Good day, I’m Terry Rounds, and welcome to the Fairfax County News to Use podcast of September 25th, 2007. Coming up, learn about an upcoming Cool Counties concert, a seminar for caregivers and tips for fertilizing your lawns this fall. Links to topics mentioned in this podcast can be found online at www.fairfaxcounty.gov/news.
Now everyone can be cool at the Cool Counties Concert and Poetry Slam slated for Saturday, October 6, at Mason District Park in Annandale. Join the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors and the Fairfax County Park Authority in fighting global warming through education, entertainment and action. Participants will have an opportunity to enjoy a host of activities from noon until 3 p.m. Learn how you and your family can make a difference in the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. Speak with representatives from local agencies, environmental organizations and green groups of all sorts. Listen carefully to the words of area students as they participate in a poetry slam focused on healing our earth and caring for the environment. And don’t miss the music of a new generation performed by two local bands. Mason District Park is located at 6621 Columbia Pike. For more information, call 703-324- 2321.
A caregiver seminar and information resource fair is set for Friday, Oct. 26, from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. in Springfield. The theme of this year’s event is “Give Care, Take Care: Coping Skills and Learning to Laugh in Spite of it All.” All caregivers in Fairfax County are invited to attend. The cost is $10 for lunch. Please visit the News to Use Web site to register online.
And finally, do you want your lawn to be the envy of your neighborhood next spring? Then first get your lawn tested to see what kind of fertilizer you may need, if any, and then fertilize this fall. Residents just have take a small soil sample, submit it to the local Virginia Cooperative Extension office with a small fee, and then you will receive results outlining specifically what, if anything, your soil needs. For homeowners growing cool season grasses, Fall is the only season in which to fertilize. Cool season grasses include tall fescue, Kentucky bluegrass and perennial ryegrass. With the cooler temperatures that Fall provides, cool season grasses become active and are able to take up the nutrients that fertilizers provide. Look for a “slow release” lawn fertilizer and follow recommended application amounts, and remember not to over fertilize. This also helps control excess runoff that ultimately makes its way into our creeks, rivers and streams. For more information, call the Fairfax County Stormwater Management office at 703-324-5500.
That’s all for this News to Use podcast. Thanks for listening. For more information about the topics in this podcast and for continuous news updates, visit www.fairfaxcounty.gov/news. You may also call 703-FAIRFAX, that’s 703-324-7329, weekdays between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. News to Use is produced by the Fairfax County, Virginia, government.