Fertilizing Basics for Central Indiana Lawns

Lawns in Central Indiana need nutrients throughout the year. We are here to help you understand your lawn’s seasonal needs.

Spring fertilizers help to jump-start the lawn. Like a bear just coming out of hibernation, your lawn is hungry. Lawns need sunlight, water, and food to grow and stay healthy. After a long winter, feeding your lawn will help it green up and promote recovery from winter damage.

Spring brings rain. Like any growing organism, the more you grow, the more food you need to stay strong and healthy throughout the growth cycle.

Fertilizer applications indeed need to be adjusted at this time in the season. All living things need to be fed continuously to stay healthy. This includes your lawn. Lawns that aren’t fed during hot, dry periods will start to lose density. This will cause thinning in the lawn and make way for competing weeds to take over. Lawns deprived of nutrients are also more susceptible to turf disease.

As temperatures start to cool, the lawn starts to change how it utilizes the nutrients it receives. While the grass is actively growing, the lawn will push all of its nutrients to the blade of the grass. This is why your grass looks so green. However, as the lawn slows down in growth, the root system starts to store nutrients. This is extremely important! The lawn needs even more food to prepare itself for the upcoming winter. The lawn will use this stored food to sustain itself through the winter months and builds up the root system by helping it “harden” the plant.

In Indiana, we could have fairly warm periods during the winter months.  This causes the lawn to try to come out of dormancy. If your lawn is not properly winterized, this can be problematic. The lawn will start to use its stored nutrients for top-growth instead of maintaining the root system. Indiana can have warmer weather until mid to late December. It is beneficial to fertilize the lawn one last time in late November to mid-December. When the temperatures stay warmer later in the fall, the lawn will actively use some of the nutrients instead of storing them for winter. This will help restore any used nutrients to ensure that the lawn has what it needs to sustain itself through the winter months.