The Macatawa Watershed Project recently added Top Cut Lawn Care Services to the list of ten other lawn Care and landscaping Companies in the area that hold the Macatawa Watershed Seal of Approval.

The Seal of Approval is awarded to lawn care and landscaping companies that agree to employ water quality friendly lawn care practices including:

• Making every attempt to use no phosphorus fertilizer, 
• Measuring the lawn to make sure the correct amount of fertilizer is applied,
• Cutting the grass no shorter than three inches,
• Applying a three-foot buffer strip of no fertilizer near a body of water, 
• Leaving no grass clippings on impervious surfaces (if taken off site clippings are stored  properly in an area that is not susceptible to runoff),
• Keeping customers aware of Best Practices,
• Providing the customer a schedule for mowing and watering if the resident participates in the maintenance of the lawn, and
• Are in good standing with the Michigan Department of Agriculture if the company is required to be licensed by them.

High levels of phosphorus, a naturally occurring element present in fertilizer and plant decay, is causing major harm to the Macatawa Watershed. All the land that drains to Lake Macatawa including all or part of Laketown, Fillmore, Overisel, Holland, Park, Zeeland, Port Sheldon, Olive, and Blendon Townships and the cities of Holland and Zeeland, comprise the Macatawa Watershed, and residents and businesses in those areas should be aware of their lawn care practices.

To help reduce phosphorus from entering the watershed, we ask that lawn care and landscaping be contracted through one of the companies who have been awarded the Macatawa Watershed Seal of Approval: AAA Lawn Care, Aesthetic Gardener LLC, Brookview Lawn Care, Carefree Lawn Service, Dale’s Mowing Service, Four Seasons Cottage and Home Services, Hollandia Gardens, Landscape Design Services, Inc., Mr. Greenthumb Landscaping & Lawn Care, Perma Green Lawn Care, Inc., and Top Cut Lawn Care.

Tim Keeler
Top Cut Lawn Care
163 152^nd Avenue, Holland, MI
(616) 218-9572

Lake Macatawa Clean Up
Saturday October 8 at 1 p.m.
Kollen Park – at the end of West 11th Street and Kollen Park Drive
Meet at the east end of the park

Join Outdoor Discovery Center staff at Kollen Park for the Annual Clean Up of Lake Macatawa and the Macatawa River. ODC will provide kayaks for groups on the water, while other groups will clean up along the shores. The Macatawa Area Coordinating Council sponsors the event and will be providing a pizza dinner following the clean up to thank volunteers for their help. Please consider volunteering and help make our watershed healthy!

Sign up by calling (616) 393-9453

To All Local Farmers:

Fall Farmer Event
Thursday October 6^th at 5:30pm
(RSVP by September 30^th to Mary Fales at 616-395-2688 or mfales@the-macc.org)

The Macatawa Area Coordinating Council, Macatawa Watershed Project will be hosting our Fall Farmer Event at the Piper Restaurant on South Shore Drive in Holland, MI. Dinner and dessert will be provided.

Evening discussion will include:

$665,000 Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Grant: (Cost-share funding from local farmers only) – Presented by Mary Fales, Watershed Coordinator

Sediment Sampling Study – Presented by Dr. Graham Peaslee, Hope College

Cover Crops: Increase your yield, improve soil and save money – Presented by Dave Robison, Midwest Cover Crops and Forage Agronomist

Address of the Restaurant:
2225 South Shore Drive
Holland, MI

Sponsored by:

Hamilton Farm Bureau, Zeeland Farm Services, and Michigan Farm Bureau

Please remember to RSVP by September 30!