The University of Maryland Extension is offering a four-hour program for Lawn Fertilization Certification in Maryland on Tuesday, February 19, 2013 at the Wicomico Youth & Civic Center from 10:00 am – 4:00 pm. The cost will be $50.00 per person.

Maryland’s new Fertilizer Law is designed to protect the Chesapeake Bay from excess nutrients entering its waters from a variety of urban sources, including golf courses, parks, recreation areas, athletic fields, businesses and hundreds of thousands of suburban and urban lawns.

Nutrients, primarily nitrogen and phosphorus, are key ingredients in lawn fertilizer. When it rains, excess nutrients can wash off the land and into the streams and rivers that feed the Chesapeake Bay. Once in our waterways, excess fertilizers fuel the growth of algae blooms that block sunlight from reaching Bay grasses, rob the water of oxygen and threaten underwater life.

Lawn fertilizer now accounts for approximately 44% of the fertilizer sold in Maryland. While certain restrictions on fertilizer use have been in place for farmers since 2001, additional stakeholder involvement is needed if Maryland is to meet the new nutrient reduction goals outlined in its Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP) to restore the Bay. Maryland’s new lawn fertilizer law affects fertilizer manufacturers and distributors, lawn care professionals and homeowners.

Beginning October 2013, all lawn care professionals must be certified in order to apply fertilizer in Maryland. Once the exam is taken and passed, then the license will be good for a calendar year. Re-certification conferences will be offered so people can renew their license. At this point you must obtain two nutrient management credits to renew the license.

MDA has information posted on this law at: http://mda2.maryland.gov/resource_conservation/Pages/fertilizer.aspx