Achieving the perfect lawn takes time, effort, and a little patience. With such a wide variety of different lawn treatments available, it can be tempting to look for one treatment that does everything you need in one application.
To that end, we are sometimes faced with questions from clients asking does lawn fertiliser kill weeds? Can lawn fertiliser remove the weeds from my lawn? Can you save time on your lawn treatment by doing this?
If you’ve ever found yourself asking any of these questions and are looking for some answers, you’re in the right place! So, can fertiliser remove lawn weeds?
Using lawn fertiliser to kill your weeds
Generally, no, most fertilisers don’t contain any chemical component designed to target and kill weeds. The primary purpose of a lawn fertiliser is to encourage strong, thick, and healthy grass growth (this can actually help reduce weed growth in its own way – keep reading to find out how!), not kill weeds.
However, there are fertilisers available on the market that contain a blend of fertiliser and herbicides that can be used to simultaneously fertilise your lawn and kill weeds. These herbicide-fertiliser combination products are commonly known as weed ‘n’ feed.
The use of these combination treatments is widely not recommended for a number of reasons.
For one, by trying to carry out the two separate treatments in one go, you decrease the impact of each treatment, resulting in reduced efficacy down the line.
Additionally, these so-called weed ‘n’ feed treatments often contain substances that are not very friendly to humans or the environment. Since there are other much more natural and organic ways to achieve the same results, it is always advised to do the latter.
Why you should avoid fertilisers that kill weeds
There are several reasons why products such as weed 'n' feed should be avoided.
Excessive use of herbicides can damage your lawn
By applying a mixture of fertiliser and herbicides on your entire lawn, you risk applying herbicide to areas that do not require it. Did you know that weeds are often restricted to between five and ten per cent of lawn surface areas? By utilising a weed 'n' feed product, you are applying a chemical designed to kill plant life to your entire lawn.
They harm the environment
Lawn fertilisers that can kill weeds contain harmful chemicals which usually do not get absorbed by grass and other plants regardless of how thick your lawn is.
As a result, when it rains these chemicals usually wash off and travel into water bodies such as rivers, streams, and underground water tables. When this happens, they affect the water quality and can lead to the creation of algal blooms which can kill fish and other aquatic life in rivers, lakes, and even oceans.
There are better ways of fertilising your lawn and removing weeds
Proper and regular care of lawns through mowing, watering, and aeration prevents the need to use feed 'n' weed type products.
Using a healthy fertiliser can actually help you manage your lawn weeds! As mentioned earlier in the blog, the primary purpose of lawn fertiliser is to help your lawn grow thick and healthy. Having a lawn that is strong and healthy makes it more difficult for weeds to grow.
This line of defence helps keep lawn weeds sparse, and leaves you with more options for alternative lawn weed removal techniques. For example, hand weeding is most effective on lawns where there isn't an overwhelming number of weeds.
How we can help
Here at Lawn & Weed Expert, we understand that caring for your lawn can be time-consuming. Finding ways to care for your lawn that saves time can be tempting, but we do not recommend it. In our experience, it is always best practice to give each lawn treatment the time and attention it deserves to achieve the best possible results but if you don't have the time to do this, we can help!
With our professional and effective lawn fertiliser and weeding services, we guarantee that your lawn will get the care that it deserves whilst saving you precious time. Want to learn more? Simply click below to find more information on our fertilisation and weed control services.
Lawn Fertilisation Services > Weed Control Services >
