In order to know how much fertilizer you're going to need to purchase and what the cost per square foot will be, you have to have some idea of what the application rate and frequency schedule would be for your application. So, here is some basic information to help you out.
It is VERY important that you understand that the AGGRAND products can be run through virtually any type of sprayer. HOWEVER, it is HIGHLY recommended that you run the product through 100 mesh filter screen or equivalent if you are using a tank based sprayer of any kind (small or large).
This will make absolutely certain that there will be no organic particulates within the product that will clog pump/filter screens or nozzles when you go to apply. Simply run the product through a filter screen as it is introduced to the spray tank. As long as this is done, you will have no troubles applying the AGGRAND product through virtually any tank sprayer. If you do not filter the product, it is very possible to clog filter screens.
The particulate that is filtered out is still valuable as fertilizer. Throw it on any lawn/garden/crop area. You just can't pass it very well through spray tank filter screens.
Is is also HIGHLY recommended that your tank sprayer have good agitation, either mechanical or jet agitation, to keep the product mixed well, especially if you intend on using the liquid lime product, as it can easily settle if not continuously agitated.
SOMETIMES, if you don't have agitation, you can get away with some ball bearings in the bottom of your tank (which move as the tank moves to stir up any settling), but this is unlikely to be sufficient if you are using the liquid lime as well. If you don't have agitation, running one of your jets to the bottom of the tank can be effective. However, this, obviously, reduces your spray coverage which will lengthen your time on the field.
The following app rates/schedules are based upon an AVERAGE soil profile with minimal previous chemical fertilizer application. See, below for more details on how these rates might need to be adjusted depending upon your soil conditions.
The product should be mixed at 3-4 ounces per gallon of water or approximately 1 gallon of fertilizer to 30-40 gallons of water. If you would like to apply the same mix to turf AND landscaping, stick to 3 ounces per gallon (1 gallon of fertilizer per 40 gallons of water)
The following app rates/schedules are based upon an AVERAGE soil profile with minimal previous chemical fertilizer application. See, below for more details on how these rates might need to be adjusted depending upon your soil conditions.
Sandy soils should get a lighter application more frequently. More clay-like soils should also get a lighter application more frequently.
If you have REALLY good soil, you may likely be able to get away with considerably fewer applications than listed above. However, don't just assume you have "good" soil. Most people do not. Unless you've been organically maintaining lawn for a considerable period of time and/or have spread compost, etc. your soil probably isn't as good as you might think it is. However, that being said, we do have customers who really do have great soil and only apply our product once or twice a season as a booster.
Rates are given for lawns with clippings returned to them and which HAVE NOT had extended periods of chemical applications previous to the AGGRAND applications. If high nitrogen chemical fertilizer has been used for more than a year prior to the AGGRAND applications, consider doubling the AGGRAND dose for the first season, to supplement with additional nitrogen (or use our standard dosing with a SMALL amount of liquid ammonia for nitrogen).
Highly "chemicalized" lawns are generally "addicted" to high nitrogen levels and will go into "withdrawl" if that nitrogen is taken away too quickly. So, they need the nitrogen supplement while the soil is built up with the organic micronutrients. After the first season you can probably begin to scale back on the nitrogen until you finally end up back at a standard dosage for the AGGRAND products.
Just for clarity, basically all truly organic products are low nitrogen and would require the same procedure to maintain a good looking lawn.
The longer you apply AGGRAND products, the less you'll need and less often you'll have to apply. As the soil profile is enhanced and the health of the grass is enhanced, less and less fertilizer will be needed to keep the lawn looking good. In addition, less and less water will be needed as the stress resistance of the plant is improved and the roots grow deeper into the soil.
Shake all bottles well before using.
Once AGGRAND products have been mixed with water, they should be used within 48 hours. The introduction of water stimulates the microbial activity in the product. Without soil to grow in, the microbes will die out and the result will be that you'll simply gum up your spray equipment if the mix is not sprayed within a couple of days of mixing.
Applying AGGRAND products is very easy and can be done in a number of ways. First, you can purchase a hose end sprayer from AGGRAND (Altrum). These only cost about a buck, and work fairly well in most cases. However, understand that, because they only cost a buck, they're nothing all that special. It's not all that difficult to break them, so care should be taken. I recommend purchasing 3 or 4 of them. That way, if you do happen to break one, you won't be stuck in the middle of an application with no way to apply the rest.
To use the hose end sprayer from AGGRAND, you will attach it to the end of your hose, and then screw on a QUART bottle of AGGRAND fertilizer. Any bottle other than an AGGRAND QUART SIZE bottle will likely NOT work. When you are using this sprayer, you'll know if the fertilizer is coming through because the spray stream should be brownish in color. If it is clear, you're not getting any fertilizer.
If you're not getting any fertilizer through the sprayer, there are a couple simple steps that you can take to rectify the problem.
If you'd like to use a different application method, the following will also work.
First, filter the fertilizer as directed in the above section. Then, mix the filtered fertilizer, half water to half fertilizer in the Ortho / Miracle Grow sprayer "tank". With these sprayers, this is really a necessity, whereas it is not always with the AGGRAND hose end sprayer.
On my Ortho Sprayer I set the output rate (on the dial) to the 5 or 6 ounce per gallon setting. This will apply the fertilizer at 2.5 to 3 ounces per gallon (because it is already mixed with half water) which is the universal rate for AGGRAND fertilizer application.
Just don't stand in one spot for very long. You only need a light application at this rate. It comes through pretty quick. This is especially true on flowers and such which are a little more delicate and respond more drastically to minor changes in fertilization. A little too much on the lawn won't hurt anything, but too much on flowers can burn them. Just give them a light application. Better to be a light application that has to be done a little more frequently on flowers than too heavy an application which might stunt them.
Be sure to filter the product as directed above. Mix in your tank at about a 1:30 or 1:40 ratio. So, for instance, if you've got a 40 gallon tank, put in 1 gallon of our 4-3-3 fertilizer and 39 gallons of water.
It is best if your tank has some sort of agitation, although smaller tow-behind sprayers generally get "sloshed around" quite a bit just being pulled over the lawn or field. So, agitation won't be as much of an issue with smaller spray tanks. With larger tanks, you'll need to have either mechanical agitation or jet agitation (even if you just run one of our spray jets back into the bottom of the tank to agitate things.
In a non-stationary tank (such as a large tow-behind), you could even try just simply pouring a bag of ball bearings or something similar in the bottom of the tank. As the tank moves, the ball bearings will roll around, mixing things up.
As with most organic products, if you do not clean out your spray equipment after spraying AGGRAND, you'll gum up the works. Make sure to run at least a few gallons of clean water through the system to clean out all your lines and jets and make sure that the interior of your spray tanks are cleaned out as well.
Multiple AGGRAND products can be applied at the same time. In fact, if you are planning on using multiple AGGRAND products, I recommend that they be applied in the same mix. Otherwise, if not, at least make sure that you space the applications a few days to a week apart. The reason is simple. If you apply our 4-3-3 fertilizer and then go back a half hour later with a lime application, your lime application will "wash off" the 4-3-3 application.
Since AGGRAND works really well as a foliar application (to the leaves), if you wash it off the leaves, you lose that benefit. It will still fortify the soil and the plant will still benefit, but you won't see the immediate results as you do with a foliar application.
So, try to either space your applications by a few days to a week, or apply them all together in the same mix. Generally, the 4-3-3 fertilizer is mixed at about 3 ounces per gallon of water. I'd recommend using the same mix for the 0-12-0 liquid bonemeal and the liquid lime (if you need lime). The 0-0-8 kelp and sulfate of potash, I'd use more like 1/2 to 1 ounce per gallon of water, if you're applying it along with the 4-3-3. It's pretty powerful stuff. A little goes a long way.
So, for instance, if you were planning on applying our 4-3-3, 0-12-0 and 0-0-8 from a 40 gallon tow behind sprayer, you'd put 1 gallon 4-3-3, 1 gallon 0-12-0 and about 1/4 of a gallon of the 0-0-8 and then fill the rest with water. Then mix it up well. You might have to increase your pressure setting just a bit to get it to spray the same, since it will be a thicker mix.
You MIGHT find that your particular sprayer won't spread a mix that thick. I recommed mixing up a SMALL batch first to see how the sprayer does. If it does ok, then mix up a larger batch. If it doesn't, then at least you have the option of thinning out the mix, since there will be extra room in the tank.
Alternatively, let's say you wanted to apply the 4-3-3, 0-0-8 and liquid lime from an Ortho sprayer. You can only put about 16 ounces of total product in the sprayer (Maybe more depending upon your water pressure). You want equal amounts of 4-3-3 and liquid lime and then 1/4 that amount of the 0-0-8. So, you'd probably do something like 7 ounces 4-3-3, 7 ounces of liquid lime and then 2 ounces of 0-0-8. That makes a total of 16 ounces and the amount for the 0-0-8 is just a hair more than "1/4 of 7" which is just fine. then, fill the rest of the sprayer with water and set your dial up to the 8 ounce per gallon setting.
If you are crystal clear on the above on the first read through, then you may have noticed that, at an 8 ounce per gallon setting, with the mix you've got in the tank, you're actually only going to get about 1.75 ounces of 4-3-3, 1.75 ounces of liquid lime and .5 ounces of the 0-0-8 (not exact). Since or recommended mix rate is about 3 ounces per gallon, that's a little low. Don't worry about it. It will still work. You just end up putting out a little more water than you would normally need. It's fine. Just make sure that, in the end, you put out the correct TOTAL AMOUNT of each product for the area you're fertilizing.
Other types of sprayers can be used for AGGRAND products as well. As long as the sprayer has good agitation and pressure, just about any sprayer will do. Backpack sprayers, sprayers on pull behind trailers and on truck beds, etc. Any of these are fine for applying AGGRAND. Just make sure to clean any filter screens fairly often as organic fertilizers can begin to clog these over time if not cared for properly.