How to Choose Lawn Fertilizer
A lush, green lawn should be a satisfying, enjoyable experience. And, trust us, it is. But when it comes to choosing lawn fertilizers from the floor-to-ceiling displays at your local box store, it can be hard to stop decision anxiety from creeping in. Don't give in to the temptation to walk away and let your grass go hungry. Making the right fertilizer choice is much easier than it seems.
Thanks to Pennington Full Season+ lawn fertilizers, the days of multiple products — and fertilizer anxiety — are gone. Picking the right lawn food to feed your grass now boils down to two simple options: with weed control or without. By understanding what's behind that choice, the decision is as easy as it comes.
1. Why Feed Your Grass
Feed your grass early, and it's ready for action when you are.
If you have plants indoors or out — and we know you do — you probably nurture those babies regularly with a plant food like molasses-infused Pennington All-Purpose Plant Food 2-3-2. Think of your lawn as thousands of individual plants because it is. Just like your new flower garden or indoor houseplants, your grass plants need nutrients to keep their rich, beautiful color and that lush feel under your bare feet.
Chances are the nutrients in your lawn soil have been depleted, whether we're talking new construction or a vintage home. Even when lawns are well maintained, the nutrients lawns need can move through soil and disappear. Nitrogen and iron are two essential nutrients crucial to your lawn's look and feel. Nitrogen is the nutrient grass needs in larger quantities than any other essential plant nutrient. Along with iron, nitrogen is the secret to that gorgeous green.
With Pennington Full Season lawn fertilizers, you don't have to worry about feeding your grass the right nutrients. Both options are rich in nitrogen to help revitalize your soil with nutrients and help your lawn thrive. Plus, 5% added iron for deep greening helps ensure your grass looks as good as you'll feel when you see that rich green color.
2. What Lawn Food to Choose
Say goodbye to weeds — or not. The choice is yours.
A lot of lawn fertilizer lines require you to buy multiple fertilizer products and fill your calendar with application times. Some include ingredients to prevent seeds of grassy weeds, like crabgrass, from growing. Others include ingredients to kill weeds already growing in your lawn, like dandelions or nasty stinging nettle. All those products can add up fast.
With Pennington Full Season lawn fertilizers, it's just two options: with weed control or without. And, best of all, it's just one application either way, and you're done fertilizing your lawn for the season. If your lawn* has weeds or you want to prevent them, turn to Pennington Full Season Weed & Feed with Crabgrass Control 25-0-8. This easy-to-use combination fertilizer and herbicide product prevents crabgrass and kills listed lawn weeds, all in one product. Plus, it feeds your grass for up to four months.
If your lawn doesn't have weeds — or you can't get enough of bright yellow dandelion blooms — we have that covered, too. Pennington Full Season Lawn Fertilizer 32-0-5 is the choice for you. You can feed your grass and revitalize tired soil with natural beneficial microorganisms, nitrogen, iron and other listed nutrients to keep your lawn thick, green and well fed for up to four months. (And when you get tired of dandelions, we'll be there to help you get rid of those, too!)
3. When to Use Lawn Fertilizer
Feeding your grass keeps it looking as good as it feels.
When you choose a lawn fertilizer that does the job with just one application per season, worries about timing multiple fertilizer applications disappear. Always wait until your grass starts actively growing again in spring. Once it is, your fertilizer can go down.
In northern climates, most lawn grasses are called cool-season grasses. They have a big growth spurt during cool spring weather and again in fall. Warm-season grasses are common in southern lawns and take a little longer to wake up in spring. But when temperatures start warming up, they take off.
Applying Pennington Full Season Lawn Fertilizer 32-0-5 as soon as your lawn is actively growing ensures your grass has the nutrients it needs for deep greening and vigorous growth. Plus, your lawn will be better prepared to stand up to traffic from people, pets and backyard get-togethers — and keep looking its best.
If you choose Pennington Full Season Weed & Feed with Crabgrass Control 25-0-8, that early application puts you ahead of the game. Your weed control will be in place before new grassy weed seeds start to germinate. Plus, your weed control will be waiting for existing perennial weeds as they come to life again. Meanwhile, you'll be enjoying your yard instead of fighting weeds.
4. How to Feed Your Lawn
With Pennington, once a season is all it takes.
To let your lawn know how much you love it — and really excel at feeding your grass — get your hands on a lawn spreader. It doesn't have to be fancy, but a spreader makes it easy to get uniform coverage. Then you don't end up with fertilized grass in some spots and not in others. (Definitely not a good look.) The Pennington product label has a list of spreaders and spreader settings to use for ideal coverage.
For best results, mow your yard and water it well one or two days before you fertilize. This makes it easy for the lawn food to get into the soil and start feeding your grass. Just fill the spreader and set your spreader settings according to the chart. Then keep people and pets out of the way while you apply. (It doesn't make any difference if your grass is wet or dry.)
For even coverage, take a lap around your lawn's perimeter first. Then work your way back and forth within that area, overlapping just a bit to prevent gaps. Always close the spreader when you're filling, stopping or turning around. Otherwise, you'll have little piles of fertilizer at the end of every pass. If some gets on the sidewalk or patio, sweep it back into the grass. Wait until any dust from the application settles, then your lawn is ready for pets and people again.
Picking your lawn fertilizer — and using it — doesn't get any easier than Pennington Full Season lawn fertilizers. We're here to help you do lawn and garden your way. Have a question? We'd love to hear from you. Let us help you nurture your dreams and your roots.
Always read product labels thoroughly and follow instructions.
+ Contains polymer-coated urea that slowly releases nitrogen up to 4 months.
* Consult label for complete list of lawn grasses.
