Hmmm.

I know too much iron can cause grass to get sort of a grayish cast....but wont kill it. But thats the chelate- not the FeSO4....
That said...it picked my curiosoty. A google search and wikipedia entry provides some insight as to why the grass got so dark. Good experiment though.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron(II)_sulfate

 

You got a response in the dead of winter. That's good to know. I hit my front yard 2 weeks ago with a combo of Iron Plus N, molasses and Trinity. I didn't get much of a response but I think the Trinity caused some discoloration so maybe it did work. I heard Trinity at a higher rate can stress turf a little. I'm trying Trinity this year for snow mold which I deal with every year.

 

Snow mold every year? In Ohio? You have all the luck. I assume this is on perennial rye grass, and that you must have a type that has no built-in resistance. I hope you have good luck.

Remember Trinity is a Type 3 DMI type fungicide. And resistance builds up quick if a DMI fungicide is used more than twice per year. Don't rotate with propoconizole, Eagle, or Bayleton. Snow mold fungicide is usually used in late fall.

 

About iron. How many people of us use it in their liquid fert applications routinely?

How many use a dry fert containing iron? Result? Iron sulfate or a chealate? Is it actually helpful as a dry fert application? Has anyone experienced iron staining problems?

 

I blended last year to 3% iron and saw great response in areas that had large overlap so this year I'm blending to 6% iron non-chelate. I am hoping to do more liquid apps also that will be chelated with urea and molasses or corn syrup.

 

I blended last year to 3% iron and saw great response in areas that had large overlap so this year I'm blending to 6% iron non-chelate. I am hoping to do more liquid apps also that will be chelated with urea and molasses or corn syrup.

What is a good liquid iron that is cost effective?

The reason I ask is because Ironiite is more expensive than Milorganite and Milorganite has more iron plus an organic sourse of NPK.
So I've just been using that for heat of summer apps.

If there is a cost effective liquid that I could make a difference with for Memorial weekend, that would be cool.

 

I use Lesco's but will be shopping this year. Most of them cost around $10/gl and go out at 3-9oz/K. I'd love to find a powder form and just mix my own. Any liquid fert has to be shipped no matter what and most of it is water so you are really paying to ship mostly water into the distributor.

 

I suppose that Iron would be hard to concentrate if it doesn't stay in solution that well. I picked up some chelated iron plus sulfer, in powder form for my blueberries, but would definately be too expensive for lawns. I don't think it would've mixed effectively either.

I'll be hitting the garden centers and nurseries pretty soon, so I'll keep an eye out for various iron products and experiment with small amounts in small areas, just to see if it does any good, beyond the Milorganite.

 

it does help
i use it in my mix

 

I suppose that Iron would be hard to concentrate if it doesn't stay in solution that well. I picked up some chelated iron plus sulfer, in powder form for my blueberries, but would definately be too expensive for lawns. I don't think it would've mixed effectively either.

I'll be hitting the garden centers and nurseries pretty soon, so I'll keep an eye out for various iron products and experiment with small amounts in small areas, just to see if it does any good, beyond the Milorganite.[/QUOT

Let us know. I've looked online in the past but will be looking again.

 

Here is a photo of two leaves one inside and one outside the area of treatment. I think it is clear--the leaf and plant can be dead and the iron still colors it black. Cold and snow--no problem.

I think this is from the area sprayed 3 times over.

I think I had a yellowish brown residue coating inside my 400 gal poly spray tank from non-chealate iron used years ago. Stain lasted for years.

Everyone what is your experience?

 

I use an XCU product with 3 % iron and havent really had issues with staining. I do have a buddy that stained a driveway with it from not blowing it off. I am wondering if I can use that 3% product and put down another 3%-5% in liquid with my 3rd round. Im not familiar with liquid iron products so I have a lot of research ahead of me. Riggle thanks for the experiment.

 

Iron, magnesium, and manganese are the most important things going into my liquid fertilizer mixes. They are what gets the grass green without the negative effects of high rates of nitrogen. I use FEAture 6-0-0, which is a dry powdered chelated micronutrient formula applied at 3-6 lb per acre. This products is easy to handle, non staining, stable in storage, and economical. I am not paying for 2.5 gallons of water with a limited amount of iron in the solution. The 14-0-0 liquids made with iron sulfate and urea left a very bad taste. Unstable in storage, reactive with calcium or phosphorus, and severe staining of surfaces.

 

Here is a photo of two leaves one inside and one outside the area of treatment. I think it is clear--the leaf and plant can be dead and the iron still colors it black. Cold and snow--no problem.

I think this is from the area sprayed 3 times over.

I think I had a yellowish brown residue coating inside my 400 gal poly spray tank from non-chealate iron used years ago. Stain lasted for years.

Everyone what is your experience?

So with this iron we are just staining the grass is there any beneficial nutrients

The iron product i use wont stain It absorbed by the plant as Miro nutrient and yes it's chealated

Charles Cue

 

Iron, magnesium, and manganese are the most important things going into my liquid fertilizer mixes. They are what gets the grass green without the negative effects of high rates of nitrogen. I use FEAture 6-0-0, which is a dry powdered chelated micronutrient formula applied at 3-6 lb per acre. This products is easy to handle, non staining, stable in storage, and economical. I am not paying for 2.5 gallons of water with a limited amount of iron in the solution. The 14-0-0 liquids made with iron sulfate and urea left a very bad taste. Unstable in storage, reactive with calcium or phosphorus, and severe staining of surfaces.

I have done a search for FEAture but can not come up with anything. Could you give more details. Maybe under a different name?

 

I have done a search for FEAture but can not come up with anything. Could you give more details. Maybe under a different name?

It's sold by Agrium Advanced Tech or Google Feature 6-0-0

 

http://www.lovelandproducts.com/Tur...om/TurfOrnamental/Nutritionals/ProductView/6C1017C2-F198-DB6C-526C089DAFB9C4AC/

Try this link

 

I found it, under loveland.

 

What is the cost of the Feature 6-0-0. Trying to figure costs for the year.

 

Iron, magnesium, and manganese are the most important things going into my liquid fertilizer mixes. They are what gets the grass green without the negative effects of high rates of nitrogen. I use FEAture 6-0-0, which is a dry powdered chelated micronutrient formula applied at 3-6 lb per acre. This products is easy to handle, non staining, stable in storage, and economical. I am not paying for 2.5 gallons of water with a limited amount of iron in the solution. The 14-0-0 liquids made with iron sulfate and urea left a very bad taste. Unstable in storage, reactive with calcium or phosphorus, and severe staining of surfaces.

I would also add sulfur to that list but being that you live on a volcanic island I'm guessing you have plenty to work with. lol! I'm going to look for Feature.

Back in my Bio-Pro days there was a guy from Hawaii that just laughed at Toro when they decided run a huge special on Sulfur.

 

Actually, I do not have a lot of sulfur to work with. Which is why I am selective about my nitrogen sources. My liquids are formulated with ammonium sulfate. That guy from Hawaii who laughed probably did not know his stuff. There are many areas that are sulfur deficient and/or need major acidification.

 

What is the cost of the Feature 6-0-0. Trying to figure costs for the year.

I can buy the high rate of 6 lb per acre for around $25. This is by no means cheap, but remember the saying about getting what you pay for. FEAture is actually a product intended for golf and sports turf use. To me, it all balances out because I do not need to run 1 lb or more of N per 1000 on maintenance lawns. The high rates of N are for grow ins or to rehab a bad lawn.

 

Actually, I do not have a lot of sulfur to work with. Which is why I am selective about my nitrogen sources. My liquids are formulated with ammonium sulfate. That guy from Hawaii who laughed probably did not know his stuff. There are many areas that are sulfur deficient and/or need major acidification.

Really? Hard to believe but I guess a lot of your soils could be calcareous based from the ocean floor that have risen with the formation of the island.

How much do you pay for the micros out there. There is a supplier in Ohio but will have to have it shipped to me. Have you ever mixed the powder and coated a granular fertilizer? Right now I am paying about $17.00 for 50 lbs of 50% FESO4 and I like it. I want to spray more FE this year so that's why I'm interested but who knows? If it works better and I can use a fert prill as a carrier I will use it instead.

 

Bingo. Add to that the usage of crushed coral as a fill material in construction sites and I do have severe soil problems. I have never coated a granular fertilizer with micronutrients. Seems not to be cost effective given the equipment needed and the amount of material needed. Every bag, bottle or drum of something sold here costs more than what you would pay in Ohio. Therefore, I am not interested in materials that need to be applied at high rates for turf response. The soil also ties up whatever is spread on it as well. So that makes spray applications a logical choice. The FEAture 6-0-0 has given me the best bang for the buck. There is also FEAture Pro which I believe is 0-0-0 and has all of the other micronutrients. This one I save for liquid applications to ornamental shrubs.

 

Ferrous sulfate heptahydrate is about $20 something a bag. Most of the other sulfates are about $50 per bag. However, non chelated sulfates applied dry to the soil or even if they are dissolved and sprayed are not the best materials to apply for the situation. I swear by the 6-0-0 and the sister formulation that has the full spectrum of micronutrients. As I said before, micronutrients cost me around $25 per acre, but I am getting what I am paying for versus trying to push the grass to be greener with more nitrogen. One zoysia lawn I looked at on Friday was growing thanks to the use of a high urea blend, but the color was horrible. It was yellowish and patchy. This was also a lawn over 1/4 acre so the cost of the mistake was multiplied over the average 1000 sq ft lawn here. I will be fertilizing this one with an ammonium sulfate, potassium nitrate and micronutrient liquid.