Hello Neighbor,
Have you thought about what kind of fertilizer you’e putting down this year and when? Many people tell me that they are using a 4 step program or something of that nature. They go on to say that they always fertilize at certain times of the year, typically Memorial day, 4th of July, and Labor day. There is nothing wrong with this approach and it’s been working for you, great!
Let me challenge you, though, to not just apply fertilizer based on the date on the calendar, but apply what your lawn truly is needing and learn to tell when it needs it. I suggest getting a soil test done at the beginning of the growing season. It can tell you your lawn pH (keeping this in the optimal range will allow your lawn to better use the fertilizers put down) and tell you what nutrients you are deficient in and which ones you can do without. For example, the soil test that I used last year showed that I was very high in phosphorus (P). Because of this, I stopped using milorganite fertilizer as it is a 6-4-0 analysis (remember that is Nitrogen-phosphorus-potasium). 2020’s results are noted below. I’ll be curious to see the results for 2021.
Doing this Is very simple. Take on average 6 soil samples dug up from a 6 inch depth of soil. These numbers may vary based on the lab doing your analysis. Make sure to remove any roots, sticks, stones or debris from your sample and send it off to the lab. Soon you’ll know what’s going on in your own unique soil.
A few soil tests for the DIY homeowner would be the mysoiltest found on Amazon or the soil test from yardmastery .com. Others include wardlab.com or your local university extension.
Happy Testing,
Joe Tepp
-just your average Joe, Not your average lawn