If you have pets that spend time in your yard, it's important that you're careful about the landscaping in the area. Before you treat your lawn for anything, you need to be sure that anything you use is pet-friendly. Here are some tips to ensure that your yard is a safe environment for your pets.

Be Careful What You Fertilize With

Fertilizer can be toxic to your household pets if you don't apply it properly. To avoid the risk of making your pets ill or worse, skip the synthetic fertilizer products and choose natural ones instead. Organic and all-natural fertilizer will give you the same benefits without the risk to your pets. Look to cattle or horse manure to add nitrogen to your soil in a natural way. Opt for wood ash if you need to add some potassium, and create a compost bin for your yard and garden to make the most of your own household waste.

Use Companion Planting To Prevent Pet-Irritating Pests

Your yard can be a great environment for fleas, mites and other types of pests. Sometimes, this leads to infestations on your pet. The good news is that you can plant some things around your yard to help keep a lot of the most common culprits at bay. For example, adding basil around your tomato plants will discourage mosquitoes and flies that could bite your pets. You can keep aphids and mites out of the yard by growing chives, and you may even be able to discourage white flies with marigold beds.

Don't Use Traditional Pesticides

While most people think that all pesticides are poison, that isn't the case. Yes, every pesticide product is toxic in its own right because each one kills certain pests. However, you need to choose pesticides that aren't going to be dangerous to your pets. After all, if they walk through your yard, eat the grass or sleep under a tree, they are going to be exposed to the same product you just applied to the yard. Choose products that are safe for use around pets, and read the labels closely to find out if you need to keep the animals off the grass for any period of time after application.

If you're concerned about making the wrong choices for your yard and you want to have some confidence that your pets are safe, call a local landscape company today. They can help you choose pet-friendly fertilizers and pesticides. They can also recommend other plants and items you can grow to help naturally discourage critters too.