--- title: Organic, Sustainable Land Management for Schools description: Learn how Friends' Central School is creating a healthier environment by not using toxic pesticides on our campus, athletic fields, and play areas. image: https://blog.friendscentral.org/hubfs/FCS%20kids%20at%20park.jpg --- - [About Us](http://friendscentral.org/about) - [Admissions](http://friendscentral.org/admission) - [Academics](https://friendscentral.org/academics) - [Athletics](http://friendscentral.org/page.cfm?p=501) - [Arts](https://friendscentral.org/arts) - [Campus Life](https://friendscentral.org/campus-life) - [Request Info](https://info.friendscentral.org/free-guide#_ga=2.50017889.679910470.1731592311-467942295.1720540655) [![FRIENDS' CENTRAL SCHOOL](https://blog.friendscentral.org/hubfs/FriendsCentral%20-Mar2018/Images/text-wide.png) ![FRIENDS' CENTRAL SCHOOL](https://blog.friendscentral.org/hubfs/FriendsCentral%20-Mar2018/Images/text-narrow.png)](https://www.friendscentral.org/) Outstanding Quaker Education Since 1845 | Nursery - 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Through Natural means of adjusting the soil Ph, allowing the grass to grow slightly higher in the offseason, aerating, seeding, watering, incorporating natural fertilizer and close monitoring we have been a pesticide free campus since 1997.  When I first started, one of our fields became infested with clover. I put on my protective clothes and diluted the chemical twice as much as the manufacturer recommended. Overnight, the clover was gone. I should have been thrilled, but I couldn’t stop thinking about children playing on that field and what they might absorb through their skin. --- **Free Downloadable Guide: Take a Closer Look at Friends' Central School ** **[![Download the Guide Now!](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/714359/05af81b1-d7be-43c3-86e4-92ac066bd632.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/714359/05af81b1-d7be-43c3-86e4-92ac066bd632)** --- For this to work, we had to let go of a “Golf Course Mentality” of chemical based, perfectly weed-free fields, but the big upside is that we don’t have to worry about health issues connected to playing on toxic soils. Our fields are both safe and well groomed! ![kids playing in nature](https://blog.friendscentral.org/hs-fs/hubfs/5.13.15_fcs_branscom__080%20(1).jpg?width=364&name=5.13.15_fcs_branscom__080%20(1).jpg) As an experiment, I stepped on crushed garlic and within 10 minutes, I could taste the garlic in my mouth. Everything the school was using was approved for use around children, but I couldn’t stop thinking about what the kids might absorb into their systems through their skin. In 1997, we committed to pesticide-free, organic, and sustainable maintenance of all the school’s athletic fields and inner campus. Weed killers that don’t have to be toxic! A mixture of vinegar and clove kills weeds, smells good, and is safe. I use a mixture of cayenne pepper and garlic to get rid of grubs. The products are now commercially available and I encourage parents to explore their use at home.   Next: [Letting Children Play May Be the Best Class of All](https://blog.friendscentral.org/letting-children-play-may-be-the-best-class-of-all) Previous: [Learning to Change the World](https://blog.friendscentral.org/learning-to-change-the-world) [![Share on facebook](https://7528309.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hub/7528309/hubfs/raw_assets/public/mV0_d-web-default-modules_hubspot/img/facebook-color.png?width=24&name=facebook-color.png)](http://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.instagram.com%2Ffriendscentralschool%2F%3Fhl%3Den%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dfacebook) [![Share on linkedin](https://7528302.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hub/7528302/hubfs/raw_assets/public/mV0_d-web-default-modules_hubspot/img/linkedin-color.png?width=24&name=linkedin-color.png)](https://www.linkedin.com/school/friends'-central-school/) **See what Friends' Central has to offer.** [Early Childhood](https://www.friendscentral.org/academics/lower-school/early-childhood) [Lower School](https://www.friendscentral.org/academics/lower-school) [Middle School](https://www.friendscentral.org/academics/middle-school) [Upper School](https://www.friendscentral.org/academics/upper-school) [Request Info](https://info.friendscentral.org/free-guide#_ga=2.100048030.1618653794.1731936007-1951728694.1731437353) [Visit FCS](https://www.friendscentral.org/admission/admission-events#_ga=2.165592127.1618653794.1731936007-1951728694.1731437353) [Apply Now](https://www.friendscentral.org/admission/apply#_ga=2.65926062.1618653794.1731936007-1951728694.1731437353) [RSS Feeds](https://www.friendscentral.org/news#) [All posts](https://blog.friendscentral.org/all) [Friends' Central School](https://www.friendscentral.org/) Middle & Upper School Campus Grades 6-12 1101 City Avenue Wynnewood, PA 19096 610-649-7440 [Directions](https://www.friendscentral.org/about/directions) [Campus Map](https://www.friendscentral.org/about/middle-upper-map) Lower School Campus Nursery - Grade 5 228 Old Gulph Road Wynnewood, PA 19096 610-642-7575 [Directions](https://www.friendscentral.org/about/directions) [Campus Map](https://www.friendscentral.org/about/lower-map) - [Apply Now](https://www.friendscentral.org/admission/apply) - [Support FCS](https://www.friendscentral.org/support-fcs) - [Request Information](hhttps://info.friendscentral.org/free-guide) - [Privacy Policy](https://www.friendscentral.org/privacy-policy) - [Site Map](https://www.friendscentral.org/site-map) - [Accessibility](https://www.friendscentral.org/accessibility-statement) [Powered by Finalsite](https://www.finalsite.com) ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Doug Linton", "url" : "https://blog.friendscentral.org/author/doug-linton" }, "dateModified" : "2024-04-30T17:02:54.732Z", "datePublished" : "2015-10-15T12:30:00.000Z", "headline" : "Organic, Sustainable Land Management for Schools", "image" : [ "https://blog.friendscentral.org/hubfs/FCS%20kids%20at%20park.jpg" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://blog.friendscentral.org/organic-sustainable-land-management-for-schools", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://blog.friendscentral.org/hubfs/FCS_PrimaryLogo_Navy_rgb.png" }, "name" : "Friends' Central School" } } ```