How to Fertilize a Lawn
- 1). Time fertilizing to meet your lawn's needs. Let the lawn green up and mow it once or twice before applying a lawn food formula in spring.
- 2). Choose a lawn fertilizer made for your type of turf grass. Read the label to be sure it lists your grass (bluegrass or zoysia, for instance) and to see how often you can use it.
- 3). Use "new lawn" or "starter" formulas for seed, sod or sprigged lawns less than 2 years old. You'll appreciate the thickening effect they deliver in the first seasons.
- 4). Select slow-release, granular complete fertilizers for established lawns - they deliver a consistent supply of nutrients during the lawn's fastest growth times. Avoid fertilizers that have only one ingredient (such as nitrogen or potassium) unless a soil test indicates you should apply them.
- 5). Borrow or buy a fertilizer spreader and be sure you understand how to calibrate it for your lawn's favorite granular food. Walk behind the spreader at a good pace (but don't run), and make a pattern that covers each area of the lawn only once.
- 6). Know that water-soluble lawn food doesn't last long in the soil, and plan to reapply it as directed on the label. Spray with caution - cover each section only once to avoid overfeeding.
- 7). Fertilize at least one more time during the growing season, and apply a winter formula in early fall if one is recommended for your lawn grass. Don't worry if you forget, though - research says that once a year, whenever you remember, is fine for established turf.
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