Fall is here and it’s time to fertilize lawns, trees, and blooming perennials, plus continue to feed veggie gardens and fall flowers. We carry several different fertilizers with various different formulations, but Medina products are our fav. Read more below about how to fertilize this fall and be sure to join us for Medina Day this Saturday! Andy from Medina will be here at Gill’s with samples, giveaways, and new products, ready to answer your fertilizer questions.
Time to Fertilize Lawns – Organic Wins!
Over the years, we’ve tested and carried many different lawn fertilizers, both synthetic and organic. The appeal of most synthetic lawn fertilizers is high nitrogen content for a quick “green up”. While synthetics can give you quick green growth, they don’t do much for the roots or soil. What we’ve found is that synthetic lawn food is like an energy drink, whereas organic lawn food is like a well-balanced meal. Organic lawn food adds good living micronutrients to the soil which promote deeper and healthier roots. That means your lawn will be greener for longer, plus more resistant to drought and disease.
These days, our #1 go-to lawn fertilizer is organic Medina Growin Green– simply the best! One 40lb bag covers 3,000 square feet of lawn. We can loan you a spreader for easy and even application. Once you apply, water in slowly and deeply. The granules may not all dissolve and disappear after your first watering and that’s OK. The nutrients will slowly work their way down into the soil over a few waterings. This is why you don’t want to try to fertilize before a rain. Light rainfall is not enough water, and heavy rainfall is too much water too fast, which will wash most of your fertilizer away instead of down into the soil. Remember – our optimal window for feeding lawns in the fall is mid September to mid October. Game on!
Feed Your Trees at the Drip Line
Like lawns, trees typically only need food once in the fall and once in the spring when they start actively growing again. Keep that bag of Medina Growin Green handy because it’s our fav food for trees too! When feeding and watering trees, be sure to do so at the drip line, not up close to the trunk. The drip line is the outer edge of the canopy where rain water naturally drips off. It’s also the area underground where the tree’s feeder roots live and take up the most water and nutrients. The bigger the tree, the bigger the canopy and the further out the drip line and feeder roots will be. Apply your fertilizer at that drip line and water it in slowly and deeply. When feeding trees, you’re not looking for instant visible results, you’re taking advantage of the time that they’re naturally growing and giving them a good meal to support their long-term health.
Feed Blooming Perennials Once a Month This Fall
Blooming perennials in the landscape, whether they’re recently planted or well-established, will benefit greatly from regular feeding (about once a month) this fall. Can you guess what fertilizer we love for blooming perennials like Firebush, Turk’s Cap, Duranta, Lantana, and so many more?? Medina Growin Green! Just sprinkle a handful around the base of the plant and water it in. Another benefit of using organic fertilizer is that you don’t have to be super precise, because you don’t risk burning. James Gill says “think of sprinkling pepper on eggs” to know roughly how much fertilizer to apply. It doesn’t take much to be effective. While you’re doing your fall cleanup, remember that a light pruning in the fall will help make way for new growth. Only prune up to about 1/3 of the plant as needed, then apply your fertilizer.
Feed Flowers and Veggies More Often – Use DeAnna’s Schedule!
Fall flowers like petunias, snapdragons, calendula, and dianthus use lots of energy to make those beautiful blooms. And our veggie gardens require lots of energy to produce an abundance of good-tasting fruit. The most common problem we see with both annual flowers and veggies is not enough regular fertilizer to keep them performing their best. Keep it simple and use DeAnna’s tried and true prescription: feed with a good organic granular fertilizer (like Medina Growin Green, Plant Tone, or Rose Glo) on the 1st of the month, then feed with Medina’s liquid Hasta Gro on the 15th. Add reminders or alarms for these dates in your calendar so you don’t forget.
Join Us This Saturday for Medina Day at Gill’s!
Andy Chidester, passionate gardener and fertilizer expert from Medina Agricultural Products, will be set up here at Gill’s doing giveaways, discussing new products, and sharing tips for making the most of your fall fertilizing. Stop by any time from 10-2 to chat with Andy and learn more about organic fertilizer and soil health. This won’t be a garden talk, just a casual meet and greet event. Bring your questions and pick Andy’s brain about plant food! We love Medina’s new slogan, “Yogurt for the soil”.
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