Is Starter Fertilizer Actually Necessary For Grass Seed?

Most of us are led to believe that starter fertilizer is required to plant grass seed and get new grass to grow...but in this video, I explain (and show) how starter fertilizers are not always needed and in many cases, the money spent on fertilizer could be better spent on other amendments.
Regarding the soil test, I have used many different mail-in soil test kits in the past, I've outlined many of them along with short reviews on this blog post: turfmechanic.c...
In my opinion soil tests are best for determining ph, organic matter %, CEC, and phosphorus...and for coastal areas or places that salt the roads during winter determining the salinity of soil is also very helpful.
The test I used in this video shows all that info very clearly and it's one of only a minority of tests that show all this info simply. It's not the cheapest test but it's still affordable and is 10% off when using this discount link: rxsoil.com/nut...
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♦ Quick Prime Your Seed vs Seed Coat
• Don't Pre-Germinate Yo...
♦ After You Grow Grass From Seed
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♦ Make Your Own DIY Starter Fertilizer
• The Best Starter Ferti...
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[@celworthy]

Great point about soils and grass seed already containing everything it needs to germinate and grow. So many companies in the fertilizer industry want us to believe we NEED a starter fertilizer to grow new grass, but grass has been growing just fine for millions of years - long before people ever started messing with it!

[@TurfMechanic]

Thanks for the comment. Any middle-schooler can tell you they've seen a seed germinate in a jar with just a paper towel and water after all. The seed's got a lot of good stuff in there. :)

[@chrisporter7534]

Excellent video, thanks for sharing!

[@TurfMechanic]

Thanks a bunch Chris! I'm glad you liked it :)

[@justinbailey2806]

What if you put gypsum (calcium sulfate) down, would that improve the calcium and sulfur content? I've used andersons black gypsum, has gypsum and humate, pretty nice product.

[@242-f5u]

I've read and seen a lot about applying starter fertilizer after overseeding. I overseeded six days ago (cool season mix). Dethatched, put seed down, topped with peat moss. So I'm at the point of deciding to put down Scott's Triple Action for seeding, or not. Any thoughts?

[@BenjaminT.Minkler]

that is going to be quite the showcase for buffalo grass

[@TurfMechanic]

I sure hope so! I'm starting to think about working on the next segment. I may hire out the labor on that one though. I do as much as I can manually but projects like these take forever to do manually up to my standard. I'd love to have the entire strip done with grass on it this summer, that way I can start focusing my time and energy on other areas I've been putting off. Since this video was filmed the strip is already looking pretty good from far away. From just a couple houses down it looks pretty green and almost blends into the old stuff. :D

[@raczyk]

Do you use chicken menure?

[@TurfMechanic]

not really, even when I kept chickens I didn't use it for the lawn. I wasn't prepared at the time to process it for lawn or garden use except for a nitrogen add to a compost pile.

[@codywernsman9452]

Do you worry about chlorine and chloramine in the city water through your irrigation?

[@appiconll]

You don't have to worry about that. They filters you can use to hook up to your garden hose, and it's supposed to clean the bad stuff out. I haven't used one, but I'm definitely thinking about it. It couldn't hurt, I'm guessing. Garden hose filters on Amazon.

[@K-Zone]

No. I've watered everything for years with no adverse affects. If you're that worked about it, let it off gas for 18-24 hours, the chlorine will dissipate

[@codywernsman9452]

@@K-Zone I said through the irrigation, or do you want me to pour out of a bucket into the irrigation line. Why comment if not going to answer the question.

[@TurfMechanic]

I personally don't worry about what's in the tap water; I drink it in the house unfiltered so I don't give it a second thought applying to the yard or my garden either.

[@codywernsman9452]

@@TurfMechanic this year I’m trying zero synthetic nitrogen, and trying worm tea so I’m trying not to use my irrigation. I do have a filter on my hose if I end up needing to water. Didn’t know if you have been down that rabbit hole yet or not. Thanks for the response.

[@shannonhuffman7678]

What would be a good product to get nitrogen on my grass?

[@TurfMechanic]

some of the cheapest sources of quick acting nitrogen is urea or ammonium sulfate. These two ingredients make up the bulk of most cheap fertilizer bags found in big box stores everywhere. The price starts going up when the mix in other ingredients for addition P, K, Minors, etc. The price also tends to go up when different forms of urea/amsul are added to delay the plant availability or length of action in the lawn. I usually use natural sources of Nitrogen or ingredients like sodium nitrate which fall under the OMRI umbrella. They tend to be even more expensive though. Some of my favorite fertilizers are listed here: turfmechanic.com/products/#fert but for a heavier Nitrogen add to the lawn under the OMRI category it's hard to beat Scotts Naturals Lawn Food (11-2-2) www.amazon.com/Scotts-Natural-Lawn-Food-available/dp/B004BKS110/?tag=turfmechanicyt-20 and under the synthetic category straight Ammonium sulfate (21-0-0) www.amazon.com/Ammonium-Sulfate-Fertilizer-Greenway-Biotech/dp/B01GDC8G8G/?tag=turfmechanicyt-20 - Hope all that helps at least a little. :)

[@visionquest414]

hey, can you treview scotts scott'z ez repair?

[@Tobiobi11]

This is Bouteloua dactyloides (Buffalo grass) or if so which variety? :)

[@TurfMechanic]

Yes Bouteloua Dactyloides - this is Texoka Buffalograss, it's an older variety that has more field grass traits than other modern varieties. I chose it because I may turn the sidewalk strip into a no-mow zone next year (I'll still have to edge of course) while planting annuals into it. Not sure yet but that's a thought of mine.

[@Tobiobi11]

Ok, thanks. I would also like to try Bouteloua Dactyloides here in Germany and see how it goes.

[@TurfMechanic]

@@Tobiobi11 That's great to hear, I hope you find a good seed or plug source nearby. 😃

[@Tobiobi11]

Thx :) That's the problem here in Germany, there are only wild varieties of bouteloua dactyloides and only in very small quantities for very high prices. The varieties that you have here are not available here at all, unfortunately.

[@Tobiobi11]

Here in Germany you can only get the wild form as seeds.