As we face the numerous challenges of 2024, the importance of fall fertilizer for grass cannot be overstated. Your lawn’s survival through our harsh winters depends on a healthy root system and stored nutrients. However, this season’s bizarre conditions have severely depleted these vital reserves, making the timely application of fall fertilizer a matter of urgency. Without these nutrients and best practice mowing and watering, many lawns won’t survive the winter!
In the face of 2024’s brutal conditions, which include an outbreak of lawn disease, fungus, pests, heat stress, and drought, the final two fall yard fertilizer treatments are not just lawn care MVPs; they are the key to saving your grass plants!
In this article, you’ll discover why Fall Fertilizer for Grass is Critical after Summer 2024!
Why 2024’s Brutal Weather Made Fall Yard Fertilizer a Matter of Life or Death!
In 2024, the conditions for lawn care were so extreme that even well-maintained lawns, including those of homeowners using irrigation systems and following best practices, faced significant challenges.
According to Perma-Green’s Steve Daly, “2024 was a challenging year, one of the toughest since Perma-Green began in Valparaiso in 1974. Factors were just right to create the perfect storm. We experienced numerous outbreaks of lawn diseases, drought, and soil instability due to extreme precipitation followed by periods of intense heat. Heat stress was also prevalent, and the conditions were ideal for increased pests. To make matters worse, last winter was unusually mild, preventing the ground from freezing. This allowed the diseases and pests from the previous year to reemerge in 2024.
When we thought 2023 was over, it returned for an encore. Combined with 2024’s challenging climate, it’s a miracle more people didn’t completely lose their lawns!”
Damaged Lawns Need Fall Fertilizers or May Not Survive the Winter
Sadly, homeowners around Northwest Indiana are not out of the woods because turfgrass plants have depleted their nutrients trying to survive 2024’s brutal conditions. Typically, fall is the time grass recovers from summer and begins preparing and storing nutrients to survive the winter. Perma-Green strongly recommends replenishing your lawn’s root system with the two fall-yard fertilizer applications.
Daly warns that many lawns are vulnerable because they use their stored nutrients to fight disease, pests, and drought. With these nutrients depleted, they don’t have enough in the tank to survive the winter and come out of dormancy in the spring. Homeowners who don’t finish the year with best-practice watering, mowing, and fall fertilizers might see significant plant loss next year!
If your lawn looked like it experienced drought, lawn fungus, and pests this last summer, you’re not alone. Consider the stress your grass faced from the summer heat. Rather than building solid roots and storing nutrients in preparation for winter, your lawn is still in recovery mode. It’s like getting ready to run a marathon after fighting the flu for months.
Why Grass Fertilizer in Fall is Lawn Cares MVP
While 2024 was the most challenging in years, most experts agree that the secret to having the healthiest lawn in the neighborhood is finishing the season strong by strengthening your lawn’s root system. This means controlling weeds, using best-practice watering and mowing, core aeration, and supplying nutrients to your root system through the final two fall fertilizer treatments.
According to the article, Why Fall Lawn Fertilizer is Vital to NWI Lawn Recovery {2024 Edition}, Fall fertilizers support turfgrass in two ways. “A well-planned lawn care package will contain two fall fertilizer applications. The first will stimulate the growth of new roots, while the second fall fertilizer (winterize) feeds essential nutrients to the roots- so that when the ground thaws, your lawn has the nutrients it needs for a healthy start. When spring thaws and your grass emerges from dormancy, it has the nutrients necessary to establish a healthy root system and canopy. Your lawn must be ready when Northwest Indiana pivots to the summer’s drought and heat stress.
This is why most lawn care experts refer to fall grass fertilizers as the MVP of a complete lawn care program. The two fall lawn treatments set the stage for the following year. This is also the ideal time for lawn care experts to assess your lawn’s condition and determine a plan for the following year. It’s a compelling reason to consider fall fertilizers as the first application of the year and not the last!
Fall Fertilizer is Critical to Next Year’s Healthy Lawn
What can be– Unburdened by what has been!
These days, nobody seems to agree on anything. Republican vs Democrat. Cubs vs Sox. Porter County vs. Lake County. While nobody ever seems to agree anymore, when it comes to your lawn, lawn care experts agree that the two most important treatments are fall fertilizer applications.
This means homeowners should pay attention to fundamentals, such as best-practice watering and mowing. Daly reminds us that grass plants are 80 percent water, and the taller the grass, the further down you develop the root system. Fall is also when weeds are most resilient. Keeping your lawn well-maintained crowds out the weeds, which can also prevent weed issues in the spring.
Daly’s Perma-Green website provides a plethora of information on growing grass and includes community pages for each Northwest Indiana town and county. It provides watering guides, soil maps, soil temperature and moisture apps, and helpful tips throughout the season. For more on Fall Maintenance, you might want to read Perma-Greens article, Fall Lawn Care | The Experts Guide to Getting Green
What Fall Fertilizer for Grass Do!
Fall Fertilizers are designed to do two things:
- 1) Help your lawn store food for the winter
- 2) Ensure that there is enough food stored to encourage rooting and growth in the spring
Is Fall Fertilizer for Grass Necessary?
Yep! Fall Lawn Treatment, also called “fall weed and feed” and ” winterizer,” affects the health of your lawn throughout the year!
Fall Yard Fertilizer is crucial for several reasons:
Nutrient Availability: Applying fertilizer in the fall ensures that nutrients, especially nitrogen, are available for plants as they resume growth in the spring.
Root Development: Fall applications promote root growth during the cooler months, allowing plants to establish a strong root system before winter.
Soil Health: Nutrients can improve soil structure and health, enhancing microbial activity and overall soil fertility.
Fall Weed & Feed Control: Fertilizing in the fall can help outcompete weeds by promoting vigorous plant growth.
Weather Conditions: Cooler temperatures reduce the risk of nutrient leaching and volatilization, making fall applications more effective.
Fall lawn treatment sets the stage for healthier plants and better yields in the following growing season.
Fall Fertilizer #1 vs Fall Yard Fertilizer #2 | Do I Need Both?
Working as a Team!
A Fall lawn program is a two-step fertilization process. The two steps work together and as a team to achieve a common goal. However, each fertilizer is independent and serves a very important role. Just look at the difference, and you’ll understand why the new fertilizers need each other.
Fall Grass Fertilizer #1
Signs of Fall Grass Fertilizer Applications
Fall Fertilizer #1 is designed to stimulate new root growth. Its precise balance of potassium and phosphorous helps nurture deep roots, which is critical to preparing your lawn for the rough Northwest Indiana winters.
Steve Daly says, “Fall fertilizer sets the stage for the lawn’s roots to use the second fall lawn fertilizer. A lawn care professional will determine the appropriate time based on factors beyond this article’s scope. Generally, fall fertilizer should be applied to soil when the temperature has dropped to 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Yet, it will not be as effective when the soil temperature dips below 55 degrees”.
Daly recommends considering other factors when determining the optimized time to apply fall lawn fertilizers. “The condition of the lawn is one factor to consider. Knowing the lawn’s soil composition and condition is a big factor. This is one of the reasons why we assign our Perma-Green technicians to each customer’s lawn. Besides accountability, our techs know the homeowner’s lawn condition, soil composition, and other factors that must be considered when determining the best ratios”.
Fall Lawn Fertilizer #2
Most lawn care experts believe fall treatments are the most important fertilizers. The first fall lawn fertilizer helps the grass’s roots absorb and store nutrients. The roots continue to grow until the ground eventually freezes. These nutrients are stored and ready to go so your lawn hits the ground running when spring comes around.
According to Daly, “Perma-Green typically applies the second fall lawn fertilizer (winterizer) about four to five weeks after applying the first fall fertilizer. This usually occurs at some point in October or November, but factors need to be considered in determining the optimal time. At this optimized time, the new (but empty) roots have developed and the ground is nearly freezing.
The Winterizer Fall Fertilizer contains high nitrogen levels to promote the build-up and storage of carbohydrates before the ground freezes. This nitrogen is on reserve during winter, ready to go when the soil thaws and the spring growing season begins. Winterizer fertilizer also contains more potassium than regular fertilizer. The potassium boosts the grass’s tolerance to freezing temperatures and enhances the root systems”.
This fall yard fertilizer also feeds the grass throughout the winter. It even helps keep your grass healthy. You’ll also notice that your yard will look much greener during winter. When the right amount of fall fertilizer is applied at the right time, your grass will look amazing when spring rolls around. In addition to improving how green your grass looks in winter and spring, the stored nutrients contribute to much faster growth in early spring.
Fall Grass Fertilizer Ratio | Stats for Nerds!
Have you ever wondered what the fertilizer numbers mean? It seems a little over my head, but I figured that as long as we had access to Steve Daly, why not ask?
“Just about all bags of fertilizer have three numbers on the front. Each represents one of the primary ingredients within the fertilizer”.
“These ingredients stand for nitrogen (N), phosphorous (P), and potassium (K). In general, lawn fertilizer formulas typically have formulas such as 28-0-6. This means that the fertilizer has 28 percent nitrogen, 0 percent phosphorous, and 6 percent potassium. Phosphorous is usually readily available in Northwest Indiana soils and only needed when establishing new seed. Understanding how many pounds of each ingredient is in your bag and the rate you want to apply it at is the key, not the percentage. The goal is 2-2 1/2 pounds of Nitrogen per thousand square feet in the late fall. Both fall and winterizer fertilizers stimulate root growth and plant storage. However, each contains its own unique mix of potassium, phosphorous, and nitrogen”.
Steve is the most knowledgeable lawn care guy you’ll ever meet about growing grass. He also loves to help people and can tone down technical talk so anyone can understand. Here is a link to Steve Daly’s Podcast to learn more about a Lawn care Solution that anyone can understand. The link will let you choose your favorite podcast channel. You can listen to Daly’s podcast on his website if you’re not a podcaster. The link is also included.
PODCAST DIRECTORY
Listen to Podcast | Get Green Northwest Indiana-Lawn Care Solutions with Steve Daly
Listen On P-G’s Website (For Non-Podcasters) | Get Green Northwest Indiana-Lawn Care Solutions with Steve Daly
Why Fall Fertilizer for Grass is Critical after Summer 2024!
Finish Strong! Cydney Daly of Perma-Green.
Winter in Northwest Indiana is brutal on your lawn, so most Northwest Indiana lawn care experts agree that fertilizing the yard in the fall is the most important treatment of the year! After all, these treatments store vital nutrients in your lawn’s root system that help it survive the winter and boost growth when the snow thaws. But with 2024’s brutal conditions, applying fall yard fertilizers isn’t just the all-star of a full-season lawn care program; it’s a game changer!
For those who saw their lawn struggle to survive the nightmare of the 2024 growing season, the future of your lawn might hinge on starting next year’s lawn care plan today.
Perma-Green’s Steve Daly
Steve Daly and Perma-Green are Certified through the Office of the Indiana State Chemist
Written by Jim Jano Janesheski
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