The 9 best lawn feeds that every gardener should know about to keep their grass thick, healthy, and weed-free
You don’t need to be aiming for a bowling green lawn for your grass to benefit from being fed
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Immaculate striped lawns have been in the firing line recently as our interest in biodiverse, sustainable gardens increases, and with campaigns like No Mow May, which advocate for leaving the grass long during that month to create valuable wildlife habitat.
But you don’t need to be aiming for a green lawn all year for your grass to benefit from being fed. Even if you just have a ‘normal’ lawn – mown but not obsessively so, a few daisies here and there, a bit of clover – your grass will still benefit from a boost. Providing the grass with the nutrients it needs ensures it can grow strong and healthy. In turn, this means it can better withstand traffic and compete with undesirable weeds.
Moss also finds it harder to invade a thick sward, and if your grass has a vigorous and healthy root system, it will also be better able to withstand drought, so it should stay green for longer in dry weather, recover more quickly, and cope better with wet or waterlogged conditions in winter.
How to use a lawn fertiliser
Use a straight lawn fertiliser, or if you have a few weeds you want to deal with, use a combined feed-and-weed product. Follow the instructions carefully and measure the dose accurately, since too much fertiliser can scorch the grass.
A quick way of doing this, if you’re applying the fertiliser by hand, is to weigh it out into an old yoghurt pot or similar container from the recycling bin and draw a line with a marker pen so you can fill it up to the right level easily each time. To get your eye in, mark a square metre patch with bamboo canes so you know the area one dose should cover (most application rates are given per square metre). Alternatively, wheeled or hand spreaders are available from Amazon, which make it easier to achieve a consistent spread.
If the fertiliser or combined product you use is granular as opposed to a liquid, you’ll need to water the treatment in unless you apply it just before it rains. Remember that most fertilisers can’t be used on newly laid or sown grass. And also, if your grass is thin and patchy, you will be better off over-sowing with grass seed to thicken it up, rather than feeding what little grass you’ve got.
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Maxicrop’s known for its seaweed-based products, which contain a range of nutrients that help toughen up plants’ natural defences so they’re better able to withstand stress, and this lawn tonic is no exception. It also contains ferrous sulphate, which will kill any moss in your lawn – because it’s a liquid rather than granules, it easily saturates the moss to kill it evenly and thoroughly. When the nutrients in the seaweed tonic get to work, the lawn will green up, and rooting will be improved for stronger, healthier turf. Use from March to September.
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This is a lawn fertiliser and moss treatment in one, a 10kg sack treating up to 100sqm of lawn. Active bacteria within its formulation kill any moss in the lawn and turn it into fertiliser to feed the grass. You’ll see the moss just disappears over the course of a few weeks – there’s no need to laboriously rake out blackened, dead moss as you have to with other moss treatments – while your lawn turns green. The manufacturers say that this not only improves the appearance of the lawn, but it also improves soil and supplies slow-release nutrients for up to 100 days. Apply any time between March and October.
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This liquid fertiliser is easy to apply since the bottle is designed to be attached to your hosepipe (explore the best hoses for your garden). Once the water’s turned on, you can apply it as a fine spray across the lawn area. This way, one bottle treats 150sqm. A concentrated refill pouch is available, too, so you don’t need to keep buying plastic bottles. It contains a balanced fertiliser for strong grass growth and a bio-stimulant that allows more fertiliser to be taken up by the grass.
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This fast-acting granular fertiliser encourages the lawn to thicken and green up, and helps its future drought-resistance, as well as helping the grass suppress moss and weeds in a natural way. It contains naturally occurring mycorrhizal fungi and micro-organisms that help the grass roots take up water and nutrients more effectively. Use it from March to June and in September/October.
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A liquid version of the granular MO Bacter that both feeds the grass and kills moss, that’s a good choice if you find applying by watering can or sprayer an easier method. However, you will need to remove the dead moss that results, and it doesn’t have the same ability to slow-release fertiliser over three months. Use from March to November. Once diluted, the concentrate in its 20L bottle can treat up to 250sqm.
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This professional standard lawn fertiliser greens the grass and strengthens the roots and to help feed the lawn, making a lawn that’s strong, healthy, and resilient if it’s in constant use. Use it every four to six weeks between March and September, and these regular applications will build a lush, deep green lawn. Grass becomes more resilient to heat and drought or winter waterlogging, and gets thicker, so weeds and moss find it harder to invade.
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A straight lawn feed that slowly releases its fertilising nutrients over three months delivered in easy-to-use granular form. Use it between March and September, and you’ll notice your lawn becoming greener within a week. Miracle-Gro says that because of its controlled release of nutrients, your lawn won’t surge in growth, so it’s recommended if you’ve previously had problems with clogged mowers. The 4kg pack treats up to 200sqm.
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Westland’s Aftercut range has most aspects of lawn treatment covered, and this combined product for spring not only feeds the lawn but also kills moss and weeds, so those aiming for weed-free, bowling green grass will find it helpful. However, its ingredients are toxic to aquatic life, and pets need to be kept off the grass after application. Avoid getting it on paving because it may stain. Also, don’t use lawn clippings from the first four cuts for mulching as they could still contain the weedkiller, which might then affect other garden plants – they’ll need to be composted for at least six months to be safe. A granular product, the 5kg carton treats 150sqm of lawn. Use from May to August when weeds and moss are actively growing.
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Apply this combined lawn treatment between March and June, with a follow-up application during August or September, and your lawn treatments will be taken care of. Its natural fertiliser that strengthens the lawn so it can outcompete moss and weeds, and will turn it greener within 14 days. Be careful around paving or decking as the product will stain hard surfaces. It needs to be thoroughly watered in if the weather’s dry.
Achieving a verdant and healthy lawn can feel like a never-ending list of jobs, from scarifying your lawn to perfecting lawn aeration, to when to best mow the lawn to achieve those enviable lawn stripes, there’s a lot to consider. Whilst lawn feed will give your lawn a boost, if you’re growing a new lawn, you’ll also need some lawn seed for a full and green lawn. Our favourites include the Empathy RHS Supreme Green lawn seed from Amazon, which contains rootgrow mycorrhizal fungi that help to bind the soil particles and improve nutrient uptake by the roots.
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