Want to find out what your neighbors are spraying and putting on their gardens?

bdn-pesticide-sprayingWouldn’t you like to know what your neighbors are spraying and putting on their lawns and gardens? Oh, I don’t mean to be nosy, though there is that, but if the wind is right, your garden and lawn may well be receiving whatever your neighbors are spraying on theirs.

Or if your neighbors are uphill, then you have a fair chance of having whatever they are putting on their property seep down onto yours during a good rainfall.

If your neighbors do not use a lawn and garden service, then the easiest choice is to ask them when they do apply or spray some substance to let you know. Depending on what they are using, you may want to not hang your laundry out on your line or may even close your windows.

We have close neighbors on both sides of us and both use lawn and garden services for their property.  We could of course ask our neighbors what is being used on their gardens and lawns, but I am not sure if they are always aware of what their services use.

So what can you do?

The Maine Board of Pesticides Control allows you for an annual $20 fee, waived for financial hardship, to be notified by licensed commercial applicators 6 hours to two weeks before applications. This allows you time to plan ahead, to, say, hang your laundry out another day if spraying is to be done and to close your windows when the applicator arrives.

If your neighbors do their own applications, then this form will work for that too, you just have to notify them.

We have filled out this application for the past few years, because even though we live in an all organic town, we find it helpful to know what is being applied or sprayed on trees and shrubs beforehand.

Want a form?  Download one at Pesticide Notification Registry Application and make sure you send in your check with this form filled out by December 31st.

Wouldn’t you like to know what your neighbors are spraying and putting on their lawns and gardens? Oh, I don’t mean to be nosy, though there is that, but if the wind is right, your garden and lawn may well be receiving whatever your neighbors are spraying on theirs.

Or if your neighbors are uphill, then you have a fair chance of having whatever they are putting on their property seep down onto yours during a good rainfall.

If your neighbors do not use a lawn and garden service, then the easiest choice is to ask them when they do apply or spray some substance to let you know. Depending on what they are using, you may want to not hang your laundry out on your line or may even close your windows.

We have close neighbors on both sides of us and both use lawn and garden services for their property.  We could of course ask our neighbors what is being used on their gardens and lawns, but I am not sure if they are always aware of what their services use.

So what can you do?

The Maine Board of Pesticides Control allows you for an annual $20 fee, waived for financial hardship, to be notified by licensed commercial applicators 6 hours to two weeks before applications. This allows you time to plan ahead, to, say, hang your laundry out another day if spraying is to be done and to close your windows when the applicator arrives.

If your neighbors do their own applications, then this form will work for that too, you just have to notify them.

We have filled out this application for the past few years, because even though we live in an all organic town, we find it helpful to know what is being applied or sprayed on trees and shrubs beforehand.

Want a form?  Download one at Pesticide Notification Registry Application and make sure you send in your check with this form filled out by December 31st.

Wouldn’t you like to know what your neighbors are spraying and putting on their lawns and gardens? Oh, I don’t mean to be nosy, though there is that, but if the wind is right, your garden and lawn may well be receiving whatever your neighbors are spraying on theirs.

Or if your neighbors are uphill, then you have a fair chance of having whatever they are putting on their property seep down onto yours during a good rainfall.

If your neighbors do not use a lawn and garden service, then the easiest choice is to ask them when they do apply or spray some substance to let you know. Depending on what they are using, you may want to not hang your laundry out on your line or may even close your windows.

We have close neighbors on both sides of us and both use lawn and garden services for their property.  We could of course ask our neighbors what is being used on their gardens and lawns, but I am not sure if they are always aware of what their services use.

So what can you do?

The Maine Board of Pesticides Control allows you for an annual $20 fee, waived for financial hardship, to be notified by licensed commercial applicators 6 hours to two weeks before applications. This allows you time to plan ahead, to, say, hang your laundry out another day if spraying is to be done and to close your windows when the applicator arrives.

If your neighbors do their own applications, then this form will work for that too, you just have to notify them.

We have filled out this application for the past few years, because even though we live in an all organic town, we find it helpful to know what is being applied or sprayed on trees and shrubs beforehand.

Want a form?  Download one at Pesticide Notification Registry Application and make sure you send in your check with this form filled out by December 31st.

Wouldn’t you like to know what your neighbors are spraying and putting on their lawns and gardens? Oh, I don’t mean to be nosy, though there is that, but if the wind is right, your garden and lawn may well be receiving whatever your neighbors are spraying on theirs.

Or if your neighbors are uphill, then you have a fair chance of having whatever they are putting on their property seep down onto yours during a good rainfall.

If your neighbors do not use a lawn and garden service, then the easiest choice is to ask them when they do apply or spray some substance to let you know. Depending on what they are using, you may want to not hang your laundry out on your line or may even close your windows.

We have close neighbors on both sides of us and both use lawn and garden services for their property.  We could of course ask our neighbors what is being used on their gardens and lawns, but I am not sure if they are always aware of what their services use.

So what can you do?

The Maine Board of Pesticides Control allows you for an annual $20 fee, waived for financial hardship, to be notified by licensed commercial applicators 6 hours to two weeks before applications. This allows you time to plan ahead, to, say, hang your laundry out another day if spraying is to be done and to close your windows when the applicator arrives.

If your neighbors do their own applications, then this form will work for that too, you just have to notify them.

We have filled out this application for the past few years, because even though we live in an all organic town, we find it helpful to know what is being applied or sprayed on trees and shrubs beforehand.

Want a form?  Download one at Pesticide Notification Registry Application and make sure you send in your check with this form filled out by December 31st.

Bill Baker

About Bill Baker

Bill's interest in a clean place to live is rooted in growing up in the country – a cornfield across the road and fields, sandstone cliffs and hundreds of acres of woods where he spent many hours.