Granular vs Liquid fert, year round

[GreenUtah]

If you could choose to use just one, a granular or liquid application, as your only method for year round, which and why?

[spcfoor]

I would probably choose liquid. Due to the fact that you don't have to worry about watering in as much and is a little bit quicker.

[spray guy]

I would definitly take liquid over granular.

[teeca]

both have their good points. liquid will (can) give you an almost unlimited possible mix's.. like how much iron do you want? just add it in 3% 5% 6%... what amount of N do you want? maybe 6% in the spring to limit growth.. add a little pre-m, little weed control, a little NBN (slow release N), some potash.. you can custom blend your own, whereas with a granular your limited (for the most part) on what the supplier is offering you (making you) to use. but granular is nice because you tethered to a truck, so those larger properties or even the smaller ones that have all the yard trinket's are easer done by a spreader. the down side to the liquid is the upfront equipment cost, would be nice to have a larger tank say 300-600gal to cover more ground without a refill. i use a 600gal w/500' 1/2" hose for lawns, and it works great except you really don't know how heavy 500' of hose strung accross a field is until it's all out and your trying to spray! i've done it w/ a 200gal tank, but your looking at doing 1-2 refill's per day min.

[Mgardner]

Exactly what I was pondering. Question, what about hot weather and liquid N ? Is burning a factor or is it a matter of a certain % and no more above say 80? Putting down chemicals, it`s simple read the lable. My rutine is put on dry apps for fert, spray broadleaf.....

[ThreeWide]

Those interested in this thread might enjoy strolling through this one:

http://lawnsite.com/showthread.php?t=25709&highlight=liquid+granular

It is probably headed in the direction of that discussion.

[GreenUtah]

Turf, I had read that thread previously, but sometimes it's good to revisit a subject as the season wears on, right? lol...Mgardener, It IS all about the rates applied during certain temps, just as it would be for a granular. Let's say for instance that you put a 50% SCU granular product down at a rate of 1 lb of actual N per 1000 in the heat. .5lb(50%) is immediately available for uptake as soon as water dissolves the granule to make it available to the plant. If this scenario does not burn the turf type under your current heat conditions, then neither will a liquid app with a .5 lb mix immediately available, assuming water carry in the next 24-72 hours, depending on heat. Otherwise you'll see the infamous tip burn in action. There are certainly slow release liquids out there and as Teeca pointed out, you can custom blend your tank to whatever your management skills are telling you to apply! you can mix a quick N shot like urea with a slow release liquid, boost your iron rates, change P & K, add some micros, whatever you feel like conjuring. To the other side, for large properties on the quick and dirty, I loved my Vicon spreaders and the ability to just go and throw and not drag off hundreds of feet of hose. However, I used 20 foot truck booms for weed control as well and probably would have preferred all liquid if I would have had a dedicated turf spray vehicle with drift curtains, computer pump controls and a 1000 gallon refill vehicle. Maybe the next go around. = )