Question: When do I need to fertilize?

Answer: There are lots of variables, including type of grass, amount of rainfall and location within Texas. If your grass is pale and sluggish at a time of year when it should be growing more vigorously, that’s when you should think about feeding it. If bermuda or St. Augustine are producing seed heads, you probably need to fertilize. Most of the quality fertilizers will last for 8 to 12 weeks, some even longer. For most warm-season grasses (St. Augustine, bermuda, zoysia, etc.) you could fertilize April 1, June 1, August 1 and October 1 in most of the state. In far North Texas you could probably get by with three feedings April 15, June 15 and September 15. If you have had a problem with gray leaf spot in St. Augustine you should probably not feed the grass during the middle of the summer.Gray leaf spot is a hot-weather disease, and it is accelerated by the addition of nitrogen during mid-summer. The September or very early October feeding is one of the really critical elements of good lawn management for any type of turf, so don’t forget it. Cool-season grasses, by comparison, such as fescue and ryegrass, are fertilized in September, November, late February and early April.