Lawn Fertilizer

[jtette]

I have a 30 gallon tow behind sprayer but no spreader. I want to fertilize my lawn but most places only sell granular fertilizers for spreaders. I found some water soluble granular 20-20-20 at the local seed and feed dealer that will mix well with water. My question is, will the 20-20-20 do the trick for a lawn?

 

[EddieWalker]

I was thinking about the liquid fertilizer and looked at a bottle of it yesterday. It was also 20-20-20. It said that one gallon was good for 1,000 sq ft. At $40 for 2 1/2 gallons, I realized real quick that it was way too expensive for me. I've heard, but can't state this as a fact, that the liquid fertilizers don't last as long in the soil as the granular fertilizer does. If it was cheaper, I would add it to my mix while spraying my weeds, but that isn't going to happen.

A 50 pound sack of 13-13-13 is $16 and good for 5,000 sq ft. The math is pretty simple and there isn't any comparing the two price wise. I needed more K in my mix, so I bought a sack of 0-0-62 for $50 and added a scoop of it with every sack of 13-13-13 that I spread. I'm sure it's not exact, but I'm thinking it's close enough.

I use a plastic tow behind spreader that I bought from Northern Tool about five years ago. It's made by Agri Fab and not the best of quality. I had to red to the gear/axle alignment to get it to work right, but for what I do and how often I use it, it's OK.

How big of an area are you fertilizing? Did you do a soil test to see what you need? There are all sorts of variations to what you can buy. Most of them are very high in N, which gives you the green color to your grass, but doesn't do much for the overall health if you are low in P or K.

The ratings on the sack are the percentage of N - P - K in that sack. 13-13-13 is thirteen percent of each in that sack.

Eddie

 

[ampsucker]

Eddie's right. Going through the liquid phase for application will take much longer and cost more. The granules dissolve slowly over time and will last longer in the soil and you don't need the extra 8 lbs/gallon of water in delivery or carrier weight. And, while it won't last as long in the soil, the main advantage would be getting to the roots a little faster plus some foliage absorption.

If you don't have a lot of yard, you can spread a couple of 50 pound bags of granular pretty easily with a hand spreader you can pick up at wally world for less than 10 bucks. That would be good for a normal size residential lawn of 10 - 20K square feet. If your space is much larger, it might be better to get a cheap tow behind spreader.

Yes, fertilizer is more expensive this year. I've seen the price almost double. Some formulas are lowering the phospourous content (it is the most expensive ingredient right now) and then rebranding themselves as "environmentally friendly" while keeping the same or even raising their prices.

Yeah, right.....

I've been reduced to buying the cheapest 13-13-13 I can find simply because my customers don't want to pay over 20 bucks for a 40 lb bag of the good stuff (used to be a 50 lb bag of 13-20-10 with extra sulfur added in for $13, now, its its a 40 lb bag of 13-6-10 for over 20 bucks). That really adds up when you are buying a pallet at a time.

amp

 

[hagman]

I too was looking at different fertilizers since I'm on about 2.5 cleared acres and granular would bankrupt me. I presently use a liquid weed control called Amine 400 that is used for weed control on pastures. Our local Farm N Fleet carries it.The same company also makes a 10 10 10 fertilizer that can be mixed for a homemade weed & feed. I'm going to try it but will have to wait until our local monsoon season is over. Its been so wet lately that I just did get to mow my entire yard last week. I have a tow behind sprayer with a boom that works great and I'll post how it works out when I get to spray.

Hagman

 

[ampsucker]

i feel like i should mention an important point. if you're looking to save money, you really should wait until fall to fertilize your lawn. you'll get a lot more benefit from doing it in late sept than doing it now unless your lawn is REALLY in horrible shape or bermuda grass in which case bermuda does best if fertilized while actively growing during the late spring and early summer months.

all cool season grasses like fescue and blue should be fertilized in fall for best results.

amp

 

[Ranger Rick]

I found a spreader on Craigs list in my area. You might check in your area if anyone is selling one. Rick

 

[CosmoAU]

Gonna throw my .02 here. I've maintained golf courses (all in AL) for the past 15 years so I have dealt with all fertilizers imaginable. Generally speaking liquids(foliar) only fertilize the plants and granulars fertilize the soil and then the soil feeds the plants. Foliars are more $$ due to them being more specific and versatile. Some granulars, while cheaper, are not very good for very long. If the N is all ammoniacal or urea (fast release), they are gone in 10-14 days with about 1/3 of the total being lost to volitization and never reaching the plant. Research the products you are considering and you may find that the more expensive granulars are actually cheaper due to more effective N-P-K in the soil(and eventually plant) for a longer period.

 

[wedge40]

Gonna throw my .02 here. I've maintained golf courses (all in AL) for the past 15 years so I have dealt with all fertilizers imaginable. Generally speaking liquids(foliar) only fertilize the plants and granulars fertilize the soil and then the soil feeds the plants. Foliars are more $$ due to them being more specific and versatile. Some granulars, while cheaper, are not very good for very long. If the N is all ammoniacal or urea (fast release), they are gone in 10-14 days with about 1/3 of the total being lost to volitization and never reaching the plant. Research the products you are considering and you may find that the more expensive granulars are actually cheaper due to more effective N-P-K in the soil(and eventually plant) for a longer period.

How is someone to know which one is slow release. It's bee awhile since I've read my fertilizer bags, but usually they only list the ingredient and not any release time. I would suspect that number would be arbitrary, kind of like pain relievers. I've learned over the years that you don't always get what is claimed on the box or in the add. I still have my xray glasses somewhere to prove that.

Wedge

 

[CosmoAU]

How is someone to know which one is slow release. It's bee awhile since I've read my fertilizer bags, but usually they only list the ingredient and not any release time. I would suspect that number would be arbitrary, kind of like pain relievers. I've learned over the years that you don't always get what is claimed on the box or in the add. I still have my xray glasses somewhere to prove that.

Wedge

The ingredients are what tells you if it is fast or slow. Example A: 16-28-14
12.85 % Ammoniacal N & 3.15 % urea N. This is all fast release N. Example B: 18-3-16 .6 % Ammoniacal N, 13.8 % urea N, and 3.6 % water insoluble N. This one has 7.4 % slow release derived from activated sludge and methylene diurea.

All fertilizers also list where the nutrients are derived from. This is the information that tells you how good it is. Most if not all fertilizers that have slow release N tells you on the label below the analysis. If it does not specifically say a certain % slow release, it does not have any slow in it. Slow release sources include: Nitroform, methlyene diurea, sludges, bonemeal, feathermeal, poly-coated, sulfur-coated, etc. The key is to not just look at the numbers, but to also look at where they are derived from.

 

[ToadHill]

When I had my Tree and Lawn care business we fertilized twice a year with granular fertilizer, a light application in spring and a heavy application in fall. In summer I used a liquid N only fertilizer. N is what the grass needs to keep it nice and green, liquid fert is mostly a folier fertilizer and gives grass the quick greening that helps it in the heat of the summer, but it's not the answer on a long tern basis.