How Will Rain Affect Your Lawn Treatment? Will It Wash It Away?

Sometimes Mother Nature delivers the perfect week -- 80 degrees during the days and 60 degrees overnight with an ideal 1.5 to 2 inches of steady rainfall over those seven days.

These are perfect conditions for growing a lawn.

Unfortunately, Mother Nature likes to keep you guessing. But that is part of the job. Whether it’s a lack of rain, rain after fertilizer, or rain after weed killer, you may get a shower when you least expect it and wonder whether Mother Nature just thwarted your best efforts at taking care of your grass. You might even begin to question whether your lawn care pro is doing a good job or blaming the weather because it’s convenient.

Use This Tool to Compare Your Local Lawn Care Companies

We’ll clear up the common effects rain may have on lawn care practices, so you can determine the differences between excuses and legitimate impacts.Lawn technician fertilizing a lawn before rain

Rain, Rain, Go Away … Or Not?

Rain, especially when it’s coming down heavily or for a few days in a row, can make you feel like it washes everything away.

But rain actually works differently with different types of lawn care applications.

Here’s a look at what happens with rain after lawn treatments and some insight into when you should worry about how rain works with various applications.

Rain After Fertilizer -- Granular Applications

If you have a lawn care professional apply granular fertilizer or granular insecticide to your lawn, there’s no need to panic if it starts raining afterward.

Granular fertilizer and insecticide applications need to be watered in. This activates the product.
Granular fertilizer being prepared to spreadSlow-release granular fertilizer is not easily washed away and doesn’t dissolve quickly in water. So rain after fertilizer is actually a good thing. And before you start thinking that you might not be watering enough after fertilization, we’ll ease your worries and say that, generally, normal rainfall or regularly scheduled irrigation is adequate.

And products like grub control actually need to be watered in for a couple of days to be most effective in the soil profile.

Typically, even heavy rain after a lawn treatment, in the case of granulars, won’t hamper their work.

Rain After Fertilizer -- Liquid Applications

If the fertilizer application you receive is liquid vs granular, things work a little bit differently.

While liquid fertilizers are water soluble and have slow-release properties similar to granular products, they hold onto the plant material and organic matter when sprayed and the plant quickly absorbs them. But they need 30 minutes of drying time before becoming rainfast. Rain could negatively impact their effectiveness if they’re washed away before that.

Rain After Weed Killer

When it comes to controlling weeds on your property, herbicides work similar to fertilizers. Whether rain after weed killer helps or hurts the treatment is all based on whether it is liquid or granular.

A granular pre-emergent herbicide will stick to the ground and benefit from some watering in, while a liquid post-emergent herbicide requires 30 minutes of dry time for the plant to absorb it so it can do its job.Liquid weed treatment application

Water is a Partner in Your Lawn Care

When it comes to having a thick, green, and thriving lawn, water can certainly help.

Properly watering your lawn by giving it 1.5 inches of water per week (including rainfall) gives it the moisture it needs.
sprinklers running after lawn treatmentCorrect fertilization, as well as insect and disease prevention and control, helps keep those nasty lawn invaders at bay so your grass can do what it needs to do. Water is a partner in helping the effectiveness of these products.

Still worried about rain after lawn treatments and whether or not it helps or hurts your lawn? We understand. Lawn care can sometimes seem overwhelming, especially when you’re busy with other things.

Don’t worry. The right lawn care service partner in Maryland can educate you on the basics and make you feel comfortable so you know how the process works. That way when you see rainfall, you can relax.

Want to enjoy your summer on a lawn you’re proud of? Natural Green can help. We provide lawn care services in Central and Southern Maryland. Get started today with a free quote. Together, we’ll customize a plan that makes your lawn the envy of the neighborhood.

New call-to-action

Get a Quote

Topics: Lawn Care

Get a Healthy Lawn & Say Goodbye to Pests

Get a Quote