Jerry Baker's What's Growin' On?

Over the course of the last couple of weeks, between one lawn mowing and the next, huge amounts of pollen, dust, and dirt got blown onto my grass from who-knows-where. And, as every allergy-suffering lawn keeper can imagine, a lot of that crud flew right up into my face. Heck, even when I’m not the one manning the mower, lately I’ve been getting clobbered by particles that drift into my house through the open doors and windows.

Well, it turns out you don’t have resort to paving your whole yard to alleviate your allergy woes. Here are a couple of easy ways to ease your discomfort on mowing day—and all summer long:

• Mask your mug. Protect yourself from allergy overload by wearing an inexpensive facemask (available at any drugstore) every time you head outside to mow.
• Mow low. Keep your grass cut to a height less than 2 inches.
• Shut ‘em up. Close your windows before you start mowing, and leave them closed for a few hours after the job is done. And this means all windows, not just those on the ground floor.
• Rely on shower power. As soon as you’re done mowing, hit the shower to shampoo and suds away all the pollen that’s clinging to your hair and skin.

And here’s a landscape-enhancing way to nip seasonal allergies in the bud: Next time you plant new shrubs or trees, plant only female varieties. You’ll cut back on sneezin’ and wheezin’ because it turns out the male plants are the ones that release huge amounts of pollen into the air, hoping for a female of the same species to snag the particles with her flowers.

For even more lawn-lovin’ tips, tricks, and tonics, check out my All-American Lawns book—FREE for 21 days.