Having a lawn that is dark green, healthy, and the envy of the neighborhood doesn’t happen by chance. With the right products and advice from the lawn experts at your local IFA Country Store, you can make it happen with these easy steps. Here you’ll find the steps to that beautiful weed-free lawn that you’ve always wanted.

1. Begin now

In most areas of Utah and throughout the Intermountain West, March to mid-April is the ideal time to begin the steps to a beautiful lawn (or late January to mid-February in St. George and Southern Utah).

An early application of a crabgrass and spurge preventer (preferably one with fertilizer like from IFA) is step one in getting a beautiful weed-free lawn. The pre-emergent fertilizer provides a weed barrier, killing weeds as they germinate from the seeds that have lain dormant in your lawn all winter. If they are killed now, they won’t become a problem later this spring and summer.

2. Weed & feed

Around Mother’s Day (approximately 6-7 weeks following your first application of IFA Crabgrass and Spurge Preventer) is the ideal time to apply step two of your lawn care program.

At this time your lawn is ready for its next feeding and the herbicide on the fertilizer will kill any dandelions that are appearing in your lawn. As an added bonus, apply IFA Bountiful Earth Humate, which is an organic product mined in the mountains of Utah. It helps contribute to a darker green lawn since it has an increase of iron and other trace minerals in the fertilizer and holds nitrogen in the root zone longer. It also allows you to use less water by increasing the lawn’s water holding capacity — something everyone in Utah can all benefit from.

3. Spring and Summer fertilizing

Sometime around the middle of June to the fourth of July is the best time to apply step three — spring and summer fertilizer. This step is one of the most important in your lawn care program. Applying this fertilizer during this period of time will help your lawn continue to be dark green under the stress of the summer heat.

The IFA Spring and Summer Fertilizer contains slow release nitrogen and an Omnicote application of iron, manganese and zinc. Omnicote is an IFA exclusive process by which iron and other important micronutrients, needed for good lawn health and performance, are applied to each individual fertilizer pellet. The Omnicote coating insures that all of the micronutrients are evenly distributed over the entire lawn allowing for maximum nutrient uptake, which will maintain its beautiful green color and efficient water utilization.

4. Fall and Winter fertilizing

From Labor Day until late October is the time to apply step four — fall and winter fertilizer, the final step to your lawn care program. This is the most important lawn feeding of the year. Fertilizing at the later time of year produces extra greening and little top growth. Most of the lawn’s food energy, supplied by the fertilizer, is stored in the roots to be utilized over the winter and provide next year’s early spring green-up power.

IFA Step Four Fall application, containing Omnicote iron, will give you a nice green lawn up to Halloween and beyond. This is also good time to apply a second application of IFA Bountiful Earth Humate, which will help to fortify the lawn for the winter months and aid in vigorous growth next spring.

Other Lawn Care Tips:

Aerate

Annual core aeration is a great practice to improve the performance of your lawn. Aeration will enhance fertilizer and water uptake, grow stronger roots and improve air exchange between the soil and atmosphere to reduce soil compaction. Aerating should be done before your first fertilizer application in the spring.

Water when needed

Water when water is needed. Water is usually applied too often and left on too long. Turf studies show that most lawns only need to be watered once every three or four days to stay healthy and green. A good practice is to water infrequently and deeply. Often lawns don’t need any watering until mid to late April, depending on the spring rain and late snow storms. It is important not to water by the calendar. Watering should be done by the needs of the lawn. Following these simple rules can save millions of gallons of water.

Attack grubs

If your lawn has had grubs in the past (which appears like dead patches) or if you just want to make sure your lawn doesn’t suffer grub damage this year, it is time to take some preventative action. Applying Amdro Quick Kill granules in May will kill the grubs and prevent future damage. A May application is important to allow time for the grub killer to absorb into the roots of the lawn where it remains for several months. The newly hatched grubs begin feeding on your lawn’s roots and ingest the insecticide, killing them early and preventing unsightly damage to your lawn. Applications may also be applied in June and July when you notice dryer spots.

Mow responsibly

Mowing has a major impact on lawn appearance and health, and yet it is often overlooked in terms of importance. Homeowners need to follow a few simple guidelines to assure lawns are being mowed properly.

• Don't mow too short. For most lawns, a mowing height between two-and-a-half to three inches is suggested; the upper range is best for summer. Lawns mowed at higher heights tend to have deeper roots, fewer weed problems, look much better and saves water.
• A height of two inches is fine when grass is rapidly growing, but the height should be raised as growth decreases, stress increases and when the lawn is in shade.
• A sharp blade will provide a clean cut and not tear the grass as dull blades do, which often leaves unsightly dead tips on your grass.
• Remember not to cut off more than one-third of the grass blade at once for best turf health, which might mean mowing twice per week when the grass is actively growing.

Revive during summer

Sometimes in the hot summer months, dry areas may appear. This can be due to inefficient sprinkler systems, hard compacted soils, pet urine or just neglect. Damage during the hotter time of year can be difficult to turn around. An application of Revive to those dry areas in summer will work wonders. Revive contains a special combination of surfactants that help re-wet hard packed and dry areas. Revive’s organic nutrients will re-invigorate those dry lawn areas and make them lush and green again.

You can have your dream-come-true lawn with these easy steps and help from your local experts at any IFA Country Store. With 24 locations to serve you, find yours today at ifacountrystores.com, helping to grow the things you love.

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