Beautiful lawn care and fertilization in Mokena and St. John IL
Knowing the when, the where, and the how of lawn fertilization can be confusing—after all, too much fertilizer can burn your Mokena, IL, grass but too little does almost nothing. Understanding the role of the primary and secondary nutrients in lawn fertilizer can help with timing the application so that you maximize the effect.
Related: WHY OPT FOR ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE LAWN CARE IN MANHATTAN AND HOMER GLEN, IL AREAS?
What is fertilizer?
While it would be nice to think that the existing soil in your yard has all of the nutrients to supply the food needs of the grass, trees, and plants, this is usually not the case. This is where fertilizer comes into play.
In the days of colonization, the settlers and Indians used fish as a fertilizer for their plants to improve the yield. As the plants grow, they use up the nutrients in the soil for the chemical reactions that take place to create the fruit, leaves, and other products that are used for food. Early farmers began to realize that they needed these nutrients in a more accessible, easily found form and this is when synthetic fertilizer came into being.
As agriculture grew and farmers began to provide the country with large amounts of food, the ease of using this type of fertilizer made it a common component of planting.
What are primary fertilizer nutrients?
Primary fertilizer nutrients are composed of potassium, phosphorus, and nitrogen. Each of these substances provides something essential to the health of the plant.
Potassium helps to strengthen the plant’s ability to withstand disease and increase yield. It also improves the root system so that the plant can endure the cold and hot temperatures of the seasons.
Phosphorus is linked to the plants’ ability to produce its own food in a process called photosynthesis. Every living plant must produce and store energy for life and phosphorus provides the boost for this process.
Nitrogen can arguably be the most important nutrient necessary for the growth and health of a plant, as well as how nutritious it is once it is mature. The tissue of the grass is made up of protein and nitrogen is essential for protein formation.
What are secondary nutrients?
Secondary nutrients are called this because they are needed in smaller amounts for plants to thrive. There are three secondary nutrients that form the balance of the fertilizer components—calcium, sulfur, and magnesium.
Every living thing is composed of cells and calcium helps the cell walls of plants to be strong. Magnesium is involved in the photosynthesis process referenced earlier whereby the plant produces its own food. Sulfur is also needed for photosynthesis and chlorophyll production which is the reason that plants are green.
Why does your lawn need fertilizer?
Just like humans need food to thrive, plants and grass need fertilizer as food to stay healthy and to produce food. The application amount and timing of fertilizer matters and can either produce a lush, green stand of grass or a burnt mess.
A skilled landscape service understands all of the chemical processes that make a yard healthy and can take the guesswork out of fertilizer applications for you. They can inspect your Mokena, IL, lawn to create the best fertilization program for your unique landscape. Because they use completely organic fertilizer, you never have to worry about your family and pets.
Related: HOW DOES SUMMER AFFECT LAWN FERTILIZATION IN ST. JOHN, IN?
