There may be a whole world of specialized fertilizers out there for specific lawn needs, but in general there are two categories: synthetic or organic fertilizers and both are usually aimed at increasing the levels of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium in your lawn. The synthetic fertilizers you can buy at the store come in granular or liquid form. For the granular fertilizer, you can buy a hopper or a spreader to disperse the fertilizer over your lawn. For the liquid fertilizer, you can buy a sprayer to spray it over all your grass.
Organic fertilizer, as we discussed earlier, is typically mulch. Mulch is grass clippings that typically go into your lawn mower bag and that most homeowners throw away. However, if you mulch it – or chop it up into tiny pieces – you can reapply it to your lawn and it contains some key nutrients like nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium for your lawn.
Reading Fertilizer Labels
When you read the store bought fertilizer label you may see something called an N-P-K ratio. That refers to the three main nutrients lawns need that are found in fertilizers – nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. A ratio of 3:1:2 or 4:1:2 is great for most warm season grasses and cool season grasses.
If your lawn has specific needs, select a fertilizer based on those needs. You can use the results of your home soil test to determine whether you need a special ratio of nutrients or whether the usual fertilizer will work just fine!
Leave a Reply