Your lawn is the first thing that people will see when they visit your home. Therefore, as a commercial property owner or homeowner, it is imperative to keep it well maintained. People find well-kept lawns attractive and inviting. Also, children love playing on beautiful lawns. Your grass and flowers will wither and dry off if you do not take care of your yard, which will make your landscape miserable and unattractive. Lawns need to be watered, weeded, and mowed for them to look good. You should let a professional carry out lawn care and maintenance activities for better results. Fertilizing your lawn is another important activity that should be on your to-do list. Below are various reasons to fertilize lawn.

Reasons to Fertilize Lawn

1. To Minimize the Growth of Weed

Weeds can ruin your beautiful yard. Sometimes, they tend to spring out faster than your grass or flowers. Their roots grow deep in soils that lack fertilizers, which encourage their growth. Fertilizing make their roots not to grow so deep because they thicken your grass and flowers, making them stronger than the weed.

2. To Prevent Discoloring of Your Lawn

Grass often lacks its green color when it does not have enough nutrients. Fertilizing your lawn will help in restoring the right color to your backyard. Your grass will grow healthier than before.

3. To Minimize Mud Tracks

Many homeowners do not feel comfortable when their lawns are muddy. Fertilizing make the roots of your grass strong. Strongly rooted grass absorbs water easily, which reduces mud tracks in your lawns. Your lawns will look healthy and attractive even during rainy seasons.

4. To Make Your Grass Disease-Resistant

As a property owner, you may lose a huge portion of your grass due to diseases. Diseases may attack your grass from the roots, which may ruin your entire landscape. Therefore, it is advisable to fertilize your grass to make it strong and help it fight against illnesses.

5. To Enhance Uniformity

It is frustrating to have grass growing uniformly only on one side of your lawn. Such happens when some parts of your yard lack the necessary nutrients. If you want your grass to grow uniformly, it is imperative to fertilize every section of your lawn. Your grass will get adequate nutrients to boost its growth.

6. To Enhance Soil Protection

Thick grass prevents soil runoff, especially during rainy seasons. Fertilizing your lawn will strengthen the roots of your grass and flowers, which will prevent soil erosion.

7. To Fight Pests

Pests can ruin your landscape. Some fertilizing components contain insecticides that aid in the removal of pests and insects. Also, it is hard to find pests in thick and healthy grass.

The Nutritional Value of Fertilizers

When fertilizing your lawn, it is advisable to use fertilizing components that add the following nutrients to the soil:
  • Nitrogen – This is the nutrient responsible for your grass’s general growth and the development of the green color in your plants.
  • Phosphorous – This is the nutrient responsible for the growth of roots and flowers.
  • Potassium – Without potassium, roots cannot grow or resist diseases and drought. Its presence helps plants use nitrogen effectively.

You need to fertilize your lawn using fertilizing components that contain the nutrients that your lawn is lacking. You can use either granular or liquid fertilizing compounds. When fertilizing your landscape, it is advisable to observe the following things:

  • The amount to use – A small bag is enough for a 5000 sq. feet lawn. Therefore, it is advisable to consider your lawn’s size when choosing the amount to use.
  • The type to use – You should use the right fertilizing components for your lawn. When renovating or springing up a new lawn, use fertilizing components that will not kill your new grass.
  • The perfect time to apply – You should not apply fertilizing components when it is raining heavily because the floods might carry away the granules. Apply fertilizing components that contain herbicides when no rainfall is expected and when the grass is moist. However, mowing should be done before the application.
  • The application method to use – You should avoid spilling granules on your grass carelessly to prevent burning or killing it. Instead, use a spreader to ensure the granules are well spread.There are several steps that you need to follow during lawn fertilization. They include the following:

1. Soil Testing

It should be done to identify the nutrients that are available in your soil. You need to collect soil samples randomly, mix them, and take them for testing. You should take the combined sample to a laboratory and get information about the soil’s nutritional content and pH. This process will make you know the kind of fertilizing components that are perfect for your lawn.

2. Aerate the Soil

Soil aeration facilitates an easy penetration of water, air, and fertilizing components to your plants’ roots. It is done by digging small holes using a core aerator or a digging fork. Digging forks should be used for small lawns.

3. Identify the Tools that You Need to Fertilize Your Yard

There are various tools that you need during lawn fertilization. They include water sprinklers and spreaders. It is advisable to get them to make the process efficient.

4. Application

You can use quick or slow-release fertilizers to boost the growth of your flowers and grass. The quick-release ones get absorbed right away while slow-release ones get absorbed slowly. The slow-release ones are divided into sulfur-coated and polymer-coated fertilizing components. The Polymer-coated ones take a longer time to get absorbed into the soil. Also, it is advisable to use the right spreader when fertilizing your lawn.

5. Water Your Lawn

Watering should be done using the right water sprinklers. Watering a lawn after fertilizing it helps granules to get washed down into the soil.

6. Remove Any Spills on Pathways

Some granules may spill on pathways when fertilizing your lawn. If these spills are left there, they can be carried to the water bodies, leading to water contamination. Therefore, you should sweep any granules on the pathways into the lawns.

If you want to achieve a good-looking lawn, it is important to fertilize it regularly. However, you need to leave the work to professionals, especially if you do not have the right fertilizing skills and equipment. We are the best specialist to handle your Santa Cruz landscaping needs. Contact our skilled Santa Cruz landscaping professionals and enjoy high-quality lawn management services.