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Show Fall is best time to f e rti I ize q rass crease in weight," he said. If adequate nutrients are available in the fall, the plant can store carbohydrates for growth the following season. Root growth also increases in the fall as the soils cool and roots continue to grow even after the top of the plant has gone dormant. These roots will utilize the fertilizer that you apply, he said. Grass areas receiving only one fertilization a year should always have that fertilization done in the fall, a Utah State University horticulturist hor-ticulturist said. Cool season grasses such as fescue, rye and blue grass make their best growth with the least input in-put in the spring and fall, said Larry A. Sagers, USU Extension horticulturist hor-ticulturist "They do not grow as much during dur-ing hot weather, but as the day length shortens, respiration rates are also slower he said. "Cooler temperatures also reduce the respiration rate." This means the amount of food burned is much less than it is during the summer when the temperatures are warmer. Grasses then store their excess food or energy for future use. 'Fall fertilizers help to increase this growth rate and build these carbohydrate car-bohydrate reserves," he said. In examining the growth curve of cool season turf, Sagers said they actually use more energy than they produce in the spring and summer. "Only in the fall is there a net in- |
