Fertilizing your Lawn  By, Jerry Naiser

As the grass begins to grow, some people cant wait to fertilize their lawns. Its better to wait until March  or April, as the lawns are just waking up and re-establishing their root system. Early fertilization stimulates leafy vegetative growth at the expense of the root system. Brown patch is also likely to form on grasses that are fertilized early with a quick release Nitrogen. If you haven’t had your soil tested in the last couple of years, this is a good time to do it, prior to adding any chemicals. Think of it this way: Would you add oil or water to your car without first checking the level?

Testing your soil, is a service we can provide. Give me (Jerry) a call or drop me an e-mail at : Jerry@RealGreenLawns.com and I will set it up for you.

When fertilizing your lawn, a slow release fertilizer is preferred. Fast acting, high Nitrogen fertilizers are often used by professional lawn care services to provide that quick green up to please their clients. This causes long term dependence on these services, and increases the risk of fungal and insect problems, that the plants cannot deal with.

 Ideally,  instead of repeatedly applying fertilizers, you should be concentrating on building healthy soil. Healthy soil is the key to healthy plants.  Have your soil checked, then apply what is needed, without applying to excess.