What Kind Of Lawn Fertilizer Do I Need

Whats The Best Lawn Fertilizer To Use

Whats The Best Lawn Fertilizer To Use?

Scotts Green Max Fertilizer. If you want easy and quick green grass, then Scotts Green Max is the fertilizer for you. Miracle-Gro Lawn Food. This is one of the most popular lawn fertilizers for a reason. Safer Brand 9333 Ringer Fertilizer. Milorganite 0636 Fertilizer. Scotts Turf Builder.

The Andersons Pgf Complete 16

If you are looking to make a complete formula for a humic acid fertilizer, The Andersons brand is right for you. It has an NPK ratio of 16-4-8 which is ideal if you want a lush, green lawn.

One 18-pound bag covers five thousand square feet of grass. Often, you have super-fine particles, so more is put per square foot. This ensures an even treatment of the area.

The recipe for gradual release ensures you can prepare your lawn for around eight weeks without needing to re-fertilize the weed. That can save you a great deal of time and money.

The fertilizer contains humic and fulvic acid. That is vital for enriching the soil. Your plants can always absorb the nutrients faster and quicker.

This offers you the answers you want without having to wait a long time. Please remember that this drug is not available for sale in South Dakota and California. Those who live elsewhere can use it on any grass type.

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How To Apply Lawn Fertilizer In Summer For Grass

There are crucial items to learn about when it comes to spreading your lawn fertilizer during the season. You will ask what type of grass you have, what the environment is, what sort of fertilizer you need, and how you want the lawn to look like.

Every part of the world has its own special atmosphere. In Illinois, for example, its very humid and dry, with temperatures fluctuating all day long. Temperatures are fairly unchangeable in areas like Idaho, so there is also less humidity.

Or how the fertilizer functions, the atmosphere will make a difference. You might also have a particular form of lawn owing to the climate you reside in.

The main forms are warm-season and cool-seasonal grasses. Hot season grasses can, of course, include Zoysia and Bermuda.

They flourish throughout the season and are really bright. Besides, grasses are spreading, and they scatter across the lawn and appear like vineyards.

Those grasses typically have brown leaves throughout the autumn. But in the spring and summer, they light up again. You need to apply the fertilizer just before that greening happens.

With cool-season grasses, you may notice that they can tolerate the changes in the weather. They have a stronger immunity to famine and illness, too. Examples of cool grasses from the season can include rye, fescue, and bluegrass.

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Types Of Fertilizer Spreaders

Those are the products. But what about the equipment? You can spread your fertilizer using multiple types of tools. Heres a breakdown.

• Hand-held spreaders: Best for small lawns, hand-held spreaders are powered by a crank or battery and spread fertilizer while you walk.
• Broadcast/rotary spreaders:These are the most common. As you push a broadcast spreader, it releases the fertilizer in an overlapping pattern across a broad swath of grass. Theyre best for medium and large lawns, because they allow you to spread a lot of fertilizer in a short amount of time. Pull-behind spreaders are a subset of broadcast spreaders that you pull instead of push.
• Drop spreaders: These spreaders are better for precision, especially if you have tighter turns or sophisticated landscaping. Instead of spreading the fertilizer ahead, drop spreaders drop the fertilizer directly beneath them as you push.

Use A Lawn Starter Fertilizer

A lawn starter fertilizer is formulated so that of the three main ingredients in fertilizer phosphorus is the most abundant nutrient. This is important because phosphorus drives grass root growth. A lawn starter fertilizer will encourage your grass seedlings to take root quickly. This will make them hardy and established, whether you overseed in late spring or fall.

• Use this lawn starter fertilizer for new grass seed.
• Lawn starter fertilizer has high phosphorus content to promote seedling root growth.
• Do not use a fertilizer designed for mature grass. These often contain little to no phosphorus.

A standard fertilizer used for established lawns does not make for a good lawn starter. These formulas contain very little phosphorus because mature grass has already established roots. Some fertilizers for established warm-season grass lawns even contain no phosphorus at all. If you dont use a lawn starter fertilizer on your seedlings, they wont develop strong roots and may die.

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How To Match Fertilizers And Goals

Fertilizers come in many different formulations to feed lawns and meet other goals. Pennington UltraGreen lawn fertilizers provide lawn grasses with an ideal blend of plant nutrients in superior forms.

These premium lawn fertilizers deliver quick greening and extended feeding. Half of the nitrogen in this line* is stabilized, which means less nitrogen is lost to the environment and your grass can use more of the fertilizer you feed. The other half releases slowly to continue feeding your lawn for up to three months.

• Pennington UltraGreen Lawn Fertilizer 30-0-4 promotes thick, green grass in all types of established lawns. It’s also phosphorus-free to protect water sources from unnecessary excess lawn phosphorus.
• Pennington UltraGreen Crabgrass Preventer Plus Fertilizer III 30-0-4 feeds grass with phosphorus-free fertilizer and prevents crabgrass seeds from germinating and establishing.
• Pennington UltraGreen Starter Fertilizer 22-23-4, designed specifically to help new lawn grass establish, contains plentiful phosphorus and a higher percentage of potassium. These two nutrients support the development of strong, vigorous new roots and vigorous overall growth.

Weed & feed products handle active weeds in established lawns.

When And How To Fertilize Your Lawn

In some ways, lawns are a lot like people. Operating at the peak of beauty and performance requires a good diet and proper care. Lush, thick, green lawns depend on properly timed, properly balanced nutrition to look and grow their best. Understanding when and how to fertilize your lawn can help you and your grass stand out from the rest.

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The Benefits Of Fertilization

Not all types of soil provide the necessary nutrients for the lawn. In addition, over time, nutrient storage decreases. Natural grass consumes a lot of energy and is very sensitive to the lack of nutrients.

The use of fertilizer is a very important cultural practice in the maintenance of your lawn coupled with good watering and proper mowing. Here are the benefits of fertilization:

• It helps avoid problems of deficiencies or excess nitrogen .
• It stimulates root growth
• It reduces nitrogen loss by washing and it minimizes contamination of groundwater due to excess nitrates.
• It improves the resistance of the lawn against attacks by pests and diseases.
• The continuous mowing to which the grass is subjected requires a correct supply of nutrients to help it recover.
• It compensates for the loss of nutrients caused by filtration, volatilization and the grass’s own consumption.
• It helps reduce and control weeds.

What Is Lawn Fertilizer

Here I am talking about products that only contain nutrients or soil amendments. Those being N-P-K and/or micronutrients and carbon or bio-stimulants. We are not talking about weed and feeds which contain fertilizer + weed control, or other dual use products. Its important to understand that fertilizer is just nutrients and amendments for the lawn. If you need to kill weeds, bugs or fungus, I recommend applying those as separate treatments in summer.

Confused already? Please review this blog post I wrote earlier this season that talks about the basics of lawn fertilizer. If you are a beginner, it will arm you with the knowledge needed when heading to the store.

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Think Twice Before Fertilizing Your Lawn This Fall

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In Eastern North Carolina, we mostly have warm-season grasses such as Bermuda, Centipede, Zoysia and St. Augustine grasses. Warm-season grasses are different from cool-season grasses in that warm-season grasses actively grow during the summer and go dormant in the winter months, while cool-season grasses are actively growing during the spring and fall months.

A common lawn question is do I need to fertilize my lawn in the fall. An application of a potassium fertilizer in the fall can help winterize a lawn.

Jessica Strickland is an Agriculture Extension Agent, specializing in horticulture for North Carolina Cooperative Extension in Wayne County.

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Diy Fall Lawn Maintenance Steps

Fall lawn maintenance doesnt have to be difficult. But, it does require some know-how about products, techniques and timing to keep your lawn at its best throughout all the seasons of the year. Heres a list of steps that any do-it-yourself homeowner can follow to maintain their lawn in the fall and ensure lush grass the following spring.

• Aerate your lawn in early or mid-September if the soil is compacted. This will loosen up the soil and help the grass roots receive as much water, oxygen and trace nutrients from the soil as possible.
• Fertilize in mid-September , using a nitrogen-rich fertilizer product.
• Apply a pre-emergent weed killer to your grass a few days after fertilizing to head off the growth of winter weeds. But, be aware of how long pre-emergents last and when to reapply this product.
• Consider applying a second round of fertilizer in mid- to late-October, with a higher potassium content. This will help your grass grow stronger roots that can absorb more nutrients from the soil and store them up for a long winter.
• Keep mowing and watering regularly throughout the fall to help your grass rebuild strong roots after the heat of summer. This will also help to choke out winter weeds, since the best way to keep weeds at a minimum is to have lush, thriving grass.

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When To Put Fertilizer On Lawns

All lawns need fertilizer in early spring when the grass begins to green up. Your fertilization schedule for the rest of the season depends on the type of grass in your lawn, the type of fertilizer you use, and your climate. Most lawn seed is a mixture of several different types of grasses, and both spring and fall fertilization are appropriate.

The label on a bag of lawn fertilizer will recommend a schedule based on the type of fertilizer it contains. The label is your best guide to how often to apply the product and how much to use. As long as you dont overdo it and avoid fertilizing in the hottest part of summer, your lawn should thrive.

Pros & Cons Of Diy Fertilizers

Pros:

Budget-friendly:Doing it yourself is less costly than hiring a professional, so if your budget is your top priority, DIY is your friend. Health and exercise: Fertilizing can be good for fitness, since you do the labor yourself. You want to do some curls with the fertilizer bag? Go for it. Time outdoors: Often, we dont take enough advantage of the sunshine. Fertilizing is a good excuse to get outside and get your hands dirty.

Cons:

Investment in equipment and products: Even though the DIY approach may be cheaper, you may end up spending money on equipment and products that you use so rarely that its not worth it. Time and effort investment: Fertilizing takes time and energy you could spend on something else. Risk of poor results: Without experience, you could see poor results, or worse, over-fertilize and hurt your lawns health.

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Does Lawn Fertilizer Expire

The short of this is no, fertilizer, if stored correctly, truly doesnt expire. Fertilizer should be stored in a cool, dry environment. Granular fertilizers will absorb moisture in humid conditions and form hard, rock like clumps, but as long as they havent been soaked and allowed to drain, then your nutrients havent been lost and all you have to do it break it up with a hammer.

Liquid fertilizers will settle and will need to be shaken well before application, but will be just as good as if they were new.

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Water Deeply But Not Too Often

• Too much watering can lead to poor growing conditions and disease problems.
• Water only when your lawn needs it, usually no more than once a week when there is no rainfall.
• Apply at least 2.5 cm of water. Put a tuna or pet food can on your lawn to measure how much you’ve watered. Stop watering when it’s full.
• Consider the soil type and surface features. Grass growing on compacted, fine soil or on slopes needs lighter, more frequent watering.

The Complete Guide To Lawn Fertilizer Services

Fertilization is key for a healthy, thriving lawn, but it can take a lot of work and expertise. Consider hiring a professional lawn fertilizer service to get a gorgeous, healthy lawn.

If youre thinking about fertilizing your lawn and feeling like youre in over your head, its time to call in the professionals. Lawn care companies know exactly what type of fertilizer your lawn needs, how much to apply, and when and how often to apply it. Your specialist can set your lawn up for success with all the nutrients it needsand may even guarantee the treatment will take.

There are many lawn companies out there that offer lawn fertilizer services, but they arent all equal. This Old House Reviews Team recommends TruGreen, an industry leader with nationwide reach and a variety of annual packages for comprehensive lawn care. If youd like a quote from TruGreen, call 1-866-817-2287 or fill out this simple form.

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Can You Over Fertilize Your Lawn

Can I put too much fertilizer on my lawn? Applying too much fertilizer to your lawn will cause the nitrogen and salt levels in the soil to increase rapidly, which can damage or even kill the grass. When this happens, it is known as fertilizer burn and looks like yellow and brown strips or patches of dead grass.

Characteristics Of Nitrogen Fertilizers For Home Lawns

In addition, a variety of special lawn fertilizers may be found. Winterizer fertilizers are typically high in potassium, and although advertised for fall application can be applied in spring as well. Potassium is used all year by grasses, and is involved in heat and cold tolerance, disease resistance, and other stress tolerances. Weed and feed products contain a broadleaf weed killer for weeds such as dandelions others contain a preemergence herbicide to control crabgrass . Lawn starter products, typically high in phosphorus, are intended for newly seeded lawns and freshly laid sod.

There are a variety of organic sources of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium available to the homeowner. As mentioned earlier most organic fertilizers are derived from plant or animal sources. Plant sources would include alafalfa and cottonseed meal and seaweed. Examples of animal sources would include bone meal and the manures from chickens, cows and horses. Yet another source comes directly from mother nature in the form of rock phosphate for a source of phosphorus and green sand for a source of potassium. Find and use products that are locally available whenever possible to keep the input costs down.

In this section : Planting and Maintenance

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