Not all soils are made equally, and some may need a bit of help to support lawn growth. Have you ever noticed potted plant soil refusing to soak up water and leaving it on the surface? This same phenomenon can happen to your lawn. Soils can be hydrophobic, meaning they repel water instead of attracting it. Drought-stricken and naturally hydrophobic soils can put up a fight when watered, but that&#;s why lawn care specialists rely on wetting agents! Let&#;s explore how these powerful solutions can transform Maine turf by ensuring optimal water absorption and promoting healthy growth.
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Wetting agents, or surfactants, are water additives designed to reduce the surface tension between the soil and water. They&#;re used by gardeners, lawn owners, and lawn care professionals to solve water absorption problems and promote healthy lawn growth. Wetting agents can be manufactured from natural materials like seaweed or synthetic substances like polyacrylamides.
Wetting agents lower the surface tension to allow water and other liquids to be absorbed easier into the earth. Lawn wetting agents act similarly to your hand soap at home. Soap helps water molecules become smaller to break through tough materials like oil and dirt. Like soap surfactants, lawn surfactants help the water molecules shrink and spread within the soil. So while sandy soil might be hydrophobic, a lawn wetting agent can help soil better tolerate water.
There are several times throughout the growing season when you might benefit from a wetting agent. Your lawn will make the most of a surfactant application when water is having difficulty penetrating the soil. Dry climates and droughts increase the hydrophobic property of soil. So if your soil is cracked, flaky, and unable to absorb rainwater, a wetting agent can help combat the dryness. It will also break through compacted soil and improve nutrient, water, and air movement.
You can also add a wetting agent to the soil before installing new turf. The best times to install new turf in Maine are early fall and spring, so applying a wetting agent during these months can give your new grass an extra boost. Once you lay down the new turf, watering your lawn will activate the wetting agent and encourage your grass roots to establish themselves.
There are several benefits to introducing a lawn wetting agent to your lawn care routine. Take a look at four ways you&#;ll see wetting agents positively impact your lawn.
Lawn wetting agents are often overlooked, but every homeowner should consider adding them to their lawn care routine. Wetting agents can be valuable if your lawn is weak and dehydrated. They help the soil retain moisture and improve the efficiency of lawn care applications. In addition, they prevent toxic runoff and avoid the pollution of local bodies of water. But their benefits aren&#;t only functional; they also aid in beautifying your yard by producing lush green grass.
Wetting agents are an excellent way to green up your lawn, but we recommend seeking a professional lawn care team for applications. If you&#;re unsure if a wetting agent is right for your lawn needs, your local lawn care company can assist in evaluating your soil and providing effective lawn care solutions. Finally, lawn care experts are a wealth of information, so keep in touch with yours to guarantee a vibrant lawn all season long.
Northern Turf Management delivers results with the most effective, modern lawn care methods. Our Maine lawn care team strives to keep local lawns prospering with high-quality lawn care. If you believe your lawn will benefit from wetting agents, contact us at (207) 544- to learn more about our professional application services today.
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Professionals deal with a variety of issues concerning pesticides on a daily basis, such as water solubility. Though it's not as much of a problem as it used to be, there are still issues that arise when applying pesticides whether it's a fungicide, an insecticide or an herbicide.
Today, most pesticides are formulated for use with water. However, water isn't so easily absorbed into the target, such as a waxy leaf or an insect's exoskeleton. The key is to use an adjuvant, more specifically, a surfactant to help with dispersion, spreading and wetting of the pesticide for better coverage and absorption.
Water molecules are like magnets, each one having a negative and positive charge. So if you put them together, the positive and negative forces attract. This attraction or "coming together" causes tension on the surface.
When you apply a pesticide to the surface, it's stopped quickly and doesn't spread as greatly or uniformly across the spray area. Mixing a surfactant with the pesticide improves the application. A surfactant will reduce the surface tension, allowing the pesticide to spread and disperse more easily across the surface. Not only will it allow the pesticide to spread, but it also makes it much easier to penetrate the surface now that the tension is reduced.
Some pesticides are formulated with a built-in surfactant; others are not. If the pesticide label calls for a surfactant to improve the efficacy, you have a variety of products from which to choose. We'll focus on two of our top performers: Gulfstream and Turbulence.
Gulfstream has an advanced formulation to improve spreading and sticking of the pesticide on the surface. It can be used with most any pesticide, from herbicides to fungicides, and contains sodium salts of soy fatty acids to help reduce the surface tension and improve absorption. Not only that, but it's formulated to reduce the smell of the pesticide, which is great when applying the product where people will gather. It also minimizes UV breakdown of the pesticide, helping it to last longer in direct sunlight.
Turbulence is similar to Gulfstream except that it contains modified vegetable oil as the active ingredient. It's a superior nonionic surfactant and will provide uniform distribution of the pesticide onto the surface. When used with an herbicide, it assists with absorption and enhances its overall performance on weeds and brush.
Mixing surfactants in the tank with your pesticide is never a bad idea when the label calls for it. You'll see much better results with deposition, distribution and absorption thanks to how the surfactant reduces surface tension. When in doubt, look to the label for recommendations, as well as talk with our service reps for more information about how and which surfactants will help you the most.
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