Fertilize the lawn – correct fertilization throughout the year

A winter broom with hard bristles or a rake are the first tools that blades of grass should see after the winter. With these, the surface is cleaned thoroughly but gently. In the process, dried out plant remains are removed, the stalks are separated from one another and matted areas are slightly loosened.

Even after this gentle cleaning, the lawn looks a bit more orderly, even if it is still scruffy and dull.

Fertilizing the lawn – what is important?

After the grass has been cleaned of the remains of winter, the first swell can take place. However, this requires more than an open surface.

Because in order for the lawn to tolerate the fertilization, i.e. to be able to absorb the additionally provided nutrients, it must first become active again. And that is only the case when the temperature is around 15 ° C. Otherwise the fertilizer remains unused or can even cause damage to the roots.

It is therefore important not to fertilize too early, but to wait for the right temperature.

If the thermometer climbs to this value, a special lawn fertilizer with plenty of nitrogen should be used. This nutrient stimulates growth and ensures that the grass can quickly recover from the rigors of winter.

First fertilize – then mow

Fertilizing the lawn should precede any other interventions and treatments in the spring – with the exception of gentle cleaning.

Because as harmless as mowing may seem, injuries are caused to the lawn. Normally these lead to a denser growth. But this is not the case shortly after winter. Instead, the grass is now particularly susceptible to diseases, pests and germs.

The first cut of the year should therefore only be carried out one to two weeks after fertilizing the lawn, even if the grass looks scruffy by then. The reward for your patience at this point is a lush, dense green during the following months.

The scarifying

The vertical cut and de-felting of the lawn is also quite a strenuous operation. As with mowing, you should also wait before scarifying until the lawn has had enough time to absorb the fertilizer.

It is also ideal to keep a short time gap between mowing. Again, one to two weeks are advisable here. As a result, the meadow is not overworked, but is still maintained, grows densely and receives a fresh green.

Fertilizer and water

Lawn fertilizer with a high proportion of nitrogen stimulates growth, but too much damages the lawn and soil. The result is visible burns on the grass that are difficult to compensate for.

Therefore, such a lawn fertilizer should only be used carefully and weakly. This is especially true when fertilizing twice in quick succession.

In addition, it should be watered intensively after fertilizing the lawn. As a result, the nitrogen is distributed more evenly and weaker, there are no locally high concentrations. Even if the lawn fertilizer slips in one place, there is no need to fear burns.

It does not matter whether the lawn is washed with watering cans after fertilization, watered with the garden hose, sprinkled or a heavy rainfall is cut off, the only important thing is that the fertilizer is softened and diluted.

Summer care for the covering green

Playing soccer, barbecuing, running children – the lawn has to withstand a lot in summer. Not to mention the heat and drought.

The lawn should also be fertilized in the summer months. However, other nutrients are now important, nitrogen can take a back seat. Particular attention should be paid to magnesium and calcium, on the one hand these ensure that the lawn is beautiful and lush. On the other hand, they help the meadow to be attacked as little as possible by the heat.

Again, it is advisable to use special lawn fertilizers – ideally long-term fertilizers.

When should summer fertilization take place?
If fertilization has been carried out once in spring, the lawn can be fertilized very early in the summer. About two to three months after the initial nutrient administration is ideal.
Anyone who has resorted to lawn fertilizer twice in spring can now take their time. A time interval of at least three months should be observed.
The timing of summer fertilization also depends on the type of fertilizer used first. It is advisable to follow the manufacturer’s instructions.

Fertilize in the morning, at noon or in the evening?
Just like mowing in summer, lawn fertilization should never be done in the blazing sun. The risk that the lawn will be burned immediately is too great here. In addition, an unnecessarily large amount of water is used during the subsequent flooding.
So it is better to fertilize the lawn in the evening. In this way, the nutrients can be better absorbed into the soil overnight. It’s more gentle on the body anyway.

Flooding in summer
It is very important to water the lawn after fertilizing, especially at high temperatures. And plenty of it. The more it is then washed in, the better the substances pull into the soil. The lower the risk that roots and leaves will be damaged by excessively high concentrations.

Fertilizing the lawn in autumn

Many gardeners strongly advise against fertilizing the lawn again in autumn. Because the nutrients are added to the stalks to grow again, but this is exactly what makes the grasses more sensitive to the approaching frost. Despite this correct and important objection, autumn lawn fertilization should by no means be dispensed with.
However, not every fertilizer should be used. In autumn, the most important thing is that only a small amount of nitrogen gets onto the grass. Instead, plenty of potassium should be used. In this way, the cells are protected, which continues into winter. However, it does not encourage height gain.

This can be achieved with special autumn fertilizers for the lawn. But even this must not be distributed without preparation.

Preparing for winter

Before the lawn is fertilized one last time a year, some preparations are necessary. These not only create an ideal basis for the application of nutrients. They also protect the lawn in winter and ensure that the grasses require less maintenance in the coming year.

These preparations include the following work:

• Clean the lawn, remove all leaves, moss and twigs
• cut the lawn
• Cut lawn edges

In principle, no work is out of sequence. Anyone who rakes and completely mows or cuts their lawn all year round doesn’t have to change anything in autumn.

After the preparatory work steps, the special autumn fertilizer is applied to the lawn and watered again. But only slightly. Otherwise, despite the low concentration of nitrogen, too much of it can get to the roots. So here really only a weak job should be done.

The best time for the last lawn fertilization is from the end of October to the beginning of November. If you no longer have running water in your garden at this point, which is the case in some gardening associations, you should use the weather forecast as a basis for fertilization. If there are heavy rains, the right moment has come.

How to apply additional nutrients?

An even application of the fertilizer is important in order to distribute the nutrients sensibly. In addition, high concentrations in one place can lead to burns, i.e. brown or bald spots.

The easiest way is to use a fertilizer trolley. Of course, it is also possible to apply the lawn fertilizer by hand if you proceed with even spinning movements.

In general, the more even the distribution, the better the result. So it’s worth the effort.

What type of irrigation is best?

As already mentioned, watering the grass after fertilizing the lawn is important in order to distribute the fertilizer evenly and to wash it where it is needed. In addition, watering protects the stalks from chemical burns, which can occur if the surface concentration of the fertilizer is too high.

For these reasons, the flushing must be just as even as the fertilization itself. A garden hose with a concentrated setting is therefore not suitable. Because the water jet would throw up the fertilizer and distribute it unfavorably.

Instead, the lawn can be watered through a watering can with an attachment, automatically sprinkled or watered with a garden hose. If the latter was provided with a diffuser or only slightly opened and partially closed with a finger.

The easiest way, of course, is to sprinkle the lawn.

The benefits of regular weed maintenance

And why all the effort now? Fertilizing the lawn and maintaining it regularly has several advantages. Even if it may sound like more effort at first, it actually saves work and time in the long term.

Fertilizing, mowing, cleaning and scarifying make the lawn more resilient. This applies to pests, diseases and fungal attack. So the meadow not only looks healthier, it is. In addition to the attractive appearance, this has the advantage that the lawn can be heavily used. For example by playing children. Nevertheless, he will always recover quickly. A new sowing is therefore unnecessary.

Just like the additional application of special fertilizers, which are necessary in the event of deficiency symptoms. Anyone who regularly maintains and maintains the lawn saves major interventions that require significantly more time and effort.

Fertilization – children and animals

As good as the fertilizer may be for the lawn, it usually does not apply to humans or animals. The possible consequences range from ugly discoloration of the shoes or paws to burns to the skin and other health consequences. According to the manufacturer’s instructions, the lawn should not be walked on for a while after fertilization. Usually 7 to 14 days are sufficient as a restricted area.

Conclusion
If the lawn is fertilized three times a year, it can be kept healthy and particularly attractive for a long time. And that with minimal effort. If lawn fertilizers that are specially adapted to the season are used and the advice is followed, the grass in your own garden will soon impress with its lush green.