Lawn Tonic
It's made up of five common household
products that you measure out into 10-gallon hose-end sprayer. A former
Golf Course Groundskeeper who lives in Parker, Tim Heffron, found it
while watching television years ago in Oklahoma. "I started using it
about five years ago back in Oklahoma where it's 100 degrees every day,
day in and day out," says Heffron. Heffron clearly has the best looking lawn in his neighborhood. He
has no sprinkler system and only hand-waters his lawn sparingly. He
does use small amounts of dry fertilizer as well. You'll find many similar formulas on the Internet, but this is a formula that seems to work well in
Colorado. The "Lawn Tonic" -One full can of regular pop (any kind-no diet soda) -One full can of beer (no light beer) -1/2 Cup of Liquid dishwashing soap (do NOT use anti-bacterial dishwashing liquid) -1/2 Cup of household ammonia -1/2 Cup of mouthwash (any brand) -Pour into 10-gallon hose-end sprayer (other sizes will work too) -In high heat, apply every three weeks The liquid soap is a wetting agent, helping the formula penetrate
to the roots. The ammonia promotes growth and turns your lawn green,
and the mouthwash does something you would never suspect mouthwash
would do. It kills the bugs and grubs. "It essentially messes-up their re-productive cycles and keeps them
out of your lawn and makes it look a lot better and leaves it minty
fresh," laughs Heffron. And because it's applied with the hose sprayer,
it's a direct shot to your sod. "When you don't have a lot of water and
we're on watering restrictions, this is another way to get the
nutrients to your lawn and keep it growing.
NOTE: Do NOT use anti-bacterial
dishwashing liquid in the mixture as it will kill off important
microbes in the lawn and soil that help "digest" thatch.