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What Makes Grass Greener Without Excessive Growth?

Gardeners fertilizer their lawns for promoting healthy growth, maintaining a green color and helping their grass tolerate disease. Complete fertilizers contain three macronutrients: Nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium. Understanding more about what nutrient you need for green grass helps when choosing a fertilizer. Pick the right type of fertilizer that does not encourage excessive growth to reduce grass stress.

  1. Nitrogen, Phosphorous and Potassium

    • Gardeners can tell the percentage of each nutrient in their fertilizer by looking at the NPK amount of the label. NPK, which stand for nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium, provides different benefits for grass. Nitrogen encourages growth and helps maintain chlorophyll production, which gives grass its green color. Phosphorous aids root development. Potassium helps lawns efficiently use nitrogen and tolerate environmental stress. Gardeners must use a fertilizer that contains nitrogen for greener lawns.

    Slow Release Fertilizer

    • Slow-release fertilizer makes nitrogen available to plants during a six- to eight-week window. Typically, gardeners use slow release every two months during the growing season. When nutrients are slowly available to grass, growth is slow. Quick-release fertilizers make nitrogen available immediately for grass. This immediate access encourages rapid grass growth. Using slow-release fertilizer promotes greener grass without the expense of stressing to the lawn through excessive growth.

    Problems with Excessive Growth

    • Excessive growth expends a lot of energy from grass' root systems. Roots under stress are unable to spread, which leaves bare spots in the yard. Weeds take advantage of grass' weakened state and compete with the turf for the soil's nutrients. Weak root systems make grass more susceptible to succumbing to pest or disease injury. Root-eating pests, such as grubs, cause the most damage to lawns that are already stressed.

    Fertilizer to Use

    • Fertilize your lawn with a complete fertilizer at least once a year, as suggested by the University of California. Use a complete fertilizer that has a NPK amount like 3-1-2, 21-7-14 or 15-5-10. Avoid applying more than 1 lb. of slow-release nitrogen on your lawn at one time. Using more than 1 lb. of nitrogen burns grass blades. Water the lawn after spreading the slow release fertilizer evenly the turf. Watering the lawn helps the nutrients sink into the soil.

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Growing Grass
  1. What Is Biennial Grass?
  2. What Makes Grass Die in Ohio?
  3. What Will Make My Grass Grow Greener?
  4. What Is Five-Finger Grass?
  5. Fungal Growth on Grass
  6. What Are the Benefits of Slow Release Nitrogen Fertilizer on Grass?
  7. What Happens if I Spill Fertilizer on My Yard?
  8. What Happens After Fertilizing a Lawn?
  9. Zoysia Grass Growth
  10. What Does Fertilizer Do to Grass?
  11. Will Grass Grow With or Without Fertilizer?
  12. What Affects the Growth of Grass?

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