You love your lawn; it’s in great shape and weed-free. But could it be outstanding? By outstanding, we mean:
- It has a real wow-factor
- It’s consistent in appearance
- It has a rich green colour
- It remains darker for longer
- It has less patchiness
- It is more robust and healthier than ever
Here are five secrets to getting really great grass that you can adopt today:
Switch to Slow-release Fertilisers
There are times when a fast-acting or standard lawn feed is right for you. But to take your lawn to the next level, take a leaf out of the book of greenkeepers and try a slow-acting lawn fertiliser.
While fast-acting nitrogen pushes the leaf growth above ground, slow-release nutrition supports deeper rooting, steadier carbohydrate production and a stronger overall plant. This means better drought tolerance and disease resistance.
In addition, slow-release fertilisers encourage compact growth, lateral thickening and a tighter turf canopy, meaning it just looks better - and gives you great definition when it comes to stripes!
Our recommendation
ProloNg 20-4-20 Slow Release Grass Fertiliser
ProloNg releases its nutrients over a 4–6-month period. It contains:
- 20% nitrogen
- 4% phosphate
- 20% potassium
- 3% calcium
- 1.5% magnesium
- 8% sulphur
Add Iron Strategically
Groundskeepers use iron throughout the year to get:
- Better colour
- Firmer turf
- Good disease resistance
- Moss suppression
- Clean stripes
Iron intensifies chlorophyll production which helps create a darker green colour and a strong stripe contrast – without causing a growth surge.
Grass nourished with iron is firmer and grows well, and although it isn’t a moss cure, iron is a successful moss management tool.
Professionals rarely use iron randomly and neither should you. Use it in spring / early summer with your slow-release fertiliser to help wake up your lawn steadily, or in autumn with an autumn fertiliser to strengthen your turf over winter.
Our recommendation:
Ferro-Gem is a 6% straight iron (from 17% ferrous sulphate) that can be used all year round.
Use Seaweed / Biostimulants
Professional greenkeepers love seaweed for its biostimulant properties. Biostimulants improve the resilience of grass – especially important when our lawns are in periods of stress - like drought, disease or lack of light.
Most turf seaweed products contain kelp or Ascophyllum nodosum which themselves contain:
- Plant hormones
- Amino acids
- Trace minerals
- Carbohydrates
- Stress-response compounds
You can use seaweed products alongside your slow-release fertiliser and iron to help root branching, drought resistance and recovery speed. Seaweed also encourages microbial activity in the soil which in turn:
- Helps nutrient cycling
- Supports organic matter breakdown
- Improves root interaction and soil structure
Use seaweed strategically in spring to help your lawn’s post-winter recovery, or in early summer to build stress resilience – especially if drought is on the horizon. You can use it in midsummer if your lawn is already in stress from drought, and again in autumn after scarifying to aid its resilience.
Our Recommendation:
Emerald Pro is a very popular and highly effective seaweed feed. It is made from Ascophyllum nodosum that is proven to mitigate environmental stresses including drought, heat and salinity stress.
Use Wetting Agents
Wetting agents are loved by the professionals and are used heavily in the sports turf sector to control how water behaves in the rootzone.
Wetting agents are not fertilisers and don’t feed the grass in any way. They contain surfactants, and their value is in helping to fix water distribution issues which then indirectly helps everything else – growth, colour, recovery, and disease resistance. The humic and fulvic acid content also helps the soil to hold on to moisture in the root zone for longer periods.
When you use a wetting agent, rather than rainwater sitting in one area or running off / evaporating before it can penetrate the lawn, it will penetrate the soil – greatly benefitting the grass.
The ideal time to start using wetting agents is in the spring before dry conditions start and then you can build up the humic and fulvic acid content in the soil in readiness for dryer conditions. Using it from then will also help to keep the soil surface hydrophilic meaning that any rainfall will immediately enter the soil profile.
Our Recommendation:
Abzorb is a highly effective triple-action, fast-acting wetting agent with a very low environmental impact. It contains humic acid – a soil conditioner that also helps nutrient efficiency.
Match Your Fertiliser to The Season
Finally, one of the most important factors in generating an outstanding lawn relates to seasonal use of nutrition.
Seasonal distinction is fundamental in professional turf care. So, rather than just feeding the grass when you want to improve the quality of your lawn, you need to think about engineering its growth depending on the temperature, light conditions, rainfall and turf stress.
This really can make the difference between a good lawn and an outstanding one, because using the correct product in the correct season means you can push growth when your lawn can handle it and restrain growth when conditions are stressful.
One of the biggest mistakes made by home gardeners is using nitrogen at the wrong time. Nitrogen generates soft lush growth in wet conditions which can attract fungal disease. So, you want to rein it in in summer and autumn and apply it carefully and moderately in spring.
A well-timed programme means your grass will:
- recover faster after mowing
- resist compaction and thinning
- respond better because it is biologically active
In addition, using fertilisers at the right time will help save money as less fertiliser should be needed overall - and it will give you more consistent results per application.
Our Recommendation:
Nutrigrow Spring / Summer Blend
Both these products are well formulated to use at the relevant time of year and contain a good balance of nutrients to support growth, resistance and strength.
This post was written in collaboration with Spencer Haines.
Spencer Haines
Spencer Haines is an experienced turf industry professional and Agrigem’s Technical Account Manager in charge of lawncare. Spencer manages Agrigem’s lawn customers as well as bowls clubs, schools and colleges, and is highly knowledgeable in the technical aspects of creating and maintaining high-performance turf.
Spencer’s experience in professional turf maintenance is coupled with a genuine interest and enjoyment of lawn care that he shares with customers; providing expert advice and guidance built on solid experience. He focuses on working closely with customers to deliver on specific objectives – on time, on budget and to exacting standards.
Article Notes:
- Nutrigrow, Emerald Pro, Ferro-Gem and Abzorb are trademarks of Agrigem Ltd.
- Use plant protection products safely. Always read the label and product information before use. For label and safety information, refer to the manufacturer’s website.
- Only certified users may apply professional plant protection products. Find out more about safe use of pesticides here.
