# Milorganite Alternative



## Harts (May 14, 2018)

Need some help here. In my quest to find an alternative to Milo (Can't get in Canada), I have come across this natural fert from a local supplier. I wanted to get thoughts and opinions if I would get similar benefits to Milo.

9-2-2 + Iron
All natural - organic
Promotes thick, lush green lawn
Slow release Nitrogen
Non-burning
Builds a deep root system
Derived from Feather Meal, Non-Bovine Bone Meal and/or Rock Phosphate, Sulfate of Potash, Ferrous Carbonate, Gypsum and Dolomic Limestone

GUARANTEED MINIMUM ANALYSIS:
Total Nitrogen 9.0%
0.9% Water Soluble Nitrogen
8.1% Water Insoluble Nitrogen
Available Phosphoric Acid 2.0%
Soluble Potash 2.0%
Iron Actual 2.0%
Calcium 2.5%
Magnesium 1.0%
Sulphur 1.0%
Organic Matter 40.0%


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## Jconnelly6b (Mar 4, 2018)

Sounds like good stuff... mostly insoluble but 1% water soluble nitrogen, which will give you some near immediate results. 40% OM is goof too.

How much it cost per bag, and what is bag size? How much does a bag cover?


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## Harts (May 14, 2018)

It's expensive compared to Milo. $65 for a 55lb bag and covers just over 8k sf.

I have 2200, so one bag would give me 2 applications of 1lb N/1000.


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## desirous (Dec 15, 2017)

Animal feed such as cracked corn, alfalfa pellets, or soybean meal would provide similar benefit at lower cost.


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## Sinclair (Jul 25, 2017)

I assume this is the home hardware product.

I'm using it with great results.


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## SNOWBOB11 (Aug 31, 2017)

Dang @Sinclair the density of your grass is crazy.

Back to the original question. That fert is good stuff and will probably give you good results over time. It's important to remember organics take a longer time than synthetics to see benefits. We've talked a couple times on the forum about this and it isn't really a direct comparison to milo. That doesn't mean it's not a good fert but just not exactly the same.


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## Harts (May 14, 2018)

It is the Home Hardware stuff. How often are you applying and what rate?

Grass looks great!


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## Sinclair (Jul 25, 2017)

I did a full rate (8lbs/1000) after the ice storm melted, another full rate early May, and I have since been doing 2lb/1000 weekly.


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## Harts (May 14, 2018)

Does this need to be watered in or just apply normal irrigation routine?

Thanks for your help. Always helps when someone close by is using the same product.


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## Sinclair (Jul 25, 2017)

There's no concern for watering in organics, I just do a light raking afterwards to make sure all the fertilizer gets down to the soil.

Happy to help. I know the challenges of having a good lawn up here.


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## Harts (May 14, 2018)

Where in ON are you?


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## Harts (May 14, 2018)

Here is my front lawn after my mow yesterday. Barely beat the down pour.


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## Sinclair (Jul 25, 2017)

Harts said:


> Where in ON are you?


Aurora/Stouffville

Your stripes are nice. Did you buy a striping kit?


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## Sinclair (Jul 25, 2017)

Nevermind, I see it's in your equipment!


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## Harts (May 14, 2018)

I bought the Check Mate about 4 years ago and love it. Lays down really nice stripes.

I'm in Mississauga.


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## JohnP (Oct 24, 2017)

Harts said:


> Here is my front lawn after my mow yesterday. Barely beat the down pour.


Lol stripes aimed right at neighbor's door


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## bourne (Jun 2, 2018)

@Harts @Sinclair

I am going to order this from HH as well. Can you help me please with the application rates? Right now I am using a scott's broadcast spreader. What setting would you recommend provided you have experience with this spreader.

Sorry, I am new to this stuff.

Thanks


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## Harts (May 14, 2018)

I haven't used the HH fert yet. I'm going to order it this week.

I would think you'd have your spreader setting low when doing weekly apps of 2lbs/1000. Maybe 3 or 4. But don't forget a lot of it depends on walking speed. You and I will walk at different speeds.

Sinclair, can you confirm the setting you use?


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## Sinclair (Jul 25, 2017)

I only have a small yard, so I use a hand held spreader open about halfway, and I walk the lawn about 2x.

You don't have to think too hard with organics though. Just let'er rip and if you put down a little too much, scale back your setting next time.


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## kaptain_zero (Jun 2, 2018)

First post for me, and as a Canajun, I too have felt the wrath of not getting Milorganite, nor do I much care for the various bans implemented by the various Provincial Governments on products approved by the Federal Governement.

Case in point, no herbicides for "cosmetic" use due to "safety" concerns. Meanwhile farmers can still use Roundup on food crops to improve yeilds, runoff is bad but farmers and golf courses can still apply 2, 4-D.

Sorry... I tend to go off the rails sometimes.

Some organic fertilizers I've found in Canada:

Turkey Trot 6 -4 - 6 (deodorized, composted and pelletized turkey manure) (Growers Fertilizers LTD in Winnipeg)

GroundsKeepers Pride 8 - 4 -5 (about 2% water soluble N) (Westland)

Biofert Lawn Food 8-2-3 (Biofert in BC)

as well as the afformentioned product available from Home Hardware that I was unfamiliar with.

As I live in Winnipeg, Turkey Trot looks to be my best bet pricewise. Still at $44 for a 20KG (45lb) bag, it's not CHEAP.

I am a bit bewildered by the package label..... I have no problem with 20lbs per 1000sq feet for summer and fall application, but it says to apply at 49lbs per 1000 sq feet in the spring! That's a bit beyond "shoveling it on", no?

I calculate that to be almost 3lbs of N per 1000 sq feet! Yes, I know it's organic and the N is bound up, but 3lbs?!?!

Regards

Christian


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## Rucraz2 (Apr 8, 2018)

Not to get off topic but has anyone from Minnesota heard of SFS fertilizer? Or Minnegrow? Sounds like a company in shakapee is doing something similar to milorganite. And there is a company in my town that sells it to farmers. They don't bag it. Im going to call this next week to get some more info and see if I could purchase some in bulk?


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## Colonel K0rn (Jul 4, 2017)

Sinclair said:


> I assume this is the home hardware product.
> 
> I'm using it with great results.


Damn, that color and density is amazing. Got a lawn journal?


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## GlennBlake (Feb 28, 2018)

@kaptain_zero and @Harts I have been using the BioFert product this year with great success. My neighbour works for HH and bought a bag of their Nature's Best organic fert. Again with noticeable success. Our lawns are dominating the neighbourhood for sure and tbh probably a much broader area too.

Both products are however, expensive at around $80 a bag out here on Vancouver Island, BC.

I gave alfalfa pellets a go a few weeks ago. With my hoc at 18 mm the pellets when breaking down (they swell up) in the process, covered the grass up. I raked a few times to break the pellets up and to try and prevent any loss of grass. My grass is also very dense. I wasn't too impressed at the time with the additional effort, but coincidence or not the colour around three weeks afterwards was amazing. I will never know if this was a result of the added benefit of natural stimulants in the pellets or the doses of liquid organics I had applied: effective Microorganisms, kelp, humic, molasses and Epsom salts! I buy the liquid organics from gardeners pantry.ca in Victoria and add in some Epsom salts.


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## Harts (May 14, 2018)

Thanks for the link and the insight. I've been looking for Humic Acid for a while.


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## kaptain_zero (Jun 2, 2018)

@GlennBlake Thanks for the info on BioFert. I started looking for it, but the nearest dealer is in Saskatoon and they don't carry the organic one (they do carry something else) and I won't be making the trip there until Sept. so I decided I'm going to try the locally produced"Turkey Trot" and see how that goes. At $44 per 20KG, the price isn't that bad. The alfalfa pellets sound interesting, though perhaps a bit more hands on than I want to deal with right now.

I've recently retired and as I worked in a physically demanding job outdoors summer and winter, the last thing I wanted to do when I got home was play with the lawn, so I neglected it completely for the past 17 years. Now that I have the time and desire, I'm starting to realize just how neglected my lawn has been. Yes, it's green..... in parts, but precious little is actually turf, and with the Provincial ban on the common herbicides, getting those weeds out is going to be a chore. Still, it won't be hard to dominate on my block, most here just let their crops of dandylions go to seed without bothering to mow.

There are a few homeowners who get one of companies to come out and fertilize, weed treat and mow, but that comes at a rediculous price, not to mention they come once a week to mow... even in the rain with no care or concern for the lawn... just to meet contract obligations.


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## Harts (May 14, 2018)

@kaptain_zero I had a bad dandelion infestation in my backyard this spring (as I do most years). I back onto a park that the city neglects and a neighbour that doesn't maintain their lawn hardly at all.

What worked really well for me was the weed be gone concentrate. I mixed it up and sprayed once a week for about 3 weeks. I got rid of 90% of the weeds with minimal effort.


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## kaptain_zero (Jun 2, 2018)

@Harts Weed Be Gon is different between the US and Canada. In the USA it's sold by Ortho and is likely the same as Killex in Canada. You did not specify which formulation you used.
Scotts has a "Weed Be Gon" product and it is a chelated iron solution. I hear it is supposed to work, but it is more limited in the number of weeds it works on, and requires more safety gear to be worn by the applicator than Killex, not to mention multiple applications to get the job done.

I do have plenty of established dandelions, but I also have several other invasive plants such as Daisy and Yarrow, and I have no idea if chelated iron will be effective on them. I do plan to try it out, even though the cost is much higher than the old Killex formula. I only have about 3000 sq feet of lawn and at the local Canadian Tire it would cost $80+ taxes for enough Scotts Ecosense Weed Be Gon concentrate (2 x 1 liter bottles) to blanket spray my lawn ONCE. The lawn care companies here are using Fiesta with less than stellar results, from what I understand.

Oh well....

Regards

Christian


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## g-man (Jun 15, 2017)

I learned something today. Reading about chelated iron in weed b gon made me do a Google search since it was the first time reading about it. Here is a link to some pro and cons about it (not that you have much choice about it). They highlight the need for multiple applications.

https://extension.umd.edu/sites/default/files/_docs/programs/ipmnet/Iron%2520Herbicide%2520Info-UMD-IPMnet.pdf


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## Harts (May 14, 2018)

I used the Eco sense WBG from Canadian Tire. But keep in mind that Ontario has different restrictions. There are herbicides available to other provinces that I can't get here. Unfortunately, Scott's doesn't list the active ingredients on their labels and their website isn't much help.

I did order a bottle of killex online that I'll receive this week,which will give me 2, 4D - something I can't get here.

Unfortunately, regardless of what you use, it's going to take multiple applications to get your weed issue under control. But once you do, it wont be nearly as expensive or time consuming going forward.


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## Sinclair (Jul 25, 2017)

Harts said:


> I used the Eco sense WBG from Canadian Tire.


It is fairly effective against dandelions, and that's about it, other weeds, it just sort of slows them down a bit, even with multiple apps.


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## jurkewycmi (Jun 3, 2018)

Hey All!

Brand new to lawn care as of "too late for weed control" spring time this year

Im up in Ottawa too

Found this https://acti-sol.ca/en/engrais/lawn-fertilizer-step-12-spring-summer-7-3-2/ at a local garden centre, along with the company's other products

And stumbled upon this company http://www.sustane.com/products/turfgrass while looking at who supplies golf courses....http://www.oscturf.com/Home.htm

The Acti-Sol was priced almost identically $/kg as the HH stuff ($2.6/kg) and is 60% organic matter if thats worth anything


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## Harts (May 14, 2018)

Welcome to TLF! ALways nice to see more Canadians.

It's never too late for weed control. I'm still spot spraying once every week or two depending on what's popping up. Check out lawnproducts.ca, they sell Killex (US Formula with 2,4-D and Dicamba) - Active ingredients that are banned in Ontario.

I've looked at the Acti-Sol products but never used them. I just placed an order with HH yesterday for their Naturall Fert 9-2-2 and am going to spoon feed every week. @Sinclair has used this product with a lot of success.

The two other links you supplied look intriguing. I wonder if they sell to the public????

Not sure how new you are to the world of lawn care on YouTube, but there are a couple of guys who are a must follow. Let me know and I'll send you the channels you should subscribe too.

Again, welcome!


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## Miller_Low_Life (Apr 12, 2017)

I'm thinking about giving the Espoma Organic Lawn Food a try, instead of Milo. Anyone ever use it?


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## bourne (Jun 2, 2018)

I'm going to try the HH organic fertilizer as well, just ordered it. Too bad that I just applied scott's last week for my spring application.


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## Sinclair (Jul 25, 2017)

@bourne


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## Harts (May 14, 2018)

Absolutely! Just spoon feed it. About 2lbs/K each week.

Have to thank @Sinclair for that


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## bourne (Jun 2, 2018)

@Sinclair Love it lol


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## bmelz (May 23, 2018)

I think I'm a bit late to the party. The HH website states that their 9-2-2 is only available in store, and my store(s) don't have any in stock.

Hopefully they'll get some more stock soon. It does seem a bit pricey but looks like it could be a good Canadian alternative.


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## Sinclair (Jul 25, 2017)

bmelz said:


> I think I'm a bit late to the party. The HH website states that their 9-2-2 is only available in store, and my store(s) don't have any in stock.
> 
> Hopefully they'll get some more stock soon. It does seem a bit pricey but looks like it could be a good Canadian alternative.


You have to ask for it at the order desk. They don't stock it.

Mine came in about 3 days.


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## diy_darryl (May 15, 2018)

Harts said:


> Not sure how new you are to the world of lawn care on YouTube, but there are a couple of guys who are a must follow. Let me know and I'll send you the channels you should subscribe too.
> 
> Again, welcome!


I'm new to Lawn Care and I would be interested in your list of 'must follow' youtube channels please?


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## kaptain_zero (Jun 2, 2018)

I too would be interested to see if there is something I'm missing out on.

I have been watching:

The Lawn Care Nut (Very entertaining and good information, I think)

The Grass Factor (Really in depth on chemicals, but perhaps a bit dry?)

Ryan Knorr Lawn Care

GCI Turf Services


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## jurkewycmi (Jun 3, 2018)

kaptain_zero said:


> I too would be interested to see if there is something I'm missing out on.
> 
> I have been watching:
> 
> ...


I'll add a couple to that

Grass Daddy - very relatable

Lawn Tips - Aussie golf greens keeper, runs a PRG lawn at home.

Connor Ward - insanely good low cut KBG


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## Harts (May 14, 2018)

@bmelz, @Sinclair is right. Go into your store and give them the item number from the website and they will order it from their warehouse. I just ordered mine on Monday and the woman told me they had over 100 bags in stock. It should be coming in tomorrow.

One more YouTube channel - Jake the Lawn Car Kid. He used to be neighbours with Allyn Hane (LCN) before Alyn moved to Florida. He is in his teens, lives in the Midwest and runs his own lawn care business. He's pretty phenomenal for his age and learned everything from LCN.


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## Green (Dec 24, 2017)

Harts said:


> One more YouTube channel - Jake the Lawn Car Kid. He used to be neighbours with Allyn Hane (LCN) before Alyn moved to Florida. He is in his teens, lives in the Midwest and runs his own lawn care business. He's pretty phenomenal for his age and learned everything from LCN.


Obviously, they're different people, but since they're such good friends, Jake is in a lot of ways similar with his video style and grass knowledge, so watching Jake is a lot like watching Allyn as far as terminology, overall style, camera angles, etc. They do many things in a similar way. I don't know how anyone could be watching one and onto the other.


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## Killsocket (Mar 16, 2018)

Green said:


> Harts said:
> 
> 
> > One more YouTube channel - Jake the Lawn Car Kid. He used to be neighbours with Allyn Hane (LCN) before Alyn moved to Florida. He is in his teens, lives in the Midwest and runs his own lawn care business. He's pretty phenomenal for his age and learned everything from LCN.
> ...


I do like Jake and LCN but you are right. There are things Jake says that downright the same thing Allyn says in his video sometimes the week before, almost word for word. But I seriously admire Jake for what he is doing with a business and his passion even as a teenager in a generation where his peers are gulping down Tide Pods like candy.


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## Green (Dec 24, 2017)

Killsocket said:


> I do like Jake and LCN but you are right. There are things Jake says that downright the same thing Allyn says in his video sometimes the week before, almost word for word. But I seriously admire Jake for what he is doing with a business and his passion even as a teenager in a generation where his peers are gulping down Tide Pods like candy.


I meant to say, not sure how anyone could watch one but not know about the other...they go together. I like that you can watch one and then watch the other and have some continuity. Too bad neither are members here...yet. But videos take a lot of time to plan, film, and edit, so I don't blame them. That's precisely why I'm not into shooting video at this time, even though it's something I enjoy a lot...just don't currently have time for it. Thankfully, some people manage to make time for it, though. @thegrassfactor makes a lot of videos, and still manages to post here, which is amazing. Not sure how he does it.

I enjoy a lot of Jake's and Allyn's camera angles, as well info.

@ryanknorr did some seriously involved editing, in which he made cutaway shots in time with his music in one of his latest videos...


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## Harts (May 14, 2018)

Well said @Green. We have some great resources, and a lot of thanks to give to these guys for their hard work and effort.

This forum has provided me with just as much insight and knowledge. It's like we're put of a club that nobody else knows about!


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## SNOWBOB11 (Aug 31, 2017)

@bmelz good to see you made it over here to the forum. :thumbup:


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## pennstater2005 (Jul 17, 2017)

Green said:


> Killsocket said:
> 
> 
> > I do like Jake and LCN but you are right. There are things Jake says that downright the same thing Allyn says in his video sometimes the week before, almost word for word. But I seriously admire Jake for what he is doing with a business and his passion even as a teenager in a generation where his peers are gulping down Tide Pods like candy.
> ...


LCN did join here recently.

https://thelawnforum.com/memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=1719


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## Green (Dec 24, 2017)

pennstater2005 said:


> LCN did join here recently.
> 
> https://thelawnforum.com/memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=1719


Cool! @LawnCareNut, we love ya!
Memorial Day...what a perfect day to join!


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