Fertile Ground: Five Basic Rules to Applying Fertilizer to your Lawn

Articles on Lawns | Topics: lawns, lawn, lawncare

by Isiah Quinn

The right fertilizer can make all the difference in your lawn's appearance and texture, but applying the wrong product or applying the fertilizer in the wrong manner may seriously damage your grass. Here are five basic rules that you should keep in mind when planning to apply fertilizer to your lawn.

1. Choose the Right Fertilizer

Because there are so many different soil variations, there are many different varieties of fertilizer. Before choosing a fertilizer for your lawn, you should check the pH level of your soil. You can do so by sending a soil sample off to a lab for analysis or you can get do-it-yourself soil test kit at your local home or garden center. Once you know the levels in your soil, you can fix a fertilizer with the right balance of elements to correct the nutrient levels in your soil.

You can use organic matter to fertilize, but it will be slow releasing and will take some time to adjust the nutrient levels since it is all done naturally. If you choose to buy a non-organic fertilizer (which most gardeners do), then you need to keep three letters in mind: N, P and K. These letters stand for nitrogen (N), phosphorous (P) and potassium (K). All three are essential to good growing conditions and should be present in the right balance in your soil. Nitrogen gives grass its deep green color and also encourages growth. Phosphorous is responsible for promoting root growth. Finally, potassium connects to the stress resistance of the grass. On the bag of fertilizer you choose there will be three numbers these numbers represent the percentage of each element in the fertilizer mix. The numbers will always be presented in the order N-P-K.

When you choose a fertilizer mix, you need to know the nutrient levels in your soil area and you also need to know what kind of a mix your variety of grass requires.

2. Know When and How Often to Fertilize

Different varieties of grass have different fertilizer needs. For some grasses, you will only need to fertilize in the fall. The fall is the ideal time to fertilize because the grass can store energy for the long winter ahead. Fertilizing in the spring can sometimes encourage more growth than the grass roots can keep up with. There are some varieties of grass that require fall and spring and there are other types that require fertilization anywhere from four to six times during the growing season. You need to determine what kind of grass you have and then research how often it requires fertilization.

аHistorical Quote

I’d take off all my clothes
& cross the damp cold lawn & down the bluff
into the terrible water & walk forever
under it out toward the island.

—John Berryman (1914–1972)

3. Measure Your Lawn Space

You need to make sure that you know that size of your lawn. When measuring how much fertilizer you need make sure that you are only figuring out how much lawn you have. You need to subtract the size of your house, driveway and any planted drives from the size of your property to get the size of your lawn. The standard ratio of nutrients to land space should be listed on the side of the fertilizer bag.

4. Apply the Fertilizer Evenly

You want to make sure that you are applying the fertilizer evenly across your lawn. You do not want to end up with too much or too late in any areas. You should use a fertilizer spreader and if you do not own one, you should see about borrowing one from a neighbor or renting one from your local garden center. If you are unsure of what setting to use on the fertilizer spreader, you should consult the bag of fertilizer. Most fertilizers have the settings for the most common spreaders listed on the back of bag.

5. Plenty of Water

You should water right after you apply the fertilizer - within at least 24 hours. Water is needed to activate the fertilizer and to prevent the fertilizer granules from burning your lawn. Many people fertilize just before they expect it to rain, but you need to make sure that enough water makes it onto your grass within 24 hours of fertilizer application. This will ensure that your lawn sustains no damage during fertilization and that you get the lush, green color that you expect.

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Please note: All personal opinions expressed in the "Fertile Ground: Five Basic Rules to Applying Fertilizer to your Lawn" article belong to the contributing author and are not necessarily shared by FlowersPlantsGardening.com.

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