Be Fertilizer WiseFind out how you can save time and money while making your lawn healthier and protecting our
local waterways. |
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The Problem
“Your Lawn Grows Algae!"
Algal bloom in Lake Erie, Kelley's Island. October 16, 2011. Photo: T. Joyce, NOAA.
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Excessive fertilizers use and nutrient runoff impact water everywhere. When fertilizer is applied to a lawn, nutrients are added. While plants need nutrients to survive and grow, your soil may already have sufficient levels to keep plants strong and healthy. Brand-new lawns or areas with very poor soils might lack nutrients, but most established lawns have enough.
When healthy, well-established lawns are fertilized anyway, the nutrients—mainly nitrogen and phosphorus—that aren’t used by the grass run off the next time it rains or you water your lawn.That means they end up in our stormwater, ditches, streams and Great Lakes where they can feed algae and create other problems. When too much fertilizer enters the water, it can cause the natural process of |
The Solution
While eutrophication is tough on our waterways, the solutions are simple and can start in your own lawn and garden.
Start at the Beginning: Use the Right Seed
Starting off with the right mix of seed will ensure the most success in establishing and maintaining your lawn, while minimizing time and effort. The best lawn seed for Northwest Ohio will contain turf-type Tall Fescues and Perennial Rye grasses. These grass mixes are drought resistant and are well suited to our soil types. Although it is popular, Kentucky Bluegrass requires lots of water and sun, which means more time and more money for you.
Make your lawn only as big as you need it. A smaller lawn requires less time to mow and less money to maintain. Plant native trees, shrubs, grasses, and flowers to landscape the rest of your yard. Toledo-Lucas County Rain Garden Initiative offers online resources for buying and gardening with Northwest Ohio native plants.
Fertilize Carefully
Fertilize lawns in the springtime when the ground temperature gets around 55 degrees. Fertilizing right before it rains may seem like a good idea, but the fertilizer will not have time to soak into the soil and will wash off, wasting your money as it flows into local rivers or ditches, often through storm drains. Instead, apply fertilizer a day or two after your lawn is watered, whether that’s from the rain or from a sprinkler.
Grass clippings and mulched leaves are the ideal food source for your lawn, naturally providing essential nutrients slowly over time. The clippings supply nitrogen that your lawn needs to stay healthy. Grasses need sufficient nitrogen to promote top growth, phosphorus for root development (for newly lawns, not established lawns), and potassium for strong stems and disease resistance. Fertilizers have three numbers such as 10-10-10 or 34-3-4. These numbers indicate the percentage of nitrogen (the first number), phosphorus (the middle number), and potassium (the last number.) Plenty of fertilizers for established lawns are phosphorous-free, which is a good choice to protect waterways from excess nutrients. Contrary to perception, grass clippings do not cause thatch. Thatch is made up of both dead and living root, stem, and leaf parts that are resistant to decay. Kentucky Bluegrass and Creeping Bentgrass produce the most thatch. Turf-type Tall Fescues and Perennial Rye grasses do not produce thatch. Excessive fertilization and watering may encourage thatch. If you leave your clippings on the lawn, you may not have to spend as much, or anything, on fertilizer!
Find out exactly what nutrients your lawn needs by having the soil tested. Your local Soil and Water Conservation District (probably Lucas, Wood, or Ottawa) or OSU Extension Office can help.
Start at the Beginning: Use the Right Seed
Starting off with the right mix of seed will ensure the most success in establishing and maintaining your lawn, while minimizing time and effort. The best lawn seed for Northwest Ohio will contain turf-type Tall Fescues and Perennial Rye grasses. These grass mixes are drought resistant and are well suited to our soil types. Although it is popular, Kentucky Bluegrass requires lots of water and sun, which means more time and more money for you.
Make your lawn only as big as you need it. A smaller lawn requires less time to mow and less money to maintain. Plant native trees, shrubs, grasses, and flowers to landscape the rest of your yard. Toledo-Lucas County Rain Garden Initiative offers online resources for buying and gardening with Northwest Ohio native plants.
Fertilize Carefully
Fertilize lawns in the springtime when the ground temperature gets around 55 degrees. Fertilizing right before it rains may seem like a good idea, but the fertilizer will not have time to soak into the soil and will wash off, wasting your money as it flows into local rivers or ditches, often through storm drains. Instead, apply fertilizer a day or two after your lawn is watered, whether that’s from the rain or from a sprinkler.
Grass clippings and mulched leaves are the ideal food source for your lawn, naturally providing essential nutrients slowly over time. The clippings supply nitrogen that your lawn needs to stay healthy. Grasses need sufficient nitrogen to promote top growth, phosphorus for root development (for newly lawns, not established lawns), and potassium for strong stems and disease resistance. Fertilizers have three numbers such as 10-10-10 or 34-3-4. These numbers indicate the percentage of nitrogen (the first number), phosphorus (the middle number), and potassium (the last number.) Plenty of fertilizers for established lawns are phosphorous-free, which is a good choice to protect waterways from excess nutrients. Contrary to perception, grass clippings do not cause thatch. Thatch is made up of both dead and living root, stem, and leaf parts that are resistant to decay. Kentucky Bluegrass and Creeping Bentgrass produce the most thatch. Turf-type Tall Fescues and Perennial Rye grasses do not produce thatch. Excessive fertilization and watering may encourage thatch. If you leave your clippings on the lawn, you may not have to spend as much, or anything, on fertilizer!
Find out exactly what nutrients your lawn needs by having the soil tested. Your local Soil and Water Conservation District (probably Lucas, Wood, or Ottawa) or OSU Extension Office can help.
Rain Garden at Monroe St Church Toledo-Lucas County Rain Garden Initiative
more fertilizer resources
- General Education:
- “Give Water a Hand” Lawn Care Tip Card – For more information on how to start and maintain a river-friendly lawn, including advice on watering and mowing.
- Toledo-Lucas County Rain Garden Initiative Native Plants Page – What plants are native to ourarea, and why use them? This page also gives tips for where to buy native plants for your lawn or garden.
- Where does your rainwater flow? – Click to drop a raindrop near your home and learn exactly what waterways your stormwater passes through and where it ends up.
- Digging into Details:
- Partners for Clean Streams worked with a seed company to produce these seed mix fact sheets specific to different soil types for our area
