What Happens If You Don’t Water After Fertilizing?

Fertilizing is one of the essential steps in lawn care as it provides grasses with the nutrients they need to grow. How to water after fertilizing is equally important, but we tend to skip this step or not focus on it.

So the question is, what happens if you don’t water after fertilizing? Here is what to know to have the garden that you’ve always dreamed of!

What Happens If You Don’t Water After Fertilizing?

Should you water after fertilizing? We tend to assume that fertilization would keep grass remaining green and thriving. This is partly true, but many people underestimate the significance of watering quantity and method.

In reality, excessive fertilizing can hurt lawn grasses and even lead to fertilizer burn. Water is a savior in this case as it helps to dilute and drain the mineral salts away from the lawn’s roots.

Suppose chemical composts sit too long on top of the soil surface without being watered in. This makes the grasses unable to take major contained nutrients, including Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P), and Potassium (K).

Not watering the garden also makes it difficult for the soil to absorb the nutrients contained in fertilizers, stifling the growth processing of the grass.

When Should You Irrigate Your Healthy Lawn After Fertilizing?

What Happens If You Don’t Water After Fertilizing – Water lawn after fertilizer

While the general efficacy of granular or liquid fertilizer is similar, there are variances in how and when to water after fertilizing throughout the application process.

It depends on the type of fertilizer you use. If you want to apply liquid fertilizer to the grass, remember to wait until it dries before the watering session. The waiting process for liquid fertilizer will take around 2 to 4 hours.

On the other hand, you can irrigate your garden right afterward if you use granular fertilizer, as its grain-like form is hard to penetrate.

Granular fertilizer is a systemic fertilizer. This implies that granular fertilizer must be soaked into the soil before it can be absorbed by the roots of your turf grass. If your grass receives granular fertilizer, water it immediately.

Exception: if you also applied spot weed treatments, wait for them to dry before watering. Otherwise, the water may wash the weed killer away before functioning.

A note while using the weed-and-feed products: it would be best to spray the greensward before letting the products stick to the grass. Then, turn off the irrigation for one or two days to not wash them off after applying the product.

In general, reading the product instructions on the bag is the best way to determine when to irrigate. They will show you the right time for watering.

In case you want to use weed treatments in addition to fertilizer, watering immediately afterward may wash away all of the weed treatments since they don’t have enough time to penetrate the soil.

Thus, wait 2 hours for the weed control to dry after application. These approaches will increase the quantity of weed management.

You should irrigate the greensward in the early morning since it is cooler and the winds are also calmer. This condition allows water to penetrate the soil, allowing grasses to absorb it before it evaporates.

Try to avoid middle-of-the-day watering since this is when most evaporation occurs. Also, if you do so at this time of day, the grass blades won’t have enough time to dry before midnight, leading to diseases such as fungicides.

How Often Should Grass Be Watered After It Is Fertilized?

Rainfall, climate, soil type, and greensward density will all influence the watering frequency. The ideal frequency to irrigate the greensward after fertilizing is 1-2 times per week, instead of daily watering. It will help the fertilizer achieve its best effect, resulting in the grassroots growing deeper and stronger.

During the peak of summer, you need to keep the garden hydrated by increasing the frequency to 3-4 times a week. Drought stress can be hazardous to a lawn as it leads to grass thinning and losing color.

How Much To Water Your Healthy Lawn After Fertilizing?

How much water for lawn fertilizer is essential 

Ideally, the lawn should receive about 1-2 inches of water per week. You need to observe and determine whether the soil moisture is satisfactory. The exact amount of water depends on the sprinkler system and the size of your greensward.

Also, be aware of sudden rain situations. Although rain can shower the entire greensward for you, it can overwater the garden.

If the rainfall has partially moistened the lawn and there is no rain in the forecast for the next few days, apply the remaining amount of water the grass needs. Having a rain gauge is the best way to determine how much water the soil absorbs during the rainfall.

An automatic timer for the sprinkler system is another great tool that can assist you in controlling the irrigating frequency. Keep in mind to turn this system off if there is an expected rain.

Too little water also may cause your grass to dry up, turning it yellow and parched. The point is to give your garden approximately its demanding spray every week — even in the winter.

Fertilizing And Watering Tips

Tips To Water Your Lawn – Lawn Fertilizer

Do

• Spray the garden in-depth for a day or two before applying fertilizer. Only apply fertilizer once the grass has dried. Then, irrigate the lawn one more time. This second watering is critical because it flushes fertilizer off the grass blades and into the soil.
• Track the weather daily. Avoid heavy, intense rain since it may wash the fertilizer away and into the storm sewage system. It also causes a plethora of problems related to environmental pollution, including groundwater contamination.

Don’t

• Irrigate the greensward at nighttime. High humidity, lack of sunlight, and low temperatures create favorable conditions for the emergence of toxic fungi. It can spread uncontrollably, leaving a blighted lawn and leading to several fungal diseases that can decimate turfgrass.
• Overwatering the lawn after fertilizing. Necessary nutrients may be washed away, causing wasting most of the fertilizer with no significant efficiency. Plus, carried-away fertilizer contaminates groundwater and pollutes surrounding streams.

Conclusion

It is critical to arm yourself with the knowledge required to properly care for your garden. Understanding what happens if you don’t water after fertilizing helps not to mistreat the grass.

Keep in mind that lawn care always requires a huge amount of time and effort. Hence, be patient, follow our guide above, and you will soon achieve your desired results.

Related Articles:

• How Often Should Grass Be Watered After it Is Fertilized?
• How Long Can Fertilizer Sit on a Yard Without Water