So you want to have a lush, healthy lawn without adding to western Lake Erie’s pollution woes.

Is that possible?

Yes and no. Or, said another way: Don’t sweat it as much as some people think you should.

First, a little perspective: The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency states in a recent report that 88 percent of the Maumee River watershed’s phosphorus comes from nonpoint sources, primarily — though not exclusively — agricultural runoff.

A small percentage comes from runoff generated by lawns, golf courses, and other nonfarming tracts of land.

Many people who live in Toledo, Bowling Green, and other cities don’t realize just how large and agricultural the Maumee River watershed is. According to Lake Erie Waterkeeper, this massive watershed, one of the largest in the Great Lakes region, drains all or part of 17 Ohio counties, two Michigan counties, and five Indiana counties over 8,316 square miles, much of it between Fort Wayne and Toledo. Seventy percent of it is agricultural land.

Nobody, of course, is suggesting the entire responsibility for phosphorus control should rest with agriculture. We all contribute to algae in some way, from the amount of milk we drink to the number of sprawling subdivisions and big-box mega stores we financially support. All, in some ways, affect farming practices, land use, development patterns, and the amount of pavement that makes it easier for runoff to slide into ditches, rivers, and streams flowing out into the lake.

But here’s another reason today’s lawn fertilizers aren’t having as much impact as they have in years past: Scotts Miracle-Gro, the industry leader in lawn fertilizers, voluntarily removed phosphorus from all lawn maintenance fertilizers in 2012. As expected, many of its competitors followed.

“There have been no issues, no noticeable differences in field test studies, no change in performance,” said Phil Dwyer, a turf expert in Scotts Miracle-Gro’s research and development department, said. “There have been no complaints.”

The key word, though, is “maintenance.”

Phosphorus remains in turf-starter products because it’s hard to get a good lawn established without it, said Mr. Dwyer, who holds a doctorate degree in his field.

“Beyond that, the rest of our maintenance fertilizers are phosphorus-free,” he said, explaining that the decision to remove phosphorus from maintenance products wasn’t just because of what was happening in western Lake Erie or in Ohio’s Grand Lake St. Marys. Scotts also became concerned about algal blooms it saw on the rise in Minnesota, Wisconsin, the Chesapeake Bay, and other areas, he said.

Phosphorus often dictates the size of many western Lake Erie algal blooms, which are predominantly a type of algae known as microcystis. Another major nutrient, nitrogen, is believed to affect the toxicity of those blooms. Nitrogen is especially important to control in the Sandusky River watershed, because it is the main source of food for a different type of algae in Sandusky Bay, known as plantothrix, which produces the same toxin as microcystis.

Nitrogen remains an important part of maintenance lawn products made by Scotts and others, along with potassium, iron, and other ingredients.

“Of all nutrients required [for a healthy lawn], nitrogen is the most important,” Mr. Dwyer said.

Much of the stewardship contribution individual property owners can make toward the health of western Lake Erie comes down to some simple practices people have been known to shrug off, such as:

■ Applying the right amount of fertilizer. That means actually reading the instructions on your bag and dialing settings on your spreader to where they’re supposed to be and not overdoing it.

When it comes to lawn fertilizers, more is not better, Mr. Dwyer said. Also be careful as you’re applying near sidewalks and other hard surfaces. Use an edge guard on rotary spreaders, and immediately sweep up any fertilizer particles that found their way to your sidewalk, he said.

“We know if fertilizer lands on a hardscape or a sidewalk, it can end up in the water,” Mr. Dwyer said.

He added there’s “no reason to go beyond the rate that’s recommended.”

“If you want a greener lawn, build that density slowly. Be on a program. Twice in the spring and twice in the fall,” Mr. Dwyer said.

The four best feeding times are generally considered to be in April and around Memorial Day, then around Labor Day and in mid-October. “This will time the feeding to give you the best root growth,” Mr. Dwyer said.

■ Not fertilizing before mowing grass.

“Only fertilize when grass is actively growing,” he said. 

■ Putting your mower deck at a height which allows about 3 to 4 inches of grass to be seen. Do not try to make your lawn look like the putting green on a golf course. Golf courses are usually made from a different species of grass than what’s found on your lawn, and are designed to be cut super-short whereas lawns are not, Mr. Dwyer said.

“The higher you mow your lawn, the deeper the roots,” he said.

■ Giving your lawn the respect it deserves.

Most people look at a lawn and see grass. They don’t stop to realize every lawn is actually hundreds of thousands of individual plants, each capable of keeping soil from eroding from wind and rain and, therefore, preventing a lot of water pollution in the first place, Mr. Dwyer said.

“Why do we have lawns? It is to prevent soil erosion,” he said. “There’s no other plant better suited to survive [foot] traffic than turf grass. It keeps soil in place and keeps it from eroding.”

Blades of grass are also unique in the plant world because of how close they can co-exist.

“No plant system can grow as close to one another and be as cohesive as turf grass,” Mr. Dwyer said.

Contact Tom Henry at thenry@theblade.com, 419-724-6079, or via Twitter @ecowriterohio.

First Published May 22, 2018, 5:22 p.m.