Nitrogen: Friend or Foe?
by
Dawn West, All About Lawns Columnist
Nitrogen -- without it your lawn's growth slows, its color
fades, it thins and withers. But with too much of it, the story is just
as bad: your lawn burns, turns brown, and dies. When it comes to
nitrogen as part of your lawn maintenance routine, how can you make
sure to get it just right? The nitrogen in
fertilizer packs a nutrient punch your lawn needs. The nitrogen in dog
urine packs a nutrient punch that kills your lawn. Hm, tough balance.
Here are a few tips for making sure you give your lawn just the right
amount of nitrogen to ensure that nitrogen and your lawn are good
friends, not bitter foes.
Test Your Soil Don't apply nitrogen-rich fertilizer to your
lawn until you know if your lawn actually needs it. All lawns need
nitrogen -- it's a lawn maintenance must -- but the nitrogen levels
they require vary. The best way to know how much nitrogen your lawn
needs is to have your soil tested. You can buy an at-home testing kit.
You can hire a lawn care company to test it for you. Or you can go to
your county agricultural extension office and have them run the test.
However you run the test, let the results be your guide in choosing a
fertilizer.
Watch for Weather Even if you're applying a fertilizer with
nitrogen levels appropriate for your lawn, if you apply it in the
middle of a heat wave, your lawn is likely to shrivel, not thrive.
Spreading fertilizer in the morning is better than midday, and if your
lawn has experienced any kind of drought damage wait until it has
recovered before adding any type of nitrogen.
Water Works If your nitrogen-related lawn maintenance woes
include dog urine burns or fertilizer burns, the best solution is
watering the damaged areas. You'll flush the nitrogen and help the area
to recover faster.
Keep your lawn and nitrogen nice and friendly, and you'll reap all the thick, green benefits.
About the Author
Dawn West B.A. holds a B.A. in English from Harvard University and teaches writing at Oregon State University.
|
|
Find Lawn Care
Services Near you |
|
Featured Supplier
|
|
