Spring fertilizer: when and how to fertilize the lawn in spring

If you want to look forward to a healthy lawn in the summer months, you should pay particular attention to the timing and procedure when fertilizing in spring. A lawn is more sensitive than many gardening enthusiasts think and the care of the lawn is made much easier by the right fertilization. The lawn offers a fresh blanket of grass that looks appealing in the garden.

The best time to fertilize

Lawn has to be fertilized several times a year, but March is ideal for fertilizing in spring. From March the lawn should be cleaned before fertilization. For this purpose, branches, remaining leaves and moss are removed from the lawn to enable the grass to absorb oxygen and sun. It is still possible to clean the lawn during the frost. The fertilization itself also takes place from the end of March, when there is no longer any risk of frost.
Pay attention to the weather in your area to see when there is no risk of frost or snow. If you want to be on the safe side, you should fertilize towards the end of March or beginning of April, after the first mowing, scarifying and drying of the soil. You should also let the soil rest for some time after sowing. This procedure creates the best conditions for the fertilizer to be absorbed by the roots.

An alternative - fertilizing in late spring

You can also fertilize the lawn at the end of May. This is mainly due to the type of grass that is used for the lawn in Germany. Since most grasses on German soil have to withstand cold winters and warm to hot summers, fertilizing at the beginning of spring can be counterproductive. Because during the spring awakening the grasses start to develop a new root system around them To keep robust in the ground, fertilizing can burn the grass or a weak growth to lead. Here it is advisable to fertilize only towards the end of May. In the months from March to May, the lawn had enough time to rebuild and thus benefits more from the fertilizer. This method is particularly recommended for locations that are particularly cold in winter or for Lawns that were fertilized very late in autumn and the active ingredients in the soil for several months jam.

The choice of fertilizer

There are different types of fertilizer on the market that contain a large number of mineral substances. In contrast, there are purely organic fertilizers, of which a larger amount is required, but which does not pollute the soil or the grass. Four different types of fertilizer can be mentioned here:

• Long-term fertilizer
• Starter fertilizer
• Fertilizer with added minerals
• Organic fertilizer

Long-term fertilizer explained

Long-term fertilizers and fertilizers that contain iron or other mineral substances, for example, are among the typical variants that the market has to offer. The long-term fertilizer has an extremely high concentration of ingredients and should be used very sparingly. It is the simplest form of all fertilizers and is marketed as lawn fertilizer. There is also lawn fertilizer for the different seasons and so also for spring. These enrich the soil with a variety of substances that are supposed to promote the growth of the grasses. If you do not want to think about a suitable fertilizer for a long time, you can choose the slow release fertilizer, but use it very sparingly.

What is a starter fertilizer?

The starter fertilizer, on the other hand, is a classic fertilizer for spring, which is effective for lawns that have suffered from extreme weather conditions in winter. They have a high content of phosphorus, which quickly spreads in the soil and restores the grasses. Thanks to the phosphorus, the grasses can form roots more quickly, which also means a healthy lawn. These solutions also contain a lot of nitrogen and also minerals. In comparison, there are also fertilizers that are designed for certain mineral and nutrient deficiencies. But before resorting to such fertilizers, you need to be clear about what the problem with the lawn is.

Are Organic Fertilizers Better?

If you do not want to fertilize your lawn with industrially manufactured or chemical agents, you should switch to organic variants. Compost from plant parts, kitchen scraps and other organic waste can be ideally used for fertilization and offers the lawn a gentle alternative to the conventional variants. Since plant parts are broken down into compost by microorganisms, the organic fertilizer has them all necessary nutrients that the lawn needs and do not have too high concentrations of mineral Fabrics. Advantages of organic fertilizers:

• Lasts for up to three months
• Creates a robust sward
• Use in water protection zones possible
• Weed infestation lower
• The fertility of the soil and lawn is strengthened
• Natural nutrient supply

Fertilize properly

When fertilizing, the most important thing is not to use too much fertilizer, but to cover the entire lawn. With the following instructions you are on the safe side when fertilizing your lawn.

1. After selecting the appropriate fertilizer, preparing the lawn and sowing new seeds, fertilizing can begin. Water the lawn extensively about a week beforehand so that the grasses do not suffer from a lack of water.

2. You can spread the fertilizer either by hand or with a spreader. The spreader is effective for large lawns and also makes your work easier. Since no liquid fertilizer is used for a lawn, this method is always recommended. Tip: fill the spreader away from the lawn or in a tub. In this way you avoid unnecessary loss of fertilizer and quickly collect it again if something goes wrong.

3. If you use a mineral fertilizer from the hardware store or garden center, you must absolutely pay attention to the dosage information. It is better to use a little less fertilizer than suggested on the package, in order to avoid overfeeding.

4. Be careful with the distribution. Give yourself enough time to really fertilize all areas of the lawn, otherwise bald spots will appear afterwards.

5. Only fertilize when there is no threat of heavy rain. The rainwater could wash out the fertilizer and ruin your work.

6. After fertilizing, give the lawn enough time to rest. That said, you shouldn't mow it for a while to encourage growth. This creates a dense, lively lawn that can develop.

Tip: After fertilizing, you are welcome to re-sow additional seeds. If the soil temperature remains constantly above 8 ° C, the seed closes existing gaps in the lawn.

The mulching

If you choose to use an organic fertilizer, mulching will allow you to provide the lawn with nutrients for a long time without re-fertilizing. All you need for mulching is a lawnmower that chops the lawn very small compared to other machines. This creates tiny plant residues that remain on the lawn. Together with an organic fertilizer, for example compost, the nutrients work better in the soil and the grasses only take the nutrients they need. Mulching is a time-saving and inexpensive method, even if you don't have compost. Compost can be bought at the garden center or hardware store and can easily be used for mulching.

Do not mulch with animal manure

When mulching a lawn, it is not recommended to use animal manure as a compost substitute. The lawn wouldn't necessarily suffer, but your nose would suffer even more. In addition, there would be an increased infestation of insects and microorganisms, which is counterproductive for a well-tended lawn. Tip: Do not mulch immediately after mowing the lawn for the first time in spring. Use only the compost as fertilizer and mulch later in the spring.

What to do in the event of overfertilization?

If too much mineral fertilizer has been used, the lawn can suffer from a variety of symptoms, all of which are easily noticeable. Look for the following signs to tell if your lawn is over-fertilized:

• Lawn "burns" (brown spots in the lawn)
• Excessive formation of dandelions
• Excessive formation of sorrel
• Strong moss formation
• Other weeds occur more frequently
• Grass looks pale

Depending on the type of fertilizer and the amount used, these symptoms can occur. On the one hand, the lawn is not healthy as a result and overloaded with substances that it cannot process. In addition, the infested lawns look unsightly or insufficiently cared for, which of course also works against the aesthetic sense of the gardener.

What is "burned" lawn?

Brown, dry stalks are a sign of classic overfertilization. With these symptoms, the lawn looks like it has received too much sun because the stalks are dry and brown. The lawn looks "burned" because the grasses cannot handle the amount of fertilizer that has been applied. This phenomenon occurs only with chemical or mineral fertilizers, as these have the Pump up the soil with a load of nutrients and put an extreme load on the individual types of grass can.

Pale lawn

On the other hand, if the grass is pale, it is caused by an overdose of lime. The lime pulls from the soil into the plant and pale, whitish spots appear on the lawn. Lime is an essential component of many fertilizers, but the use of lime is particularly recommended for sandy or loamy soils. Therefore, in normal soil that is neither too sandy nor too loamy, fertilizers with high concentrations of lime should be avoided.

Mosses and weeds

Mosses grow faster when they are supplied with iron. Since iron is a typical component in fertilizers, it can often lead to an increased formation of mosses. Weeds of all kinds, on the other hand, benefit greatly from nitrogen, which is found in many commercially available fertilizers. Before buying the fertilizer, look at the amount of nitrogen and iron that is on average.

Protect the lawn from over-fertilization

Water is the best way to effectively counter the fertilizer. Pay special attention to your lawn after fertilizing to quickly discover areas that seem over-fertilized. The smaller the over-fertilized area, the better. This makes it easier to flush the fertilizer out of the ground. Take a garden hose and water the infected area over a period of several days. To speed up this process, it is worth scarifying the ground beforehand and then watering it. Scarifying allows the earth to breathe and the increased uptake of oxygen means that the fertilizer is broken down more quickly.
What to do in the event of a widespread overfertilization?
If the entire lawn is infested or a very large area so that the use of a single garden hose is not an option, proceed as follows.

• Mow the lawn to about four inches
• scarify
• water (about 15 liters of water per m²)
• check after two weeks

This procedure flushes all fertilizer out of the ground and prepares the grasses for a strong growing season. However, if this is not the case, the substrate must be replaced. Depending on the infestation, this is the only solution in the case of over-fertilization.