- 1). Test the pH level in your soil to determine what type of fertilizer you need to use. Dig soil samples from several different areas of your yard with a trowel and take them to your state or county extension office for analysis. Follow the recommendations of the extension office when choosing a suitable fertilizer for fescue.
- 2). Measure the area of your yard to determine how much fertilizer you need. It may be easiest to break your yard down into different sections and add the totals of each section together, especially if you have a lot of obstacles or an oddly shaped yard.
- 3). Calibrate the spreader by pouring the amount of fertilizer you need for 100 square feet into the spreader and apply it to a surface 100 feet long that is hard and clean. If you run out of fertilizer before you reach 100 feet, slow the release; if you have fertilizer left over, release the fertilizer more quickly. Sweep the fertilizer from the surface and place it back into the spreader.
- 4). Spread the fertilizer onto the lawn, beginning around the perimeter of the lawn. Walk back-and-forth over the lawn at a steady pace in passes that overlap each other slightly. When you reach the end of a row, close the door on the spreader and turn it around. Start pushing the spreader and then open the door. This prevents the fertilizer from burning the lawn.
- 5). Water the lawn the day after you fertilize it.
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