This is the process of applying either organic or synthetic chemicals and nutrients to enhance your lawn's growth, color, and resistance to weeds. Fertilization is typically performed in multiple instances over the year, starting early in the spring and continuing through the early fall.
A company will come and spray a specially formulated mixture of chemicals into your lawn or may spread solid granules on your grass. You generally need to keep children and pets off the lawn until the chemicals have dried. Each lawn is different and has different fertilization needs!
Applying fertilizer means that you typically must commit to watering your lawn on a regular basis to ensure that it has full effect. Furthermore, applying too much fertilizer to your lawn can have a detrimental effect on the environment: when excess fertilizer washes off your lawn and into streams and stormwater runoff basins, it can result in algae blooms, which can choke the oxygen supply from the water, harm wildlife, reduce water quality, and occasionally produce byproducts which are toxic to humans and pets.