Fine-tune your lawn care schedule to get the most out of fertilizer applications.
Lawn fertilizer provides the essential nutrients yourtype of grassneeds to grow and thrive.
Here’s how to determine the best time to fertilize your lawn.
Credit: Getty Images/E+/Bill Grove
Valerie Smithis a content strategist atSod Solutions.
What Are Cool-Season And Warm-Season Lawns?
Before fertilizing, determine if you have a cool-season or warm-season lawn (or both).
The active growth period for these two classes of turfgrass differs significantly.
Warm-season grasses are dormant in winter and have a flush of growth when spring arrives.
They flower and set seed in summer to early fall before the cold weather returns.
Warm-season grasses include zoysia, St. Augustine, centipede grass, buffalo grass, and Bermuda grass.
Overseeding requires some adjustments to the fertilizing schedule.
Stop fertilizing the Bermuda grass in early to mid-September, around 30 days prior to seeding cool-season grasses.
Wait to fertilize the newly seeded cool-season lawn until two weeks after seedlings emerge.
Fertilizing your lawn too often can harm the roots as nutrients build up in the soil.
It can also encourage pest problems.
“Excessive fertilization can lead to fungus issues and increase the likelihood of run-off.
Overfeeding your lawn is wasteful economically and harmful environmentally,” Smith says.
On the other hand, a well-fed lawn gives environmental benefits, she says.
This is why timing and frequency of fertilizer applications are critical.
Most lawns require only two to three fertilizer applications per year.
Apply at the recommended rate andspread fertilizer carefully using a rotary or drop-throw in spreader.
It is also a good practice to leavegrass clippingson the lawn.
As they decompose, the clippings return nutrients back into the soil.
There are also times when you shouldn’t fertilize.
A light rain typically won’t affect the fertilizer, but heavy rain can wash the fertilizer away.
If rain is in the forecast, wait to fertilize another day.
Yes, it’s best to mow your lawn before applying fertilizer so it can easily reach the soil.
Remove leaves, long grass, and other debris from the lawn before fertilizing for optimal results.
