can be tackled safely with no risk to pets and children. 

Corn Gluten Meal (CGM) is a by-product of corn milling. When used in lawn care, the CGM acts as a pre-emergent herbicide, preventing weed seeds from germinating. Among the weeds it can control are dandelions and crab grass. As an added bonus it also is 10% nitrogen, feeding your lawn a gentle application of nitrogen.

There are commercially available “weed’n’feed” type products on the market, but finding them may require some searching. Since the CGM is an ingredient in animal feed it is possible to buy this product at animal feed stores, where it can be found as the main ingredient in some hog feed and dog foods.

It is recommended to apply CGM in the spring and in the fall at a rate of 20lb/1000 sq ft. The effects are not expected to be immediate, but gradual, as the CGM is preventing new weeds rather than attacking existing weeds. 

Full lawn care benefits are expected in around the fourth season of application; the environmental benefits are immediate.

See Try Natural Gardening Solutions for more tips on safe lawn and garden practices.