HELP YOUR COOL-SEASON GRASS SURVIVE THE WINTER WITH FALL FERTILIZER
Winter is well on its way here in Missouri. As you know, the winter season takes a pretty heavy toll on your lawn and can leave you with brown, dead grass in the spring. So, how do you prevent this from happening? The fall season is all about the lawn care tasks that will help gear your cool-season grass up for the cold. From aeration to overseeding to weed control, there are many ways to do so. However, the most important prevention task is fertilizer. Without it, your grass won't have the nutrients it needs to feed itself throughout the winter season.
There are many types of fertilizer to choose from, so it is important to choose the one that's benefits will last throughout the winter season and nourish your grass with exactly what it needs. The perfect fertilizer will prevent many issues such as lawn disease and insect infestation.
Fall fertilizer feeds your grass the nutrients it needs to survive the winter.
All fertilizers include three main nutrients: nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. Each nutrient provides its own benefits, making them all equally important to the long-term health of your grass. Nitrogen will help your grass blades grow thick and lush, phosphorus encourages deep root growth, and potassium helps your roots absorb nutrients from the soil. The amount of each nutrient needed in your fertilizer treatments depends on the time of the year and the nutrients your soil is lacking at the time.
Lawn care professionals are trained to know exactly what your lawn needs to carry it through the winter season.
Liquid vs Granular Fertilizer
After you figure out what nutrient ratio your lawn needs, next is figuring out whether you should choose liquid fertilizer or granular fertilizer. Both types are great options at different times of the year.
Liquid fertilizer is typically more of a quick-release product that will supply your grass with nutrients immediately. This is great for the spring season when your grass is emerging from winter dormancy and needs all the help it can get. Granular fertilizer, on the other hand, is typically a slow-release fertilizer. This means that the fertilizer will release essential nutrients over time instead of all at once, keeping your grass protected for a longer period of time.
In the fall, you will want to use granular fertilizer for your cool-season grass. This will allow your grass to keep a reserve of nutrients that will release gradually over the winter season, ensuring that it never runs out of food to sustain it through the cold.
Fall fertilizer battles lawn diseases such as snow mold.
Another significant benefit of a fall fertilizer treatment is that it protects your grass against common lawn diseases that typically form in the winter. Snow mold is a very common lawn disease in the Independence, MO area. This fungus forms from the heavy weight of the snow as well as the trapped moisture. However, if your grass has the nutrients it needs to remain strong, it is likely to fight off this disease as well as others, leaving you with a healthy, strong lawn in the spring.
Ready to protect your grass from the winter season? Call us to enroll in our fertilization program.
As always, it’s crucial to approach professional lawn care specialists if you genuinely want to give your grass the best opportunity to get through the winter season. Specialists like ours have the right tools, equipment, and advice that can make your lawn healthy.
Call us at (816) 886-1121 today to enroll in our fertilization program. We proudly serve Independence, Gladstone and North Kansas City as well as nearby areas in Missouri.
