Tips for how and when to
fertilize Oklahoma lawns
Bill Sevier: Master Gardener | Posted:
March 11, 2017
Q: When and how often should I fertilize my
lawn? A.K., Tulsa
A:One should fertilize lawns during their growing
seasons, which are different from one grass species to another. How often to
fertilize depends on the quality of lawn desired and how often you are willing
to mow it. Information about lawn care, including fertilization, is available
in condensed form in the “Bermuda
Maintenance and Fescue Maintenance documents” on the Master Gardener
web site.
It sometimes is frustrating to try to understand
what to do, when to do it and with what, when it comes to lawn care. Each type
of grass should receive fertilizer only during its active growing season — warm
season grasses grow in summer, cool season ones in spring and fall.
We live in a transition zone between where
warm-season and cool-season turf grasses grow best and often our lawns have
both types; usually a mix of Bermuda and fescue. The recommendations for each
type are quite different, so a plan is important.
Warm-season grasses — Bermuda, zoysia and
buffalo grass — prefer hot weather and actively grow in summer, April into
September. They become dormant (turn brown) in winter; any brown grass in
winter is one of these types of grasses.
Tall fescue and Kentucky bluegrass are
cool-season grasses that grow best in spring and fall. They stop growing but
remain green all winter. These grasses do not tolerate summer’s heat and must
be irrigated.
Fertilize warm-season lawns from green-up in
April to the first of September. Apply 2 to 5 pounds of actual nitrogen
fertilizer per 1,000 square feet, in divided doses, during this time. Zoysia
lawns need about half as much and buffalo grass about a third the amount of the
Bermuda recommendation. If warm-season grasses are fertilized after early
September, dormancy may be delayed causing them to be susceptible to winter
kill and diseases.
Tall fescue and Kentucky bluegrass are often
found growing together and benefit from each other’s strengths. Cool-season
grasses should be fertilized during their active growing periods. Apply 1 pound
of nitrogen fertilizer per 1,000 square feet in March or May and again in
September and November. The fall applications are the most important. Never
fertilize fescue in summer; it will make the grass susceptible to heat damage
and disease.
The type of fertilizer is important. It is
always best to base the type of fertilizer on the results of a soil test. In
the absence of a soil test, and if you have fertilized the lawn in previous
seasons, you need a fertilizer containing only nitrogen (nitrogen is the first
number on a fertilizer bag). Soil test results in our area show adequate, or
more often, excessive amounts of phosphorus and potassium and adding more may
be harmful.
Fertilizers also come as immediately released
and slow released versions. With the slow release types one can apply double
the amount (2 pounds per 1,000 square feet) half as often than what is
recommended.
Check out the Master Gardener website, tulsamastergardeners.org, for more
information.
For more information, contact the Master
Gardeners at 918-746-3701 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Garden tips
Remove flowers from spring blooming bulbs after
blooming is completed. This will allow the plant to direct its energy into its
bulb for next year's blooms, rather than producing seeds.
Allow foliage of these bulb plants to die and
turn brown naturally before removal. As long as the leaves are green, they are
storing energy for the following year.
These bulb's root systems become inactive after
blooming and cannot absorb fertilizer. It is best to fertilize them when
planting or in the fall or in the spring when their leaves first emerge
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