Grass Clippings Public Outreach Campaign
Join local lawn care professionals, Alachua County, the City of Gainesville, and the Florida Department of Transportation in keeping grass off the streets!
Grass clippings left in the road:
* look bad
* are bad for the environment
* clog stormdrains which can cause flooding and increased maintenance costs for tax payers
*are hazardous to motorists and cyclists
*can lead to fines
The Alachua County Fertilizer Standards and Management Practices Code (Chapter 78.09) prohibits washing, sweeping, or blowing vegetative debris into stormdrains, ditches, waterbodies, sidewalks, and roads. Fines can be issued to those that are caught violating this code.
When it rains grass clippings and other vegetative debris is washed down our stormdrains and into our stormwater collection systems. If this material does not clog up the system, it often ends up in stormwater basins, creeks, or lakes where they start to decay. This process consumes oxygen while releasing nutrients and can lead to algal blooms and fish kills.
According to the University of Florida IFAS Extension, grass clippings are beneficial to lawns and provide free nutrients for your grass and other plants, so blow them back up onto your yard. Leaves can be used as mulch, composted, or put in paper bags or re-usable containers for your waste disposal company to pick up. Thanks for helping to keep grass off the streets!
Get your Free "Keep Grass Off The Streets" Campaign Materials!
Contact Stacie at 352-264-6829 to request campaign materials (while supplies last) provided by the Gainesville Clean Water Partnership.
Temporary Yard Signs
We need lawn care professionals to help us get the word out about the importance of properly managing yard wastes. We know that sometimes you have to create a temporary mess in the process of maintaing landscapes. You can use these temporary signs while working in an area to ensure that everyone knows that you intend to clean up the yard wastes before leaving the sites. This reflects well on your business and helps homeowners realize that they need to do their part to protect our waterways and stormwater system.
Magnets
Remind your fellow lawn care professionals to be part of the sollution by putting a campaign magnet on the side of your vehicle.
Baseball Hats
Sign our pledge to properly manage yard waste and receive a free hat (while supplies last) showing your support to Keep Grass Off The Steets!
Posters
Do you have a public place where you can hang up a poster to remind everyone of the importance of properly managing yard waste? If so, contact Stacie at 352-264-6829
Click 
HERE to see our commercial and HERE for the radio ad.!
Fertilizer Code
Adopted On September 22, 2009 the Board of County Commissioners adopted a Fertilizer Standards and Management Practices Code for Alachua County. The ordinance is based on the Florida Department of Environmental Protection Model Ordinance for Florida-Friendly Fertilizer Use in Urban Landscapes. The ordinance includes standards for:
- Timing of fertilizer application
- Training and licensing requirements
- Fertilizer application rates
- Fertilizer-free zones
Click 
HERE to view a presentation regarding the Alachua County Fertilizer Code and Irrigation Code.
Get Certified by 2011!
The new Fertilizer Code requires all businesses applying fertilizer to turf and/or landscape plants in Alachua County to ensure employees have an appropriate "Florida Friendly Best Management Practices for Protection of Water Resources by the Green Industries" training certificate. If you apply fertilizers for a commercial business or institution, you must take this class! The classes provide a wealth of information and we encourage companies to train as many as employees as possible. Click HERE to find out which landscaping professionals have already completed the required training.
Upcoming Training
Green Industries Best Management Practices Workshops
Tuesday November 29, 2011, 8:30 am - 4:00 pm, Alachua County Extension Office
These workshops are designed to provide training in Best Management Practices for anyone working in the lawn, landscape, pest control, or municipal grounds areas. Earn CEUs for pesticide license holders. Cost to attend is $25.00 which includes materials and lunch. To pre-register, call 352-337-6209 (voicemail). For further information contact Aparna Gazula at 352-955-2402 or by e-mail at agazula@ufl.edu.
To check for trainings around the state view the schedule HERE.
Best Management Practices