# N-EXT Double Dark Combo? Is it THAT amazing?



## OhDeere (Apr 12, 2019)

I'm sure many of us have seen a YouTube video or two about the N-EXT Double Dark Combo (MicroGreene 0-0-2 / Greene EfFect 7-0-0). They say it has incredible results and you can't go wrong.

I see videos of it being applied, but hardly see any results videos. I see videos on how to apply it, but not much on what conditions to avoid application.

The videos say you can even apply it in the summer but...

Can it be applied to a heat stressed lawn? 
Can it be applied to a non-irrigated lawn (after waiting hours and watering in)?
Can it be applied when temperatures are above 85 F?
Can you wait TOO little/long to water it in?

I want to apply it on my lawn (pic of it today). Anyone with N-EXT level experience please fill in the blanks.

Thank you.


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## NJ-lawn (Jun 25, 2018)

Good questions.....I just saw the LCN video too and wondered how he sprays foliar iron on lawn this time of year. His products are little too pricey for me. Not sure of cost per 1000 sqft. but I'll stick with milo and FAS for my iron


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## OhDeere (Apr 12, 2019)

The two products are sold as a package of 2.5 gallon bottles for $126, which includes shipping. For a 5,000 sq ft lawn, it would cover 7 applications of the MicroGreene and 11 of the Greene eFEect. So each application would end up being about, what I now pay for, a bag of Milorganite. For a 5,000 sq ft lawn I'd put down more than just one bag of Milo.


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## MassHole (Jun 27, 2018)

OhDeere said:


> The two products are sold as a package of 2.5 gallon bottles for $126, which includes shipping. For a 5,000 sq ft lawn, it would cover 7 applications of the MicroGreene and 11 of the Greene eFEect. So each application would end up being about, what I now pay for, a bag of Milorganite. For a 5,000 sq ft lawn I'd put down more than just one bag of Milo.


Or you can buy a 2.5 gallon bottle of FerromecAC for $35 and get the same effect and pay 40% less.


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## Old Hickory (Aug 19, 2019)

OhDeere said:


> I'm sure many of us have seen a YouTube video or two about the N-EXT Double Dark Combo (MicroGreene 0-0-2 / Greene EfFect 7-0-0).* They say it has incredible results and you can't go wrong*.


Your lawn looks healthy. What are the results you hope to gain from using this product?


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## Butter (Nov 14, 2017)

What is the recommended rate to apply each of these products when using them together on cool season turf? 
Specifically TTTF.


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## OhDeere (Apr 12, 2019)

FerromecAC is new to me. I'll check it out thanks!

The recommended application is 9 oz per 1,000 sq ft for the MicroGreene and 6 oz for the Greene eFEect.

In person my lawn seems a brighter green than I'd prefer, especially compared to some neighbors. I'm hoping to get it darker for the 4th of July at least and also prepare it better for the summer heat.


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## Jacks_Designs (May 4, 2020)

I've been wanting to try https://getlawnstar.com/products/chelated-liquid-iron/

seems like it would be a good alternative to 7-0-0


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## OhDeere (Apr 12, 2019)

I did Southern AG chelated liquid iron last year with decent results. That sounds like a good option.


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## ArtOfWar626 (Oct 31, 2019)

OhDeere said:


> I'm sure many of us have seen a YouTube video or two about the N-EXT Double Dark Combo (MicroGreene 0-0-2 / Greene EfFect 7-0-0). They say it has incredible results and you can't go wrong.
> 
> I see videos of it being applied, but hardly see any results videos. I see videos on how to apply it, but not much on what conditions to avoid application.
> 
> ...


Is it that amazing?
It's cool but I wouldnt go that far... I've had same results with just LawnStar Chelated Iron and same with Sunniland's Sunn Minors Blend.

Can it be applied to a heat stressed lawn? 
Dont know... Good question.

Can it be applied to a non-irrigated lawn (after waiting hours and watering in)?
It should definitely be watered in before the sun starts beaming on your blades. Aside from it burning your grass you also dont want the kelp & humic from the MicroGreene drying on your blades. It will leave dark blotchy spots on your grass. Personally I like to do all my foliar applications right as the sun is about to go down around 8pm and then I water it in in the morning. Plenty of time to settle into the plant and not be disturbed by the sun.

Can it be applied when temperatures are above 85 F?
I wouldnt recommend it. Same reasons as above. I dont think its good for any kind of foliar application. For me thats one thing that limits foliar applications. You dont want to do them in the sun. So either go super early in the morning, late afternoon or on a gloomy day.

Can you wait TOO little/long to water it in?
Same reasons as above. You dont want the fertilizer sitting on the foliage and you especially dont want the humic & kelp drying on your blades. It doesnt like good.


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## ArtOfWar626 (Oct 31, 2019)

My personal iron application is LawnStar Chelated Iron.


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## OhDeere (Apr 12, 2019)

ArtOfWar626 said:


> My personal iron application is LawnStar Chelated Iron.


All great advice. The evening application and early watering is definitely something I will do from now on. Thank you.


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## Biggylawns (Jul 8, 2019)

I've used "LawnStar's Chelated Iron," FAS, and Feature. There is no discernible difference in color to me.


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## SumBeach35 (Jul 11, 2019)

Personally id apply AMS, FEature 6-0-0, water it in after 2 hrs and you'll likely get the greenup you're searching for.


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## Getting Fat (Dec 31, 2019)

I've had great luck with the double dark combo. Cant say what all the micronutrients are during but I can say that my lawn turns very dark


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## CarolinaCuttin (Sep 6, 2019)

Important things to remember when spraying iron for color:

1. It's a foliar application. This means it is meant to be intercepted and absorbed through the leaf tissue. Because of this, your spray carrier volume should be roughly 1 gallon of spray per 1000 square feet. You want to wet the leaf blade, not soak it and have your product dripping off into the soil.

2. Avoid synthetic chelates like EDTA and HEDTA. These are great for soil applications, but they inhibit foliar absorption. Stick with citrates, (also appears as citric acid on a label) glucoheptonates, and other organic ingredients if you're using chelated micronutrients.

3. Using a surfactant will allow your spray to cover more of the leaf tissue and improve absorption.

4. Don't mix your foliar iron applications with phosphate fertilizers. Iron(II) phosphate is an insoluble salt that will precipitate out and be unavailable for foliar absorption. Only nutrients that are dissolved in solution are available via foliar uptake.

5. Follow the label, as a general rule a 6% liquid iron product should be applied at about 3 oz/M.

If you keep these 5 principles in mind, you will get a great response from almost any product. That doesn't mean there aren't some that are better than others, but you should be able to get a color response for just about any liquid iron product on the market.


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## OhDeere (Apr 12, 2019)

CarolinaCuttin said:


> Important things to remember when spraying iron for color:
> 
> 1. It's a foliar application. This means it is meant to be intercepted and absorbed through the leaf tissue. Because of this, your spray carrier volume should be roughly 1 gallon of spray per 1000 square feet. You want to wet the leaf blade, not soak it and have your product dripping off into the soil.
> 
> ...


Nice tips! I wonder if mowing just prior to application would help with the absorption also. I figure not to mow for a couple days after. It would be nice if the label had more information.

I plan on trying the Double Dark Combo next week and hopefully will get amazing results. If not, then I will look into a new option, which it seems like there are quite a few. Thank you.


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## CarolinaCuttin (Sep 6, 2019)

@OhDeere Some people say that applying right after a mow is better because the product can enter through the cut in the leaf blade. I don't know of any scientific evidence for this belief, so I wouldn't worry about it. Definitely don't want to mow for 6-12 hours after application, and I like to wash off the product before mowing.


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## NJ-lawn (Jun 25, 2018)

Iron being a micro nutrient be careful.....fine line between good results and a disaster. I wouldn't apply too often


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## OhDeere (Apr 12, 2019)

Applied two days ago, at sundown, with an Ortho Dial N Spray set to 8oz then watered in the next day. Things I learned during application...

Keep an eye on the nozzle. If it has a brown tint to the water, it's all good. If it goes clear, give it a shake.

Wet the pavement beforehand to avoid stains. Even though the spray mixture is diluted enough that it avoids staining concrete, the sprayer may occasionally drip the concentrated mixture.

4 minutes is a long time. I kept seeing YouTube tutorials saying to set the Ortho Dial N Spray to 4 oz and you have 4 minutes to empty the 32 oz sprayer. I did that for the first 1,000 sq feet. However, the solution didn't go down as fast as I walk. Plus, I felt like it was being diluted too much, and I just need a 7:1 ratio, so I upped it to 8oz the rest of the lawn.

The "flat" spray pattern works best.

And most importantly...
Whenever you do any lawn treatments that you rely on rain to water in, no matter the percent chance of rain during planning, it will inevitably go down to zero when you need it, so have a backup.


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## OhDeere (Apr 12, 2019)

In four days it already looks noticeably darker, even with the heat stress.


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