Know Your Fertilizers! Five Ones to Consider for your Yard

Lawn fertilizers come in a variety of forms. Here are five of the most common, and the schedules you should follow when applying it.

1. Granular

Granular fertilizer works as a time-release system. Different varieties have different formulas for gradually releasing their nutrients over a delayed period of time. This gives you more control over your schedule when feeding your yard.

2. Liquid

Liquid fertilizers release very quickly, and you use them if you need a quick burst of growth or color. These are more for immediate results than for long-term health. Most of these are comprised of ammonium and water-soluble nitrogen, which helps the grass absorb the fertilizer very quickly and easily.

3. Organic

Organic fertilizer breaks down more slowly, as the nutrients gradually break down and enter the soil without the accelerating assistance of chemicals. You can make organic fertilizer on your own. Some of the materials that make this up include Epsom salts, white vinegar, kelp, molasses, coffee grounds, and eggshells.

4. All-purpose

This all-purpose fertilizer is made to be used every 6-8 weeks on your lawn. It generally includes balanced amounts of three elements — nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium (NPK).

5. Slow-release, high-nitrogen

This type of fertilizer you should apply three times a year — at the beginning of spring, the beginning of summer, and the start of fall. Summer is especially key for slow-release fertilization because of the relative lack of moisture, the excessive sun and heat, and the abuse your lawn takes during the summer (more feet running and walking all over it).