4 Tips For Successful Lawn Treatments
A healthy lawn requires proper care, which means applying the right sort of lawn treatments at the right time. Whether your lawn needs fertilizing, weed eradication, or pest management, there is a treatment that can help.
1. Soil Testing
A soil test in spring will provide the best guide as to what types of lawn treatments you will need over the upcoming summer months. You can get a detailed test completed in a lab, often through your local extension service, by collecting and sending in a soil sample. An alternative is to use a do-it-yourself kit. Although not as detailed as a lab test, it still provides a good guide on which nutrients are low in the lawn soil so you know what fertilizer treatments to use.
2. Fertilizer Application
When fertilizing a lawn, the main nutrients needed are typically nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorous, which are detailed on fertilizer labels as the N-P-K percentages. The lawn also needs a variety of micronutrients that are also included in fertilizer blends, but when choosing your fertilizer mainly focus on replenishing the big three nutrients in the amount indicated by testing. Fertilizer treatments are usually applied every couple of weeks throughout the growing season.
3. Weed Analysis
Treating the lawn for weeds is another spring and summer task. This one begins with analyzing what types of weeds are causing the most issues in your lawn. Generally, for treatment purposes weeds are divided into two categories — broadleaf weeds and grassy weeds like crabgrass. Broadleaf weeds are treated with a pre-emergent herbicide in early spring before they come up and again in summer with a post-emergent herbicide for any that still manage to sprout. Grassy weeds are treated with targeted full-spectrum herbicides after they emerge, with care being taken to only apply the treatment to the weeds and not the surrounding grass.
4. Grub Treatments
One of the biggest pest issues facing lawns is grubs. These insidious larvae live under the soil and chew away at the grass roots, killing the lawn from beneath. The grass will die back and you will be able to lift the dead mats easily from the soil if the problem is severe. You may even upturn some of the C-shaped white grubs when working on the lawn. Grub treatments are applied in spring to destroy any grubs currently present, and again in late summer to target the eggs being laid in the lawn that will turn into next year's grubs.
Contact a lawn treatment service for more help with your lawn care needs.
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