Lawn care: fertilizing the lawn

Self-tutoring about lawn care: the tutor looks at when to fertilize.

One thing I seldom do is fertilize the lawn. I heard, as a kid, that it should be done in spring and in fall, if you’re going to. Not everyone agrees whether one should do it or not.

My suspicion is that to get a mature lawn to the level of a thick green carpet, if it’s not already there, one must fertilize. Some lawns don’t need it because the soil under them is so good they just grow very well naturally.

A few years back I bought some fertilizer, just to experiment. I think I used it once, right around then, but not since. I decided to look up any hints about how and when to apply it this year, should I decide to pursue it.

I found Bob Vila. According to him, for best results, one should fertilize the lawn when it’s “actively growing.”

Around here, that’s early spring and mid-fall (typically, though it can be different by year). Right now, the lawn is still green, but it’s not growing anymore, since it’s been too hot and dry. It’s at least ten days since I last mowed it, and it still isn’t long.

Therefore, I’ve missed the early spring fertilizing opportunity. However, the lawn typically starts growing again in mid fall, so if and when that happens, I can fertilize then.