We ’re here to help!Wild Yards is a altogether gratuitous site that is 100 % consecrate to helping you create a wildlife - favorable , sustainable yard . Read more
WildYards is reader - supported . When you purchase a product through a link on our site , we may earn a comission . Every intersection is severally take by our ( obsessive ) editors and our reviews are unbiassed and objective .
Read missionor ourprivacy insurance policy .
Get a Landscaping or Gardening Quote
Enter your zip code
If you desire to take your lawn to the next level and move around your turf into a lush , immature carpet worthy of a country guild fairway , then it ’s time to kick your fertilizing routine up a notch . While13 - 13 - 13and17 - 17 - 17fertilizers may provide your lawn with all of the nutrient it needs to survive , you ’ll involve a professional - grade fertilizer to get your lawn to in truth thrive . A good choice for improving the quality of your grass is 30 - 0 - 10 fertilizer , but what is this type of fertiliser and when and how should it be used ?
A 30 - 0 - 10 fertilizer provide your lawn with a high acid of nitrogen and a low dot of potassium . This enable your lawn to stick around greener and grow thickset . lawn run with 30 - 0 - 10 plant food do n’t require as much pee and do n’t grow as quickly as lawns feed with balanced fertilizers , mean you wo n’t have to mow as often .
30-0-10 helps grass fill in, eliminating bare spots. It also improves your lawn’s drought tolerance.
What do the numbers in 30-0-10 fertilizer stand for?
The numbers in commercial-grade fertilizers represent the percentages of N , phosphorus , and potassium within the fertilizer . So a 30 - 0 - 10 fertilizer has 30 % N , 0 % phosphorus , and 10 % atomic number 19 . While most N - P - K fertiliser contain some amount of all three of these nutrients , 30 - 0 - 10 only contains the two , make it more of an N - K fertilizer , with the P being a placeholder .
Each of these three nutrients plays a critical part in plant life health , and each nutrient works to stick out works growth in a different way .
It ’s deserving noting that plants rely on a issue of vitamins and mineral in the soil to grow well . But because commercial-grade fertilizers contain varying amounts of the three most critical elements , they work to keep industrial plant healthy , even in precondition that are less than ideal , otherwise .
30-0-10 helps grass fill in, eliminating bare spots. It also improves your lawn’s drought tolerance.
How does 30-0-10 fertilizer work if it doesn’t contain any phosphorus?
Now that you know how each of these three nutrients help oneself support healthy plant , let ’s take another look at 30 - 0 - 10 . The higher nitrogen cognitive content provide your lawn with more of the building block it take to quell green . With plenty of N to diddle around with , your turf can at last fill in those annoying scanty spots and develop the vibrant , vivid coloring material you ’ve always dreamed of . The extra nitrogen encourages weed to get bushy , rather than grow taller , so you wo n’t have to pout as often . Another major incentive !
You might opine that the lack of phosphorus in this particular N - P - K plant food would mold against you . After all , is n’t Lucifer necessary for plants to farm ? As it encounter , phosphorus plays a vital part in flowering and fruiting . So it ’s in reality much more essential to flowering and fruit plants than it is for those that only produce leafage , like grass . Besides , most soils already have enough P in them to keep grass happy . So just because 30 - 0 - 10 does n’t take any phosphorus , that does n’t mean it does n’t work well .
ultimately , 30 - 0 - 10 plant food ’s low potassium content will raise soil levels of this mineral just enough to make your lawn more drouth - hardy . If you live in an particularly desiccate mood or if your produce zone regularly sees dry spells in the summer , this supernumerary atomic number 19 is crucial to permit your grass to make the most of the wet it gets .
30-0-10 helps grass fill in, eliminating bare spots. It also improves your lawn’s drought tolerance.
How can you tell if your lawn needs a 30-0-10 fertilizer?
The best path to determine which eccentric of N - P - K fertilizer your lawn motive is to test the dirt . Use anat - home plate N - P - K soil tryout kitto see where your soil stands . Most lawn have a ratio of 3:1:3 or 5:1:2 , but these are just averages . It ’s inconceivable to tell what your land ’s N - phosphorus - K levels are without a examination .
There are many unlike opinions as to what the idealistic N - P - K ratio is for lawn soil . It was once think that 5 - 1 - 2 was ideal for prevent a lawn level-headed , butresearchers discoveredthat this ratio was too down in P and potassium to keep grass looking green in the long run . It ’s now believed that a ratio of 8 - 2 - 5 , 12 - 10 - 8 , or 16 - 4 - 8 is better .
If you ’ve tested your dirt and you ’re still stimulate hassle deciding on a fertilizer , scrutinise the grass itself . Does it have a jaundiced casting to it ? Does it show thin , patchy growth withmore dead thatchthan living foliage ? Does it droop and postulate more watering than your neighbor ’s lawn just to ride out green ? If you answered yes to these questions , then there ’s a good probability your lawn would benefit from a 30 - 0 - 10 fertilizer .
Apply 30-0-10 fertilizer in spring to promote healthy green growth.
When should you apply 30-0-10 fertilizer to your lawn?
As a convention of thumb , it ’s best to fertilize your lawn in saltation or whenever you decide to reseed it . Some fertilizer , like 3 - 3 - 3 , may need to be reapplied every 6 to 10 week , depending on the stain ’s layer of these mineral . Usually , atomic number 7 - rich plant food like 30 - 0 - 10 only take to be applied once at the start of the season . But in particularly poor soils , 30 - 0 - 10 fertiliser can be applied as often as every 2 weeks to keep the grass in expert shape .
Fertilizing your lawn in spring has the benefit of giving the tender new grass an redundant burst of N . Because this mineral plays such a decisive role in photosynthesis , it enables vernal sess to grow quickly , allowing it to cover every straight inch of your lawn . Not only does this produce lush , thick turf , but it also aid snuff out weeds so you do n’t have to spend so much time on your paw and knee or spot - treating those pesky plants with herbicides .
It ’s important to test your grease before applying plant food . This ca n’t be stressed enough . If your lawn already has adequate degree of N , sum up more can burn the peak and bolt down the root . Your lawn ’s indigence alteration from time of year to season . Just because your lawn needed a certain fertiliser once does n’t intend it will take only that specific plant food until the end of time .
30-0-10 fertilizer works better for foliage rather than flowering plants.
If you ’ve established that your lawn require a 30 - 0 - 10 fertilizer in spring , be sure to test the territory again in later summer to determine whether or not it will call for another program in the fall . You should also invalidate fertilizing your lawn over the wintertime months , as plants are unable to utilize the nutrients during their sleeping . Because the food stick around in the filth unused , they may really burn the roots and kill the plants before spring .
Can you use 30-0-10 fertilizer to feed the plants in your garden and landscaping?
While 30 - 0 - 10 fertilizer is predominantly used to turn patchy , unhealthful lawns into professional golf course - storey sod , it can also be used to flow cosmetic plants , as well as garden plants . Its high nitrogen levels , coupled with its low-down potassium depicted object , make 30 - 0 - 10 fertilizer well - suited to feeding verdure . This includesprivacy trees , evergreen plant shrub , leafy light-green veg , leaden feederslike broccoli , and other non - flowering plants .
Remember , phosphorus play an important role in flowering and fruiting . Because 30 - 0 - 10 does n’t hold back any phosphorus , it can in reality hinder flowering and fruiting plants , advance them to bring forth more foliation than efflorescence and fruits . Only utilize 30 - 0 - 10 fertilizer to feed efflorescence and/or fruiting plants if you know they ’re blue on nitrogen , and consider diluting the plant food to a quarter of its power before applying it .
Which type of 30-0-10 fertilizer should you use?
There are several types of 30 - 0 - 10 fertilizers for you to pick out from , and some options cultivate better for sure applications than others . Here ’s how each eccentric of 30 - 0 - 10 fertilizer whole kit .
Powder fertilizer
cheap and easy to find , simply apply powder fertilizer to dry forage using a take the air - behind programme spreader , andwater it wellafterward . Powder plant food are fast - acting , the stark choice for lawns that are usher signs of nutritionary deficiencies and take a quick encouragement . Just be indisputable to apply powder 30 - 0 - 10 fertilizer on a still twenty-four hour period with no wind . You do n’t want a substantial gust to pass off through and take hundreds of dollar of fertiliser with it . It ’s also a good idea to wear long sleeve , a masquerade , and goggles when practice gunpowder fertilizer to annul getting it on your skin and in your sinuses .
Slow-release granules
Slow - firing granules are a corking middle - of - the - road option . They ’re a bit more expensive than powder fertilizers . However , they ’re easier to spread because they have more weight to them than the powder . Plus , their slow - going nature mean the nutrient stick around in the soil longer , so you do n’t have to inseminate as often .
This type of fertilizer should be apply to dry grass , and it should be allowed to sit for a 48 - hour stop before lacrimation . This assist activate the nutrient . A slow - release plant food may not be the good pick for a lawn that needs food ASAP , but it work well for lawn that already seem healthy .
Fertilizer spikes
If you have a small lawn or maybe a few bush in your landscape gardening that would appreciate some added atomic number 7 and potassium , then plant food spikes are the way to go . Although these fertilizers are moderately pricy , make them a costly option for tumid landscape , they ’re very easy to use . plainly use a hammer to solicit the spikes into the ground , water them well , and permit the bug in the stain do the piece of work for you . Fertilizer spikes provide plant life with a steady supply of N , rather than a straightaway burst , keeping them level-headed and felicitous for weeks at a prison term .
Liquid concentrates
A liquid concentrate plant food conk to work the irregular you utilize it to your lawn . The moisture seep immediately into the soil where it quickly provides your grass with the nutrients it needs to thrive . Though fluid fertilizers necessitate more frequent practical program than slow - release granules and fertilizer spikes , like powder fertilizers , they ’re a great alternative for lawn that involve immediate attention .
How much 30-0-10 fertilizer should you use to feed your lawn?
Fertilizer program is based on how much atomic number 7 should be spread per square animal foot . A 30 - 0 - 10 fertilizershould be applied at a charge per unit of 3.33 pounds per 1,000 straight feet . think of that different plant food play differently . pulverisation and granular plant food can be broadcast equally , whereas plant food spikes tend to slightly reduce levels of nitrogen , phosphorus , and potassium in a limited country . Keep these things in nous when choosing a 30 - 0 - 10 fertilizer , and always study the instructions on the packet before apply .
Is it possible to apply too much 30-0-10 fertilizer?
Yes , it is . And doing so can have annihilating outcome for your lawn . Overapplying N - plentiful fertilizers can burn off the foliage , and damage the roots . If you really go overboard with the plant food , you may wind up killing your turf altogether . So before you apply 30 - 0 - 10 , or any other plant food , for that matter , be sure to quiz your soil so you have sex where your N - P - K level stand .
To a under the weather lawn , even diligence of 30 - 0 - 10 fertilizer can make a huge difference . By testing your soil and using this fertilizer as often as necessary , you’re able to turn your dissatisfactory grass into a lawn deserving being proud of .
Be sure to water your lawn thoroughly after applying powder 30-0-10 fertilizer.
Slow-release granules keep your lawn green longer than fast-acting powder 30-0-10 fertilizer.
Fertilizer spikes work best for trees and shrubs.
Liquid 30-0-10 fertilizer works right away to make your grass greener faster.
Always read the manufacturer’s instructions before applying 30-0-10 fertilizer.
