Over-fertilizing your lawn is something no one wants to have to experience but we’ve all been there, myself included. It can happen because you spill fertilizer, the guide on your spreader was bumped due to rough terrain, or from misreading the directions on the fertilizer packaging. It can even happen if you happen to use compost that was “hotter” than you expected it to be. But if you think you may have ended up using too much fertilizer, these are the 7 things to watch out for.
What Does Over-Fertilized Grass Look Like (The Short Answer)
How do I know if I over-fertilized my lawn? In short, over-fertilized grass looks scorched. This is why it’s often described as being “burnt” by the fertilizer. The grass will start with gold to brown tips and end up with rotted roots and brittle blades. It won’t take up water like it should and will, eventually, die back.
Over-Fertilized Lawn Symptoms (Indicators That You’ve Gone Too Far)
What happens if you over-fertilize grass? Your lawn will display at least 3 of the symptoms below, even if you catch the mistake right away. If you haven’t over-fertilized your lawn yet, it’s not a bad idea to take a look at the list and try to remember the signs. The faster you recognize what is happening, the quicker you can stop the damage.
Brown or Yellow Tips on Grass Blades
Too much fertilizer on your grass, if the fertilizer has been watered in and is now in the soil, will first result in “burnt” tips at the ends of each affected blade of grass. In some cases, these brown or yellow-gold tips may be accompanied by similarly colored spots or bands further down the blade of grass.
Black, Mushy, Limp, Short, or Rotten Roots
If the burnt ends didn’t tip you off or it took you 4 or so days to notice them, the roots of your grass may have begun to take damage. This starts as limp or dark-colored roots. After that, the roots may appear brittle and shorter than they used to.
They won’t work as well either and your lawn may look patchy and malnourished despite the recent application of fertilizer. And then, once all of this has set it, the roots will begin to wither and rot.
Halted or Slowed Growth After Fertilizer Application
If both the blades and roots have taken damage after trying to take up too many nutrients at once, you’re going to see slowed or halted growth. Contrary to what some might think, too much fertilizer on grass leads to stopped growth, not faster growth.
Dead Patches in Your Lawn
Can you kill a lawn by over-fertilizing it? At this point, this is well-established. However, in many cases, it’s possible to rescue your lawn if you can recognize your mistake within the first few days of application. If you’re already seeing dead patches, you should be prepared to pull up, till under, and reseed large swathes of your lawn.
Dead patches appear as grass that is brown, dry, and either pulls up easily or breaks off above the still-decomposing roots. If your grass looks like this, it’s not going to bounce back, even if you use every fix I could recommend to reduce the effects the over-fertilization will have on your soil.
Visible Fertilizer After Your Lawn Has Been Soaked
Can you put too much fertilizer on your lawn? Absolutely. It’s important to always follow the directions on any given packet of fertilizer. If there are visible chunks or granules on fertilizer after it has been “watered in”, you’ve used too much.
Grass Looks Parched Hours After Being Heavily Watered
What does over-fertilized grass look like? In a word, “dry”. Over-fertilized grass will look like it hasn’t been watered in weeks, even in cool weather. Not only will the ends take on a burnt appearance, but the blades will look flat and brittle. They may appear discolored and your lawn will appear as if it’s in the middle of a drought even though you water it each morning.
White, Powdery, or Crust-Like Substance on Top of the Soil
One of the easiest-to-overlook symptoms of an over-fertilized lawn is a white, powdery crust forming on top of the soil about an hour after it has rained or you’ve run the sprinklers. This is essentially fertilizer that dissolved once but was unable to be absorbed into the soil, so now it’s sitting on top.
Often, if fertilizer is unable to be absorbed like this it’s because the soil is already saturated. It’s important to check the soil even a few days after applying fertilizer for any residue or crusting over. While not as common or alarming as whole granules remaining, this could still be a warning sign of danger.
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