When To Apply Overseeding Fertilizer

In true overseeding markets like Arizona, Florida, and Southern California, a challenge many professionals face is properly fertilizing properties that are growing both cool and warm season grasses.

In this FAQ, Christina Burton, Maintenance Channel Manager for Horizon, explains how to time fertilization so that both annual transition periods are successful.

Overseeding Fertilizer Application - Video Transcript

So there are a couple of instances where you might be faced with a property that’s growing both cool season and warm season grasses.

First would be in true overseeding markets. Winter overseeding markets such as Arizona, Florida, parts of Southern California where, again, we talked about warm season grasses such as Bermuda going completely dormant in the winter and what we do to maintain color is overseed with something like Perennial Ryegrass. That we purposely mean to only be there for the winter and die out in the spring.

The challenge with this is getting the timing right in fertilization to have both transition periods be the most successful.

So if you think about the time of overseeding in the fall. We’ve gotta get Ryegrass down in early fall and the last thing you want is Bermuda grass that’s growing very well still and fighting with this Ryegrass you’re trying to grow. So on that taper down period of the Bermuda, this is a period you’ll want to avoid fertilizing. Let that really die down so that your Ryegrass can come in with success.

Then once the spring comes around, likewise, it’s very hard for the Bermuda to start waking up on its upswing if you’ve got Ryegrass that is still really actively growing. So the idea would be during this period, you want the Ryegrass to slow down and, again, you would avoid fertilizing in that late spring window.

So I think it’s important to note that fertilization and proper timing isn’t just about the right times to fertilize, but also the right times to avoid fertilizing.