Since fertilization is crucial to keep grass green and healthy, you must know how to avoid over-fertilizing your lawn. Fortunately, it’s as simple as testing your soil, following instructions, and applying fertilizer at the right time and in the right amount.
With the tips you’ll learn here, you can maintain the health of your lawn without overdosing it with fertilizer.
7 Tips on preventing over-fertilization
If you don’t know how to avoid over-fertilizing your lawn, you may accidentally overload the soil with nutrients and burn your grass.
While you can still fix an over-fertilized lawn, it would be better if you could prevent it from happening in the first place. Here are some tips straight from lawn care experts:
1. Know what your lawn needs
Guessing is not an option. Don’t fall into the common misconception that you can simply buy any fertilizer, apply it, and your lawn will be beautiful in no time.
Since not all lawns are the same, you’ll need to test your soil to understand its specific nutrient needs — whether it be one of the primary macronutrients potassium, phosphorus, nitrogen, or micronutrients like calcium and magnesium. If you follow the recommendations on the soil test results, you’re less likely to over-fertilize your lawn.
2. Fertilize at the right time
Timing is another important part of lawn fertilization. That said, you must not apply plant food in harsh weather conditions like extreme heat and heavy rains. Fertilizing your lawn under stressful circumstances can lead to nutrient runoff, poor absorption, or imbalances.
Experts recommend fertilizing when your grass is actively growing:
- The best time to fertilize warm-season grasses like Zoysiagrass and bermudagrass is late spring to early summer. However, you also can apply fertilizer in late summer to early fall as needed.
- For cool-season grasses like Kentucky bluegrass and tall fescue, the best time to fertilize is in late summer to early fall. Then, you can apply winter fertilizer before winter and fertilize again in early to late spring.
Pro tip: Keep a record of your fertilization schedule to monitor your fertilizer applications. Also, log information like the type of fertilizer used and the amount you applied in your record.
3. Follow the instructions on the label
If you’re using a commercially available fertilizer, you can find essential information on its packaging. Apart from the N-P-K (nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium) ratio, you’ll also find application instructions on the fertilizer label.
It’s good to stick to the recommendations of the fertilizer’s manufacturer for the application rates and schedules. However, you also must consult the results of your soil test. This way, you can be certain that you won’t over-fertilize your lawn and cause nutrient buildup in the soil.
4. Reduce fertilizer dosage
If you’re unsure about the amount you need to apply, it’s better to use a smaller dose than the recommended amount. An under-fertilized lawn is easier to fix and has less damaging effects. You just have to add more fertilizer to correct the lack of nutrients.
Pro tip: Unless you urgently need a specific nutrient to save your turf, using a slow-release fertilizer is better. The gradual release of nutrients allows the grass to get the required nutrients without overloading the soil.
5. Apply the right amount of fertilizer for your lawn size
If you don’t measure the actual size of your lawn, you may overestimate its measurements and accidentally over-fertilize it. It’s not uncommon for homeowners to apply more fertilizer than needed because they think their lawn is larger than it actually is.
To avoid this mistake, don’t forget to measure your lawn’s square footage before applying fertilizer. Once you know the actual size of your lawn, you can now calculate the amount of fertilizer you need using this formula:
Fertilizer needed = (N amount of nutrient needed in lbs. / 1,000 sq. ft.) * (1 lb. fertilizer / N percent of nutrient in fertilizer) * area to be fertilized in square feet
For instance, your lawn is around 1,500 square feet and the recommendation in your soil test report is to apply 5 lbs. of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet. If you have a 20-0-0 fertilizer (which means there’s 20% nitrogen and 0% phosphorus and 0% potassium), you’ll need to apply 37.5 lbs. of this inorganic fertilizer to your lawn. The computation is:
Amount of fertilizer needed = (5 lbs. of nitrogen / 1,000 sq. ft.) * (1 lb. fertilizer / 0.20) * 1,500 sq. ft.
6. Use other sources of nutrients
You don’t have to rely solely on inorganic fertilizers to provide the necessary nutrients for your lawn. In fact, you can use a combination of organic and inorganic fertilizers. One of the most common organic fertilizers used by homeowners is grass clippings.
After mowing your lawn, you can leave the grass clippings and let them decompose to return nutrients to the soil naturally. Doing so can reduce the need for additional fertilizer.
According to John Cobourn, water resource specialist, and Heidi Kratsch, landscape horticulture specialist, both from the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension, “If you recycle lawn clippings back into the lawn, use only ½ pound actual nitrogen per 1,000 square feet of lawn for your spring fertilization.”
7. Monitor your lawn
Keeping an eye on your lawn doesn’t mean you’ll have to monitor it 24/7. After applying the fertilizer, you only need to check your lawn once or twice a day for a week or two to ensure everything is as it should be. The following signs will confirm you’ve fertilized your lawn properly:
- Healthy new grass growth
- Minimal thatch buildup
- Better water retention
- No signs of fertilizer burn
- Uniform green color across the lawn
But if you notice brown grass and bald patches, they are obvious signs of over-fertilization. Additionally, over-abundant growth is another sign you might have applied too much plant food.
FAQ about over-fertilized lawns
How do I fix an over-fertilized lawn?
To fix an over-fertilized lawn, you’ll first need to check the extent of the damage to your lawn. Then, you must remove the excess fertilizer and saturate your lawn with water to leach the remaining fertilizer. If it doesn’t fix the issue, you might have to replant the grass in the affected areas.
How long will it take for my over-fertilized lawn to recover?
It depends on the extent of damage to your lawn, but most grasses recover after a few weeks.
Does fertilizer burn affect the environment?
Yes. Apart from harming your lawn, fertilizer burn also has environmental impacts like the emission of harmful gasses into the air and algae blooms that suck out oxygen in surface waters.
Get help from a reliable pro
By following these simple steps, you can easily avoid over-fertilizing your lawn. But if you’re unsure about your fertilization practices or simply don’t want to worry about over-fertilization, don’t hesitate to hire a local pro for expert services.
Also, avoid issues by letting a lawn care pro handle other tasks like dethatching, mowing, and aeration.
Main Image Credit: The Toidi | Adobe Stock | License
