# Urea & Root Growth



## Don_Julio (Aug 16, 2021)

I keep seeing people comment that spoon feeding Urea weekly will cause my new renovated grass to not grow deep roots. But then I keep reading we should spoon feed urea weekly to help the grass thicken up and spread.

At what point do I help the grass grow deeper roots? I applied one application of NEX T RGS to promote deeper roots. I changed my watering to every other day.


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## tgreen (Oct 20, 2018)

This is a great question. I'm following your post hoping someone has academic research to support any claims. The common wisdom is that nitrogen encourages top growth and potassium root growth. Personally, I use urea on new grass and have never had a problem.


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## jimmythegreek (Aug 7, 2020)

N pushes top growth amd tillering and in turn you absolutely get more root growth. Now is there a better attack for heavier roots and slower top growth? This is determined in part by your soil and what it holds. In the fall many shy away from starter after the initial seed down due to fears of snow mold and other issues with a balanced fert.


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## Don_Julio (Aug 16, 2021)

jimmythegreek said:


> N pushes top growth amd tillering and in turn you absolutely get more root growth. Now is there a better attack for heavier roots and slower top growth? This is determined in part by your soil and what it holds. In the fall many shy away from starter after the initial seed down due to fears of snow mold and other issues with a balanced fert.


I put down a starter fert at seed down. Then 4 weeks later I started to spoon feed with Urea at .25 lbs per 1k weekly. I lowered it to .20lbs last week. I'm just concerned my grass will not make it through the winter if it is not devolving deep roots.

I also brought in a few yards of new soil/sand.

This is a pic after a fresh mow yesterday


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## jha4aamu (Oct 16, 2017)

When did you drop your seed? I believe the benchmark is 45 days of establishment prior to frost is sufficient for your grass to survive winter.

From the looks of your grass, it looks like you should be fine though


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## Don_Julio (Aug 16, 2021)

jha4aamu said:


> When did you drop your seed? I believe the benchmark is 45 days of establishment prior to frost is sufficient for your grass to survive winter.
> 
> From the looks of your grass, it looks like you should be fine though


Labor Day weekend August 28th.


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## ceriano (Oct 6, 2021)

Don_Julio said:


> I keep seeing people comment that spoon feeding Urea weekly will cause my new renovated grass to not grow deep roots. But then I keep reading we should spoon feed urea weekly to help the grass thicken up and spread.
> 
> At what point do I help the grass grow deeper roots? I applied one application of NEX T RGS to promote deeper roots. I changed my watering to every other day.


Have you done a soil test? I'm in the same dilemma, my soil is low in both N and P. My plan is to spoon feed starter fert instead of urea.


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## jimmythegreek (Aug 7, 2020)

Your grass will be fine over the winter, it looks good. Keep spoon feeding it amd make sure you water it regularly you are trying to push the growth overall


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## jimmythegreek (Aug 7, 2020)

ceriano said:


> Don_Julio said:
> 
> 
> > I keep seeing people comment that spoon feeding Urea weekly will cause my new renovated grass to not grow deep roots. But then I keep reading we should spoon feed urea weekly to help the grass thicken up and spread.
> ...


You cant spoon feed starter. It doeant contain fast release N sources. If you are low in P there are other ways amd products to help the levels. Spoon feeding is strictly small doses of fast release nitrogen like AMS or urea. If you dis this with starter the slow release would stack up amd by the 3rd or 4th application you would have 3 to 4 times what you put down releasing all at the same time. Good chance to burn the grass out


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## Harts (May 14, 2018)

You are following the same practices as all of the top lawns on TLF. Do not second guess your process.

@ceriano I agree with the above. Do not use starter fert for spoon feeding applications. You want 100% quick release N. Also, nitrogen shouldn't be on soil tests. It moves through the soil quicker than the other macros. Reputable soil labs don't test for nitrogen levels.

Let's not reinvent the wheel here. Stick to the basics. Read the cool season and soil remediation guides.


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## Thick n Dense (May 7, 2019)

I think of it this way...

it Needs N for everything and excess N will result in more top growth.

For root growth, this will occur no matter what but deficiency in K & P will result in less root growth than the plant wants to create.

I'm skeptical that anything we put down will force more roots to grow and it's also harder to validate whereas we can visualize see top growth.

when rhizomes spread that daughter plant needs N to grow leaves and become self sufficient. That's why we say N for spreading and tillering.


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## Don_Julio (Aug 16, 2021)

Thank you, everybody, for the reply. I have not done a soil test since I just added new soil/sand to my renovation and figured it's a little too early. I will do one before or early Spring to attack my deficiencies. If I should do one now, somebody please let me know. I am a novice at this evidently.


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## Thick n Dense (May 7, 2019)

Don_Julio said:


> Thank you, everybody, for the reply. I have not done a soil test since I just added need soil/sand to my renovation and figured it's a little too early. I will do one before or early Spring to attack my deficiencies. If I should do one now, somebody please let me know. I am a novice at this evidently.


They take weeks. 
Do a test then just urea.

Potassium into winter can lead to mold. 
Address P&K in spring when your test comes back.

No one use a test to address N needs, more of a PH, P&K and micros thing.


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## Harts (May 14, 2018)

Don_Julio said:


> Thank you, everybody, for the reply. I have not done a soil test since I just added new soil/sand to my renovation and figured it's a little too early. I will do one before or early Spring to attack my deficiencies. If I should do one now, somebody please let me know. I am a novice at this evidently.


If you want to do one, do it in the Spring before you apply anything to the lawn.

Also, don't think that you HAVE to get a soil test. You can have a top tier lawn without ever getting one.


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## Don_Julio (Aug 16, 2021)

Harts said:


> Don_Julio said:
> 
> 
> > Thank you, everybody, for the reply. I have not done a soil test since I just added new soil/sand to my renovation and figured it's a little too early. I will do one before or early Spring to attack my deficiencies. If I should do one now, somebody please let me know. I am a novice at this evidently.
> ...


Will do. Thanks!!


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## ceriano (Oct 6, 2021)

Harts said:


> You are following the same practices as all of the top lawns on TLF. Do not second guess your process.
> 
> @ceriano I agree with the above. Do not use starter fert for spoon feeding applications. You want 100% quick release N. Also, nitrogen shouldn't be on soil tests. It moves through the soil quicker than the other macros. Reputable soil labs don't test for nitrogen levels.
> 
> Let's not reinvent the wheel here. Stick to the basics. Read the cool season and soil remediation guides.


 What other options are available to increase P? I was going to apply starter at half application rate every two weeks. I can also wait a month and do a full application. Starter does have some slow release N.


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## Harts (May 14, 2018)

ceriano said:


> Harts said:
> 
> 
> > You are following the same practices as all of the top lawns on TLF. Do not second guess your process.
> ...


If you have deficiencies in P and K, then apply it at the full rate. Spoon feeding P and K isn't going to move the needle very much.

If it were me, I'd worry about P and K in the Spring and focus on pushing nitrogen in the Fall. This is the best time of year to push growth by way of nitrogen and help your lawn thicken up.

Urea and Ammonium Sulfate are the two recommended products this time of year. Both are 100% quick release sources of N and feed the plant immediately.

I would suggest reading this  Soil Remediation Guide.

I am not suggesting starter fertilizer isn't a good option - it is recommended in the above guide. I'm only suggesting that now is the best time to push quick release nitrogen, or if you want to use the starter now, apply it at the full rate. Don't use it for spoon feeding.

Here is the section on Phosphorous:

_*Phosphorous*
If your phosphorus is low, then you can use:

Triple superphosphate (TSP) 0-46-0 - Apply at 2lb/ksqft every month the soil is growing

For low pH soils you can use:
Diammonium phosphate (DAP) 18-46-0 Apply at 2lb/kqft but account for the nitrogen being applied 0.36lb N/ksqft. It will slightly increase the pH.

For high pH soils you can use:
Monoammonium phosphate (MAP) 11-52-0 - Apply at 2lb/ksqft, but account for the nitrogen being applied at 0.22lb/ksqft. It will slightly decrease the pH.

Another option is to use biosolids (eg. Milorganite). They will take longer to break down and be part of the soil, but they do work.

Last option is to use a fertilizer called "starter fertilizer". These normally have a higher percent of P than N and can be used to increase the P levels without too much nitrogen feeding._


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