If you’re new to maintaining a lawn, you may not know about the benefits of applying iron. If you want a luscious lawn though, you really don’t want to skip out on applying iron. It will make the lawn look much greener and will increase its health.
You may sometimes notice that the grass on your lawn looks a little too light in color or it may even look yellow. This can be a solid indication that your soil is lacking the iron that it needs to be fully healthy. If you add some iron to your lawn, you will need to ensure that you are applying it in the correct manner and at the right times.
You are going to get much better results if you know all about the best times to apply iron to your lawn. This will allow you to maintain a beautiful green lawn all through the summer and beyond. If you don’t apply the iron in the right manner though, it can cause a lot of harm for your lawn.
If you are a little bit confused, then you need not fret. We are here with everything that you will need to know about when you should be applying iron to your lawn in order to get the best possible results. In turn you can expect a deep, rich green lawn that will look beautiful throughout the year.
Here are some of the simplest things for you to know.
Reasons Why Iron Is Essential for Grass
In most cases, iron supplements have become a lot more commonplace as many homeowners try to get that luscious look of the green grasses on a golf course. As it turns out, it’s an effective method of replicating that look.
If you put iron on certain kinds of grasses such as Fescue grass or Kentucky bluegrass, it’s even more effective. With the right iron application, these grasses can remain beautiful and dark green even in the height of the summer heat.
Another good thing about iron – depending on your opinions – is the fact that iron isn’t going to cause excessive grass growth and you won’t need to do any extra irrigation with it either. This is quite the contrast from your average Nitrogen fertilizer. It’s not the only difference between Nitrogen and Iron, but it’s a noteworthy one.
The Best Time To Apply Iron to a Lawn
If you want to apply iron to your lawn then it’s a good idea to try and get the timing right. In most cases you will want to start with iron application during the spring months. It’s possible to apply it whenever you want throughout the year, but the results won’t be as good if you apply it at other times of the year.
It doesn’t always work as well when the temperature isn’t between 40 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit. The perfect air temperature will be between 60 and 70 degrees. As such, applying iron when it’s super hot outside, such as during the summer, isn’t always the best idea and won’t give you the kind of results that you are looking for because it’s simply too hot.
As with anything that you apply to your lawn, it’s a good idea to read the instructions on the product first as this will help you to clarify that it’s being used in the correct manner. It’s a bad idea to apply too much iron after all.
Only Apply The Iron When It’s Needed
For the most part, there’s no real need to apply massive amounts of iron to your lawn. Unless your soil has an iron deficiency that you have proven with a test, applying too much iron is a pretty bad idea.
It’s a good idea to avoid making the assumption that your grass is yellow because the lawn has an iron deficiency, since this is not always the case. The best thing to do is to start out by thoroughly watering the lawn and making sure that all of the other main nutrients are in place.
If you don’t have success doing this then it’s worth thinking about using iron supplements. You’ll never know for certain if they are needed though unless you do a soil test to check if the soil is lacking in iron.
You can get all sorts of soil testing devices on Amazon that you can use that cost very little money. Just use them during the spring time and allow the testing device to help you to work out what nutrients your lawn needs right at the beginning of the season. It can save you a lot of time and money in the long run!
The Main Types of Iron Supplements
You can get all sorts of different iron fertilizers on the market. With that being said, they are usually separated into two key groups. First you have organic iron fertilizers, and secondly there are synthetic iron fertilizers.
Organic Iron Fertilizers
As the name may suggest, an organic iron fertilizer is made out of organic sources of iron. Some examples of this include milorganite and greensand. They will take longer to break down which can sometimes be inconvenient, but they are certainly the superior choice for the overall health of your lawn. The iron contains natural chelation too, and this means that your grass can absorb it much more easily.
The other great thing about this type of fertilizer is that it doesn’t tend to have a habit of staining nearby materials such as concrete. They also have a bunch of other organic ingredients in them that are ideal for ensuring overall lawn health.
Synthetic Iron Fertilizers
Synthetic iron fertilizers are certainly the cheaper option of the two listed here. They are fast acting so you can expect results in much less time in comparison to when you would use an organic iron fertilizer. For the most part these fertilizers tend to come in a spray form, though you will occasionally find them as granules instead.
You will need to be especially careful if you do end up using too much of this fertilizer. Using more than the amount that you need can sometimes result in gray grass – probably not the look that you were going for on your lawn! Not only that, but if you apply the fertilizer anywhere near other materials like concrete, there’s a chance that some stains could be left behind.
As you can see, while this product can be very useful, you need to be especially careful about using it correctly otherwise you could experience some negative effects on your lawn and on your concrete.
Forms of Iron Supplement Commonly Available
In addition to the two types of supplement listed above, there are also different forms available. There are two that must be considered – spray or liquid supplements or granular ones.
Iron Spray Supplements
Spray iron supplements are basically designed for foliar feeding. This is useful since it’s usually much more efficient and you’ll get results much faster too. As such, it tends to be the option that most people will go for.
When you use this form of supplement, you can spray it right onto the blades of grass on your lawn. This allows it to penetrate into the soil much faster, and it will generally last for around 3-4 weeks in total.
There are some great sprays out there, including Ironite spray on and LawnStar Chelated Liquid Iron. These products are both very fast acting and are perfect if you want to improve the overall health of your lawn and make it look much better.
You need to apply it sparingly though. Follow the instructions to the letter based on your lawn’s needs, otherwise your whole lawn could end up a gray color instead of green. This is a situation that’s best avoided.
Granular Iron Supplements
You will need to apply this form of iron right to the roots of the soil on your lawn. You can usually do this easily if you have a broadcast or a drop spreader. It’s going to take more time for this form of supplement to work, since the molecules are structured in such a way that they need to be broken down.
This is something that will take some time to happen. The great thing about it though is that it lasts longer when applied than spray iron supplements too, and the color will usually last much longer on your grass too.
Things to Be Careful Of
If you are using iron supplements, it’s always important to keep in mind that there are some types that are known for staining concrete. As such, you should do your best to stay away from any concrete like on driveways or walkways when you are trying to put iron on your lawn. There are chemicals in synthetic iron supplements that produce this result.
Your concrete in your yard may end up turning an orange color that’s similar to rust, and this can really discolor your lawn. It can also get onto any other hardscape features in your yard. You will need to remember this when applying the iron to your lawn.
There are some supplements on the market that are known for producing excellent results and still manage not to ruin your concrete, so it’s worth considering one of those options instead. Look for product reviews to see what others have said about the product, and you will certainly thank yourself for it. You want to make your lawn greener – you don’t want to ruin the rest of your yard in the process of doing it.
Don’t Apply In The Summer
The great thing about iron is that it can make your lawn a beautiful deep green color. It’s certainly sure to stick out in your local area as a result of this.
With that being said, you may find the temptation to constantly apply iron to your lawn. It makes sense, since you want to make the lawn look green for as long as possible, but applying it to your lawn when the air temperature is above 80 degrees Fahrenheit is not the best idea.
It isn’t going to be very effective when it is applied during the warmer weather as your grass will have a much more difficult time trying to absorb the iron.
Regardless of the time that you are applying the supplement, you will always need to ensure that you are following the instructions laid out by the manufacturer. Pay close attention to the application rate and the coverage, since slipping up with either of these can have catastrophic effects on your lawn.