Have a two acre area that is mostly fescue with about 30 % of that being tall fescue. Will hitting it with iron darken it at all ?
Iron to darken Fescue. Does it work ??
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You need a soil test to know what is going on. I will recommend trying to find some Milorganite and try that. I have three acres at home. I like to keep the area around my house and back yard plush and keep the weeds out of the rest. I run lesco products on the whole thing and then add the Milo to the areas I want thicker and greener. It is hard to find so check Home Depot's website and see if it is in stock before you go. The nice part is that you really can't over-apply it and it won't burn. Iron might help, but with all this rain my yard has a yellow tint recently. Milo takes a few weeks to show up but it really does work well.
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Iron, especially iron sulfate, will darken the grass by leaving a black stain. This effect occurs even if there is sufficient iron in the soil.
My opinion is that the liquid is much more effective than the dry products--which essentially contain some powdered rust.
I am not sure if the chelated form of iron is more effective. I cannot find the best photo from my four-rate iron test from a few months ago. No photo from my new test yet; coming soon maybe. Meanwhile take a look here.
https://www.lawnsite.com/threads/iron-for-color.488832/
My opinion is that the liquid is much more effective than the dry products--which essentially contain some powdered rust.
I am not sure if the chelated form of iron is more effective. I cannot find the best photo from my four-rate iron test from a few months ago. No photo from my new test yet; coming soon maybe. Meanwhile take a look here.
https://www.lawnsite.com/threads/iron-for-color.488832/
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Thank you R !
I know that the iron just about any form will darken up the blue grass...I was not certain if it would work on the fescue at all ???
What do you mean...." leaving a black stain " ? something like painting it ??
I have heard Chelated is faster and more complete>
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I agree Milo does seem to work and if the area is sandy it is even better yet. This is clay and heavy soil.
I pick up my Milo at either Menards 32 pounds for about $ 12.50 or Hersch's 50 pounds for about $ 15.00.
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Chelation is necessary for the grass to absorb it. Elemental iron is still useful if the soil is deficient, grass releases its own chelates to make it available. High ph can interfere with this though.
An excess of chelated iron can make it darker. It's not just staining, if that were the case it would be more economical to spray dye.
An excess of chelated iron can make it darker. It's not just staining, if that were the case it would be more economical to spray dye.
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Just got home, here's a good article on what the function of iron is in turf that might help you decide @On a call
Been awhile since I read it myself, I misspoke about chelation being necessary, it just helps when supplementing. There are water soluble forms of elemental iron that can be taken in but these forms are also oxidize rapidly. Chelation delays that.
http://archive.lib.msu.edu/tic/tgtre/article/1999feb1a.pdf
Been awhile since I read it myself, I misspoke about chelation being necessary, it just helps when supplementing. There are water soluble forms of elemental iron that can be taken in but these forms are also oxidize rapidly. Chelation delays that.
http://archive.lib.msu.edu/tic/tgtre/article/1999feb1a.pdf
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Found another picture.
https://www.lawnsite.com/threads/liquid-iron-in-late-fall.484890/page-2#post-5918551
https://www.lawnsite.com/threads/liquid-iron-in-late-fall.484890/page-2#post-5918551
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I think the entire thread is worth review for anyone having questions about iron.
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However does it answer the fescue question ? or are all grasses the same...and does that work for sedges too ??
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