I really look forward to the arrival of Spring -- warmer temperatures, rain to nourish the plantings, the chance to leave my windows open at night, the tornadoes (kidding about this last one!) Spring then makes me look forward to planting, and I know that plants and sod need fertilizer. I know, also, that the numbers on a sack of fertilizer label tend to confuse folks, so ... here we are!
Take a quick look at the mini-gallery and we'll proceed.
Plantings need some sixteen nutrients or components to grow properly; thirteen of them generally occur naturally in the soil or don't require addition by the gardener; three major nutrients, however, either are usually missing or require periodic replenishment in the soil in order to improve plant performance -- these guys would be nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium.
The analysis on a bag of fertilizer indicates, among other items, the percent of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, in that order, by weight; thus a 40 pound bag of 10-10-10 has 4 pounds (10% of 40 pounds = 4 pounds) each of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium for a total of 12 pounds of major nutrients. With that information, you might say to yourself, "Self, I paid for 40 pounds of this stuff; what's in the other 28 pounds?" Well, the other 28 pounds consists of filler and, possibly, minor nutrients. The filler is a "carrier" to enable uniform dispersal of the fertilizer particles in the bag; that, in turn, assists with a relatively uniform distribution of the granules in the planting area so as to minimize burning of the leaves. You'll find that the proportions of material on a bag may be in the range of 8-8-8 all the way up to something like 27-6-12; don't be concerned, my friend; just read on.
A fertilizer that has equal proportions (e.g. 10-10-10) of the three major components is said to be "complete" or "balanced"; if it's "incomplete" or "unbalanced" (e.g. 27-10-9), it is modifying (by design) a concentration of one or more of the three major constituents and is sold as a fertilizer for a specific soil situation, e.g. nitrogen content, for sod green-up, or potassium for plant root growth.
OK, that was easy. Now let's look at what the three major components actually do to help a plant grow:
Fertilizers come in "quick release" and (what a surprise) "slow release" -- quick release fertilizers are generally in a liquid form or can be liquefied by mixing the powder with water; slow release generally comes as a granule. The quick release nutrients are immediately available to help the plant processes; the downsides of this are a possibility of leaf burn if improperly applied, and a faster nutrient leaching into the soil, resulting in more frequent application requirements. Slow release nutrients, on the other hand, work by the activity of soil organisms (microbes) and may take longer to get started; the upside is that they generally last longer in helping the plant processes.
To cause further confusion, fertilizers can be either synthetic or organic. Synthetic fertilizers, as you might well imagine, are man-made, with the major constituent, nitrogen, coming as a by-product of the oil and natural gas industries (now you know why fertilizer is expensive); the organics (e.g. cottonseed and bone meal, fish emulsion, manure, sewage sludge) are, of course, mainly found in nature. One more thing -- synthetics may sometimes be combined with pesticides or pre-emergents in order to kill existing weeds (e.g. dandelions) or to prevent weed seeds, like crabgrass, from growing.
So, how much of what kind of fertilizer to apply? Can you say "soil test?" Contact your local county extension office to find out who does soil tests -- generally it's done on the county level or by a college or university agronomy department. It 's relatively inexpensive, takes little time for you to do the prep, and you'll know the recommended type and amount of nutrients to add to your soil.
OK, now you know what to apply, and how much. How to get it on the ground?
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broadcast it by hand; not recommended as it is highly inaccurate
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drop or cyclone spreader -- good for large areas and flat ground, such as sod; accurately follow the instructions for application and be sure that you apply the material such that it overlaps; the easiest way is to apply the fertilizer first in one direction and then at right angles to the first go-round
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hand rotary spreader -- good for small areas, sod, and (particularly) planting areas; again, accurately apply the stuff in two shots, the second perpendicular to the first
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for the granulars, you may need to water it in after application. Hint -- if so, wait until the prospect of rain and save yourself some time and water
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some materials, particularly those fertilizers with pesticides ("weed and feed"), require that the grass be wet at application time so that the weed killer particles stick to the foliage, and then be allowed to dry out before rain or sprinkling washes it off the leaves, so the weed killer gets a chance to be absorbed into the foliage and go to work. Hint -- apply the material early in the morning, when the dew is on the grass, then it will dry out during the day. Follow the directions or you will get "feed', but no "weed"(killer.)
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some fertilizer or fertilizer/pesticide combinations are in a liquid form; as with the solids, follow the label directions and apply it in an overlapping fashion
The most important parts of the application process are to get a soil sample and follow the label directions -- and remember, if a little is good, a lot is not necessarily better.
Alright, I've done all I can to confuse you. Check with your local nursery or garden center to determine the right material and application time, then pick out a nice weekend to give your sod and plants a boost.
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