Lawn and Garden Pesticides
Hazards & Alternatives
A Fact Sheet from Toxic Free NC

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Many lawn and garden pesticides are toxic chemicals that should not be used around children, sensitive individuals or pets. The things you spray outdoors can travel inside on your shoes, pet fur and dust, where they take much longer to break down. This list of common products and alternatives will help you make safer decisions about pest control in your backyard. For the most effective pest control, prevent pest problems with the checklist below. Building healthy soil and encouraging wildlife, including beneficial insects, will make your lawn and garden grow strong and beautiful without the need for toxic chemicals.

PESTICIDE	PRODUCT INFORMATION	ALTERNATIVES
Insecticides	A wide variety of insecticides are available for use in your garden, but many contaminate water and soil, kill beneficial insects and can harm health.	Beneficial insects, including dragonflies, wasps, ants, ladybugs, ground beetles and others do the dirtywork for you by feasting on pests like mosquitoes, aphids and grubs.
Carbaryl	The main ingredient in Sevin dust and Bonide spray, carbaryl is associated with a stunning array of human health problems. It contaminates groundwater and is toxic to many kinds of wildlife (1), killing as many as 1 to 2 million birds in the US every year. (2)	Try milky spore for Japanese beetles, ladybugs or insecticidal soap for aphids, and Bt (bacillus thuringiensis) for caterpillars such as hornworms.
Malathion	Like all organophosphate insecticides, malathion is toxic to the human nervous system. (3) Often used for control of adult mosquitoes.	Target mosquito larvae with Bt, and eliminate breeding sites by emptying all containers in your yard that can hold standing water.
2,4-D	2,4-D is the most widely used herbicide in the world and is an ingredient in products such as Weed-B-Gone and Scotts Turf builder for control of broadleaf weeds. It can damage the nervous system as well as causing birth defects (4) and other reproductive problems.	A healthy lawn is easy to achieve with grasses that are well-adapted to your area, native plants, dethatching, aerating and adding organic matter (such as compost) in spring & fall.
MCPA	A common herbicide ingredient in products like Trimec (along with MCPP & Dicamba) and weed & feed products like Scott’s Pro Lawn; frequently used by lawn care companies. Toxic to wildlife and humans, MCPA is a “possible” carcinogen. (5)	See alternatives to 2,4-D, above.
Glyphosate	The active ingredient in Roundup, glyhphosate kills anything green. “Inert” ingredients in this product are linked to a variety of health & environmental effects.	Alternatives include mulching, hand weeding, flame/steam/heat weeders, tolerance of native “weeds” and better mowingpractices.

Pest prevention checklist

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References