Pesticide ban set to begin

Homeowners who want to keep their lawns free of crabgrass and dandelions will have to turn to organic substances starting next week after a provincewide ban on pesticides comes into effect.

Stores must stop selling the traditional garden chemicals used for years, including well-known brands such as Killex and Roundup, by April 22 and are now stocking new products, particularly ones using corn and wheat gluten.

Gluten products are a little more expensive, say retailers, and require different application -- but they will work.

"I've already sold out of fertilizer with wheat gluten," said Tim Young, manager of the TSC store on Queensway West in Simcoe.

More than 250 garden products containing chemicals must come off shelves under a new Ontario law and will also become illegal to use.

The government has banned pesticides as well as some herbicides and fungicides in an effort to make lawns, parks and fields safer for children.

Advocates say the health risks of being exposed to the chemicals aren't worth having the greenest lawn on the block.

Exceptions to the law include forests and golf courses.

Norfolk County won't feel the impact of the ban because it has been gradually reducing pesticide use for the last five years, said Lee Rabbitts, superintendent for parks and facilities.

"We saw this coming. There's been a real movement to reduce pesticide use."

The county, he said, will rely on "overseeding," pulling plugs of soil to aerate the ground, and will allow grass to grow a little longer.