Here's What Your Summer Lawn Fertilization Checklist Should Look Like in Westchester County, NY
Homeowners with thick, lush and blindingly green lawns in Westchester County, NY, know what it takes to achieve, and maintain, an enviable lawn - a professional lawn care and fertilization program! Here are a few pointers for summer lawn fertilization that will achieve results.
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The right fertilizer
Take note of the values and information included on the packaging of any fertilizer. The three most important values address the amount of nitrogen, phosphate and potassium in the product. These are the primary nutrients required for a healthy lawn and are expressed in percentages of the whole product. For example, a 20-5-10 bag of fertilizer contains 20% nitrogen, 5% phosphate and 10% potassium. This is a good, safe option for most lawns. The remainder of the product will be comprised of filler material that ensures the various minerals are applied evenly throughout the lawn.
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Your fertilization schedule will also depend upon whether a slow-release fertilizer is used or not. The nutrients within these fertilizers break down over a longer period of time and can, therefore, be applied less frequently.
Ultimately, it is always safer and more convenient to entrust a professional with selecting the best fertilizer for your lawn. They will know exactly how much nitrogen to administer so that your lawn takes on a vibrant green color, but doesn’t grow too fast and demand incessant mowing.
Sufficient applications
While your lawn should generally receive its first dose of fertilizer in spring, when the grass begins to grow, it will require intermittent fertilization throughout summer too. Experts recommend fertilizing a lawn every six to eight weeks and opting for an organic material, like manure, after a few months have gone by.
Lehigh Lawns & Landscaping Inc. use special equipment in order to cover the entire lawn as quickly and efficiently as possible. Leaving it to the pros will save you all the time you would have spent manually spreading granules all over your backyard, and will shorten the time before you will be able to make use of your lawn again.
Strategic watering
The more you water your lawn, the more fertilizer it requires. This is due to the fact that watering your lawn spurs its growth and demands more nutrients in the form of fertilizer. Whether or not you have an automatic irrigation system in place will play a role in determining how frequently your lawn should be fertilized. Once again, it is far wiser to approach a professional than attempt to figure this out by yourself. Whether or not your landscaping company will water the lawn after administering a dose of fertilizer will depend upon the type of fertilizer used. Granules, for example, require moisture in order to break down, while some fertilizers require the lawn to be wet before their application.
Avoid over-fertilizing
Over-fertilization can lead to the death of your lawn, as it may spur the growth of your grass further than what its roots are able to supply water and nutrients. Additionally, over-fertilizing parts of the lawn can result in unsightly dark streaks where the excess fertilizer has been applied. While there are helpful guidelines for inexperienced homeowners, such as starting the fertilization schedule with half of the recommended dosage, the risk of unwittingly over-fertilizing your lawn is a real possibility. Entrust a professional with achieving the tricky balance between healthy development and self-destructive growth.
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