What Type Of Fertilizer Do I Need For My Lawn

Most Common Lawn Nutrients

Almost all lawn fertilizers contain one or more of the three major nutrients required for a lawns optimum growth. The nutrients Nitrogen , Phosphorus , and Potassium are most commonly found in grass fertilizer. Not only are they important to plant growth, but they are also usually the most deficient in natural soils. Each nutrient serves a different purpose for promoting ideal plant growth.

Understanding The Types Of Lawn Fertilizer

Using fertilizer for lawns is an effective way to prevent disease and pest damage and minimize maintenance. But what type of lawn fertilizer should you use?

• There are time-release fertilizers that are beneficial for feeding the lawn over many months and prevent the gardener from having to remember to feed again at a certain time.
• The gradual release also allows plant roots to harvest the nutrients they need slowly, preventing necessary elements from leaching away into the soil. This type of food is easy to apply and minimizes the chance of burning the lawn.
• Granular fertilizers may be time-release or slow-release. Either way, they are popular due to the ease of application.
• Liquid or water-soluble fertilizers are spread using a hose and provide a quick effective way to introduce nutrients rapidly to grassroots.

Many of these forms come in either synthetic or organic forms.

• Synthetic formulas are chemical and offer immediate release and quick greening of the lawn.
• Organic formulas are naturally made from once-living organisms or their byproducts.

The choice is yours on which application type and formula to use on your lawn.

What Is The Best Fertilizer To Use On New Grass Seed

A lush lawn is an exciting prospect when youre thinking about replanting your yard. You want the grass to grow in as thick and green as possible. You want to know which type of fertilizer will do the job the best.

For newly planted grass seed, a starter fertilizer will work best for those early growth stages. As the grass grows, you can move on to stronger, normal-use fertilizers, but those wont provide the proper nutrients for a budding lawn.

Compost is always an excellent fertilizing option, but again, the balance of nutrients for a new lawn might not be enough to ensure firm establishment and full coverage.

In This Article

• What If My Grass Seed Doesnt Grow?

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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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Why Fertilizer Is Important For Your Lawn

Fertilizer provides your lawn with the nutrients that it needs to flourish and thrive. The better the soil that houses your homes grass lawn is, the more rich, fertilizing nutrients your lawn can benefit from, but if you have not conceived and created your lawn from the get-go, you may not have a lawn that is loaded with self-fertilizing goodness.

Even the best soil tends to lose its potency and fertilizing power over time, so its important to fertilize your lawn to ensure that it will continue to grow at a satisfactory rate, as well as remain healthy and as green as possible for as long as possible during the year.

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How Long Does It Take For Fertilizer To Turn Grass Green

Just like over-applying fertilizer will yield negative results quickly, you will also know right away if you have done a good job fertilizing your lawn. If youve fertilized properly, you should start to see results anywhere from 1 to 5 days afterward, depending upon the type of fertilizer you used.

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.

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What Month Should I Fertilize My Lawn

Most lawn care companies recommend that you apply lawn fertilizer in the spring, between February and April. This is when your grass will start to green up as it begins to actively grow. Basically, if it looks like your grass is ready for its first mowing of the season, then it should also be ready for lawn fertilizer.

While most people know to fertilize their lawns in the spring, it is important to remember that fall feeding is critical, too. In the fall, grass roots are going down into the soil and need fertilizer to stay healthy. This is the most important application of fertilizer for the whole year since it will protect your lawn as it goes dormant over winter. However, if the fall you should use a specific fall fertilizer that is slightly higher in phosphorous and potassium, as it will promote better root growth. To ensure optimal lawn health, fertilize heavily in the fall and lightly in early spring.

How To Apply Fertilizer

Fertilizer comes in two forms – liquid and granular. Both are equally effective at fertilizing lawns, however they both have their pros and cons.

Liquid fertilizers work fast, as the fertilizer is quickly absorbed into the roots of the turf. However, liquid fertilizer needs to be applied more frequently and there is a higher chance of burning the lawn if you apply too much fertilizer.

Granular fertilizers are slower to absorb into the soil and roots, meaning it will take longer to improve the health of plants and grass. But, granular fertilizers do not need to be applied as often and there is less chance of burning the lawn.

Liquid fertilizers are often mixed with water in a hand pump sprayer or backpack sprayer, then sprayed onto lawns. Some liquid fertilizers can even be attached to a hose for easy application.

Granular fertilizers are applied to lawns and plant beds with a granular spreader. The lawn should be damp before applying the granules and then watered after the granules have been spread to activate the granules. Be careful not to apply granules in the full summer sun as that can cause fertilizer burn to the lawn.

Learn how to mix and apply liquids and granules in our helpful guide here. For all fertilizers, be sure to read the label of the bottle or bag to ensure the fertilizer is compatible with your grass type and to learn how much to use at a time. Remember, more fertilizer than recommended does not mean faster results.

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When To Apply Popular Uk Fertilizers

Below is a table detailing how often to apply popular U.K. lawn fertilizers such as Miracle-Gro Evergreen and Westland. Please note that some of the fertilizers below contain weedkiller. These can be applied to any type of grass.

Please note that the table below includes Amazon Affiliate links.

*NPK = Nitrogen, Phosphorous, Potassium

Will Regular Fertilizer Harm New Grass Seed

Regular fertilizer will kill new grass since it doesnt provide enough essential phosphorus to get the grass established and may be adding too much nitrogen or potassium for the seeds to use.

Conversely, a starter fertilizer wont provide the right nutrients anymore for mature grass systems once the grass is established.

Some regular fertilizers contain herbicides, weed-killer that doesnt harm established grass. During the germination process, however, the herbicide will disrupt the seeds from sprouting. Be sure not to apply herbicides for several weeks before or after planting grass seed.

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Fertilizer : The Why What How And When To Fertilize Your Lawn

Few words strike fear into the heart of the average homeowner more than fertilizer. With complex terminology and numerous options, it is easy to see how someone can get overwhelmed. Learning the answers to some of the most common fertilizer questions will arm you with the knowledge you need to fertilize your lawn like a pro.

Why should I fertilize my lawn?There are several reasons why you would need to fertilize your lawn. Over time, many lawns will leech nutrients out of their soil. Most nutrients for your lawn are water-soluble. Over time, whether through rain or irrigation, the water will carry these nutrients out of your lawn. This will leave your lawn nutrient deficient, which will leave you with an unhealthy lawn susceptible to disease. In some instances, the soil that the grass is growing in does not have the naturally occurring nutrients that turf needs to grow. If this is the case, fertilizer will be needed in order to maintain a healthy lawn. To determine whether or not your soil is nutrient deficient, you can purchase a soil test kit to learn more about the soil composition. The results of this test will help you determine exactly what type of fertilizer that your lawn needs.

Nitrogen promotes healthy leaf growth by encouraging the production of chlorophyll, which is a chemical vital to photosynthesis.

Phosphorus helps your lawn develop healthy roots and stems.

Potassium gives your lawn strength, helping it to resist drought and disease.

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.

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How To Apply Lawn Fertilizer

There are several ways to apply lawn fertilizer. Using a spreader provides more even coverage than fertilizing by hand. Hand fertilizing often results in burns where the fertilizer is concentrated and pale areas that dont get as much fertilizer as they should.

Broadcast or rotary spreaders are easy to use and dont cause striping like drop spreaders. The advantage to drop spreaders is that there is no chance of overthrow getting fertilizer on streets, sidewalks, or driveways. With a drop spreader, you have to make two trips over the lawn at right angles. For example, if you make your first trip over the lawn in a north-south direction, the second trip should run east to west.

After applying the fertilizer, water the lawn thoroughly. Watering rinses the fertilizer off the grass blades so that they wont burn, and it allows the fertilizer to sink down into the soil so it can get to work. Keep kids and pets off the lawn for the amount of time recommended on the label, which is usually 24 to 48 hours.

Safety While Using Lawn Fertilizer

Most lawn fertilizers are not concentrated enough to cause instant harm, but you still want to make sure you handle them safely and correctly. Be sure you read all directions on both your spreader and the fertilizer bag before beginning. This will ensure you know how to correctly operate the spreader and will let you know if your fertilizer needs to be mixed with anything. Once youve covered your lawn, sweep off fertilizer granules from hard surfaces like sidewalks or roadways to prevent runoff when watering.

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What Happens If I Over

Along with fertilize burn, over-fertilizing can cause damage to your turfs root structure, as well. Some fertilizers contain high levels of nitrogen, which if absorbed in large amounts can become harmful. What mainly causes the dreaded burn, however, is an abundant accumulation of soluble salts.

Lawn Fertilizer Works With Important Nutrients In Soil

In order to have a healthy lawn youll need high soil quality. Using a fertilizer for your lawn is the best way to do so. Over time, your soil will naturally lose many of the important nutrients it needs to survive. If you really want that lush, green lawn, youre going to need to replace them. Fertilizer replaces and replenishes the essentials your lawn needs for a great look.

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Do I Need To Fertilize My Lawn Every Year Yes And Here Are Some Tips On How To Do It Correctly

Your soil supplies some of the nutrients that turf grass needs but most soils are not able to provide all of them during the entire growing season. A healthy and actively growing lawn uses a great deal of energy. Fertilizer helps your lawn stay healthy by promoting new leaf and root growth. Read on to learn more about why it is important to fertilize your lawn.

Why Lawns Need Nutrient Replacement

Very often the cycling of nutrients is cut short on home lawns. This is partially due to necessary maintenance practices needed to produce quality turf. To complicate things further, some turf species and certain turf situations, such as sports turf, require intense maintenance and added nutrients to meet the high level of expectation. This requires the removal of fallen leaves, twigs and branches, and even grass clippings, that would otherwise have returned nutrients back to the soil. Those lost nutrients must be replaced.

What is Fertilizer?

Can I Avoid Fewer Mud Puddles and Patches?

The use of fertilizer will strengthen your grass roots so they can quickly absorb more water than unhealthy roots. This firms your soil and lessens the chances of water pooling to form messy mud puddles and bare patches.

Will Fertilizers Help with Weed Control?

A thick lush lawn with strong roots can choke out weeds by preventing them from taking a foothold in the first place.

Can Fertilizers Encourage Fewer Pest?

A Few Tips to Remember Before Fertilizing

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Choosing Fertilizers For Home Lawns

Burned grass is a drawback of fast release nitrogen fertilizers.

Fertilizing is an important lawn care practice, as it influences grass color, ability to recover from stress, and helps prevent weed invasions and disease. There are important features to consider when choosing lawn fertilizers at the local garden center.

Nitrogen , phosphorus , and potassium are the three major nutrients needed by lawns. Nitrogen is the nutrient required most, although too much nitrogen can cause excessive topgrowth, leading to assorted problems. Percent nitrogen is always the first of three numbers on the fertilizer bag, followed by phosphorus and potassium. For example, a 18-6-12 fertilizer contains 18 percent nitrogen. This number is important because it determines how much fertilizer is needed. In most cases, a rate of one pound of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet is suggested for each fertilizer application to the lawn. If high percentage nitrogen fertilizers are used, then less actual fertilizer product is needed to supply that one pound compared to fertilizers with low percent nitrogen. Recommended ratios of N-P-K for lawn fertilizers include 3:1:2 or 4:1:2.

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Pros And Cons Of Granular Lawn Fertilizer

Granular fertilizers come in the form of tiny particles in a bag. You apply them to your lawn using a fertilizer spreader, without diluting or mixing with water first. Most granular options are slow-release fertilizers, which means they add nutrients to the soil gradually over time instead of all at once.

Winter Lawn Care Tips

While your lawn may not require as much care in the winter as it does in spring, summer, and fall, you dont want to ignore it completely.

While your lawn may not require as much care in the winter as it does in spring, summer, and fall, you dont want to ignore it completely. To ensure it will be in good shape come springtime, youll want to take the following steps.

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No Muss No Fuss Fertilizer For Lawns

The lazy gardener can combine a need for organic, homemade treatment and provide much of the same benefits as purchased products. The easiest way to develop a healthy lawn without adding purchased items is to mow it.

Mow leaves onto the lawn and leave the clippings. If you mow frequently enough, the thatch will not build up because shorter clippings will compost in quicker and start amending the soil and adding nutrients.

The combination of grass clippings and dried leaves hasten the composting process because one is a carbon source and the other is primarily a nitrogen source. This is a one-two punch in the composting world, which breaks down more quickly than nitrogen alone from the clippings.

You may find this the best fertilizer for grass and save some pennies along the way.