Fertilising in Autumn will help keep your lawn healthy before the cooler temperatures start to set in. Here’s what you need to know…
Why fertilise in Autumn?
A lawn needs oxygen, nutrients, and water, along with sunlight to photosynthesise. With all these elements considered and readily available to your grass you should have a healthy thriving lawn.
If you have a warm season turf variety like buffalo, kikuyu, zoysia or couch the speed at which your grass will grow will slow as the soil temperatures drop below 14 degrees.
This means that if your lawn is unhealthy and nutrient poor, it will go into winter unprepared for the colder conditions. This will leave it susceptible to winter weeds, compaction, shade related issues and frost.
Now is an important time to address these deficiencies and prepare your lawn with the nutrients it needs during the cooler months. Any easy way to provide all of these nutrients is by applying a balanced fertiliser like Lawn Solutions Premium Fertiliser. This contains micro-nutrients and trace elements that will replace the important elements that may have been lost over summer, along with the nutrients that your lawn needs for the coming cooler months.
Potassium for Plant Health
Most people know about nitrogen and its ability to provide quick green up and leaf growth. But Autumn is the time to fertilise to boost the health of the entire plant. This is where potassium comes in.
Potassium functions within the cell of the grass and provides strength to the entire plant. It helps the internal processes including photosynthesis, respiration, and protein production, creating thicker cell walls to help it withstand drought and disease.
Without potassium your lawn would struggle to grow, be lacking in strength and suffer yellowing of the leaf. Potassium comes in the form of sulphate as soluble potash. It is a common ingredient in all lawn fertilisers but can also be applied on its own.
Iron for Strength
Another key ingredient you will find in increased amounts in most winter fertilisers is Iron. Iron helps to strengthen your grass and improve leaf colour. Provided you have fertilised in Autumn and have your lawn well prepared for winter. You will be looking at providing an additional treatment around July in most states.
You can apply Iron Chelate which will help to get better iron uptake for better results without the Nitrogen promoting unnecessary growth. Just make sure you don’t get it on any hard surfaces as it can stain very easily.
We recommend applying a balanced fertiliser with micro-nutrients and trace elements. This will replace some of the important elements that may have been lost over summer. This will also help the potassium and iron that your lawn needs for the coming cooler months.
A slow-release granular fertiliser like Lawn Solutions Premium Fertiliser will provide your lawn with nutrients for up to 12 weeks as it gradually breaks down.
Just remember, a lawn in dormancy can lose some colour as it is conserving energy. This is not anything to worry about. It is a completely normal part of the seasonal cycle for warm season grasses.
If you prefer using a liquid fertiliser during the cooler months or want to see a significant improvement in colour straight away, we recommend looking at Exceed, Lawn Kelper, or a pigment product like ColourGuard Plus.
For more lawn care tips and advice, you can check out our other lawn care blog here.
