When Should You Water Lawn After Fertilizing? - Green Lawn Fertilizing (2024)

FAQs

When Should You Water Lawn After Fertilizing? - Green Lawn Fertilizing? ›

At Master Lawn, we typically say to wait 24 hours before watering your lawn after fertilizing. But it is important to make sure that it does receive a good watering session soon after that 24 hour waiting period. Watering helps the fertilizer to activate and to break down and begin feeding nutrients to the lawn.

We recommend waiting 24 hours after fertilizing to water your lawn, which will give the fertilizer time to settle. After the 24 hours are up, it's important to give it a good soak—not just a quick spritz with your hose—to activate the fertilizer and help the critical nutrients absorb into the soil.

Why Water After Fertilizing? Watering after fertilizing washes the fertilizer off of the grass blades and into the soil, where it can get to work nourishing your lawn. It's also important because if fertilizer sits too long without being watered in, it can burn the grass.

Well, the answer to that question will depend on what type of fertilizer you plan on using. If you are using a fast-release fertilizer, it will typically start working in just a day or two. If you use a slow-release fertilizer, it will take a little bit longer for them to start working, typically between 2-7 days.

In fact, gentle showers following the treatment can even aid in better nutrient absorption, especially when using water-soluble granulated formulas. Heavy Rain Immediately After Fertilization: Heavy rain, on the other hand, can wash away the fertilizer, preventing your grass from benefiting from the nutrients.

While it's generally a good practice to fertilize a dry lawn, applying treatment during a drought is not advisable. The heat can place significant stress on your lawn, and fertilizer might not be the ideal solution.

It is common practice to wait at least 24-72 hours before letting your dog go back on the lawn. After this period, the fertilizer is absorbed entirely into the soil. Before letting your dog free again, it is also good to water the lawn.

Morning dew can also help with fertilizer, which creates enough moisture for the grass to take the fertilizer. Dew reduces water stress on your lawn and plants so when water is on grass, it reduces transpiration.

Can I fertilize my lawn every 2 weeks? To avoid over-fertilizing, applying a fertilizer every two weeks is not recommended. Fertilizing as often as every two weeks will likely lead to problems such as lawn burn, excessive grass growth, as well as polluted water that can lead to toxic algae growth.

Nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium take time to absorb into your soil. Doing anything too drastic on your lawn, such as cutting your grass, will disrupt this process. We always suggest to our clients that they wait 24 to 48 hours before mowing their lawn after fertilization.

What time of day is best to fertilize a lawn? ›

Late afternoon or early evening (when there's still light, of course) is the best time of day to apply lawn fertilizer. Applying it in the heat of a scorching afternoon can cause the sun's rays to burn your grass—and when your goal is "lush and green," burned grass blades simply won't cut it.

Nitrogen (N) promotes rapid growth and lush, green color. Phosphorous (P) helps develop healthy root systems. Starter lawn fertilizers have a high phosphorous count for this reason, while fertilizers for established lawns have a relatively low amount.

The goal is to soak your lawn until the soil is moist to a few inches deep. The exact amount of time that this may take will depend upon your lawn and its sprinkler system. On average, it could take around 45 minutes to an hour. Of course, Mother Nature will hopefully also be doing some of the watering work.

You should water granular fertilizer immediately after it is applied to your plants. Granular fertilizer needs the help of water for it to activate, so it will have no effect on your garden if you forget to water after adding it. For liquid fertilizer, you should wait longer before watering your plants.

You can usually apply most non-liquid granular fertilizers to wet grass, but not saturated ground. If there are ponds or heavy rain, it's best to wait until the ground processes the water before applying any type of fertilizer. If there's light rain, it's okay to spread dry granular fertilizer.

Most fertilizers usually begin showing results within one to five days once they've been thoroughly absorbed by your lawn. Slow-release formulas, while taking a bit longer, should still yield noticeable improvements in your lawn's health within a couple of weeks.

You should water granular fertilizer immediately after it is applied to your plants. Granular fertilizer needs the help of water for it to activate, so it will have no effect on your garden if you forget to water after adding it. For liquid fertilizer, you should wait longer before watering your plants.

Moisture Factor

Typically, you should fertilize when no rainfall is expected for two days. If rainfall is expected to be light, though, you might have options. You need to add ¼ to ½ inch of water to your lawn in the 24 hours immediately following fertilizer application.