What is the Water-Mix Ratio for Liquid Turf Builder?

Nitrogen

• Liquid turf builders are extremely high in nitrogen. Nitrogen is the nutrient responsible for encouraging rapid foliar growth. High-nitrogen applications result in lush lawns, but only if applied in appropriate amounts. Granular fertilizers are applied in amounts that result in each 100 square foot of lawn receiving 1 pound of nitrogen. This ratio, of nitrogen per square foot, is effective in providing the nutrition necessary for healthy growth.

Application

• Regardless of manufacturer, liquid turf builders are evenly applied over a set area. Commercially produced liquid turf builders are packaged in plastic containers that can be attached to garden hoses. As water exits the hose, fertilizer is released into the spray. Liquid turf-builder application ratios utilize the parts per million, or ppm, measuring unit. These calculations are more complex than granular dry fertilizer calculations and vary from manufacturer to manufacturer. There's a great amount of variance between fertilizer ingredients, package size and the recommended fertilizer amounts in commercial brands. The liquid turf-builder contents of some containers are meant to cover up to 5000 square feet. Applying the entire bottle to a lawn less than 5000 square feet will damage the lawn. Measure the lawn area before applying a foliar spray.

Area

• Lawns are frequently shaped as squares and rectangles. Calculate the area for these geometric regions by measuring the outline of the lawn. Determine the area of a square lawn by multiplying the length of one side of the square (a) by the length of another side (b) using the formula A = (a)(b). Measure a rectangular lawn and determine its area by multiplying its length by its width. Circular lawn areas are calculated by measuring the radius of the circle and multiplying the square of the radius by 3.14. Determine the area of irregularly shaped lawns by breaking up the lawn into measurable geometric shapes and calculating their areas. The sum of all the areas is equal to the lawn's square footage. Once the area, in square feet, is determined, choose a liquid turf-builder container meant to cover a similar amount of square feet.

Considerations

• When watering your lawn with a garden-hose sprayer, be certain to watch for pooling. Be aware of these problem areas before spraying your lawn with liquid fertilizers. The fertilizers must be applied evenly, so avoid over-spraying saturated areas. Affix the liquid turf-builder bottle tightly to the hose end, to avoid leakage. Uneven applications and concentrated applications are ineffective and often damaging, because liquid fertilizers, when over-applied, can leach excess nitrogen and phosphates into water supplies. High-nitrogen applications damage lawns.