I have a problem with my bermuda lawn, every time I fertilize with milorganite within 4-5 days it gets really really dark green but after 2-3 weeks it fades away???? Is my grass eating all the nitrogen that fast? I thought milorganite was slow release?

Jason

You might be watering too much?? Also, you might try some fine compost this fall/winter and/or compost tea. Do you have sandy soil? If so, add the various yard amendments listed on this site. Seems like the nutrients are washing away??

I don't agree that Bermuda needs to be fertilized monthly. Most projects only fertilize 2 or 3 times a year. That's what Tierra Verde golf course does and they have a lot of Bermuda. First I would change to another fertilizer, maybe corn gluten meal.

Maybe Howard knows of a variety that stays green without continual fertilizer, but the consensus on the Internet is that monthly applications of high protein fertilizer (soybean meal or corn gluten meal) is needed to keep it from yellowing. And even at that, depending on your soil, some former organic folks have gone to chemical supplements to keep the color dark. The health of the grass is not the problem; just color.

Seems to me that a yard is in lousy shape if you need to fertilize every month. Back to my previous post; use amendments to get soil in shape! Get your soil tested to find out exactly what it is missing.

Does anyone know anyone who has a dark green bermuda lawn without monthly fertilizer? I haven't heard of anyone like that, but if it can happen, I'd like to know what they're doing. A forum buddy of mine from another forum lived in Florida and used soybean meal monthly for excellent results. He mowed at 5/8 inch and it looked like a professional putting green. Since he moved to Georgia he cannot duplicate that performance and went to soy plus chemicals monthly.