Regardless of the size of your lawn, our team of turf experts can help you keep your space lush and healthy. From seeding to fertilizing to irrigating, lawn care is an art form and each lawn has different needs to keep it thriving. We carry custom blended grass seeds and fertilizers that have been made to our specifications and commercially available products.
We are here to answer any questions you may have about your particular space and its needs. We encourage you to take photos of your space or challenge area and bring samples to any of our two locations to meet with our turf experts at the Plant Clinic.
Employing our extensive first hand experience with turf grass in Northern Virginia and the research conducted by the University of Maryland and Virginia Tech, we’ve developed our own custom formulated grass seed and fertilizer blends that are mixed to thrive in the conditions of our area.
Our most popular and versatile grass seed blend, Merrifield Tuff Play produces a medium textured, rich green lawn that is adaptable to many environments. It contains 95% tall fescue and 5% Kentucky bluegrass. This blend is quick to establish, tolerates foot traffic and has a high degree of durability, making it a great option for areas of the lawn where kids or pets play. While Merrifield Tuff Play does root well in partial shade, it requires at least 4 hours of sunlight for optimal results.
Tuff Play takes about 10 to 14 days to germinate. It will get to mowing height around 4 weeks after application. It is considered established after it’s been mowed at least three times. You can begin applying weed preventers once it’s established.
Our shady blend is ideal for moderate to heavy shade conditions that receive 2 to 3 hours of sun daily. Merrifield Shady contains 60% hard fescue, 20% perennial rye and 20% Kentucky bluegrass. This blend creates a fine-textured, bright green, easy-care lawn that performs well under trees and adapts to moist or dry soil. If the area of your lawn you need to seed receives less than 2 hours of sun each day, consider lawn alternatives, such as ground covers or artificial turf.
Merrifield Shady takes about 14 to 21 days to germinate and will reach mowing height after 6 to 8 weeks. It is considered established after it’s been mowed at least three times. You can begin applying weed preventers once it’s established.
Merrifield Sunny is made up of 80% Kentucky bluegrass and 20% perennial rye, which produces a luxurious lawn with a rich, blue-green color and a medium texture. It has a dense, uniform growth habit and therefore withstands foot traffic well. This grass prefers at least 6 hours of full sun and will require more maintenance and water than the Merrifield Tuff Play or Merrifield Shady blends.
Merrifield Sunny takes about 14 to 21 days to germinate and will reach mowing height after 6 to 8 weeks. It is considered established after it’s been mowed at least three times. You can begin applying weed preventers once it’s established.
Merrifield Select is a granular starter fertilizer to use when seeding a new lawn, overseeding an existing lawn or installing sod. This formula includes 14% long lasting, slow release nitrogen, 18% phosphorus and 14% sulfate of potash, providing a controlled, balanced feed to aid in seed germination, root growth and support overall turf health.
Apply Merrifield Select 14-18-14 after you put down your grass seed. Then, cover the seeded spots with a light layer of compost, topsoil or straw and water to keep the seed moist.
Merrifield Premium is a granular fertilizer blended to support established lawns. This blend contains 26% long lasting, slow release nitrogen for a lush, green lawn and 12% sulfate of potash for drought resistance and turf vigor. We recommend feeding your established lawn with Merrifield Premium three times a year, once in the spring and twice in the fall.
Lawns in our area like to be fed 3 times a year. To achieve the optimal fertilizer recommendations while seeding, follow these guidelines:
Always follow the application instructions on the back of the bag.
Sod is a layer of pre-grown, one year old grass that is harvested with the roots and soil intact making it ready to transplant into your yard. It’s popular among homeowners because it provides an instant lawn. We carry three different types of sod: tall fescue, Kentucky bluegrass and zoysia. Our sod is grown locally, harvested and stocked fresh.
You can plant sod any time of the year, except when the ground is frozen. It requires access to water to keep the roots moist so they grow into the existing soil. The most popular times of year to sod are spring and fall when the weather is cooler, making it easier to keep the sod moist.
Tall fescue sod is the most popular choice in our area as it is relatively low maintenance, drought and heat tolerant and will grow in full sun as well as part shade conditions. Tall fescue sod is comparable to our Merrifield Tuff Play seed as it contains both Kentucky bluegrass and tall fescue. Tall fescue sod is stocked at all two of our stores regularly.
With its dark blue-green color, Kentucky bluegrass sod provides a gorgeous, unique lawn. While it’s sought after for its looks, Kentucky bluegrass is higher maintenance and less drought and heat tolerant, requiring more frequent watering and fertilization. It is most similar to our Merrifield Sunny blend. Kentucky bluegrass sod is generally in stock at the Fair Oaks location and special order at Merrifield and Gainesville.
Zoysia sod is beloved for its low maintenance qualities as it requires less mowing, watering and fertilizing than its cool season grass counterparts of tall fescue and Kentucky bluegrass. This sun-loving sod grows in the heat of summer from June to September, boasts a light green color with a dense growth habit and goes dormant October through May, turning brown. It will come back to life when the temperatures warm. Zoysia sod is generally in stock at the Fair Oaks location and special order at Merrifield.
In addition to our private label products for lawn care, we also offer commercially branded fertilizer that are tried, true and effective to give you the healthiest lawn possible.
Milorganite is composed of heat dried microbes, providing slow-release nitrogen to lawns and plants through microbial activity. When soil moisture is adequate and soil temperatures are between 55 and 85 degrees F, Milorganite microbes will break down, making the nitrogen available to the lawn roots. When the conditions aren’t favorable, the nutrients will stay put until there’s adequate water and the temperature is within range. The slow-release nitrogen in Milorganite is available for up to 10 weeks, helping the lawn maintain its color. It is one of our most popular amendments as it is competitively priced and reliable.
Pelletized lime is limestone rock that is crushed into a powder and then granulated into pellets. It is used as a fertilizer to adjust the pH level of your lawn. The lime will break down when it comes into contact with water, dissolving rapidly to balance the acidity of your soil, adding more calcium, magnesium and phosphorus to the area. The effects of pelletized lime will continue for at least a year after application. We recommend testing your lawn for lime every 3 to 5 years and using the recommended application amount each year until you repeat the test.
Lawn Restore is a long lasting granular fertilizer that helps with root development and the thickening of the blades of grass. It contains feather meal and soybean meal instead of biosolids and manure, ensuring a more pleasant aroma when it is applied to the lawn. It won’t burn the lawn when applied and works quickly, ensuring a lush lawn within 3 to 5 days of application. While it is more expensive than compost based competitors, it will have a better aroma.
Pesky weeds come in many different forms. From common crabgrass and dandelion to chickweed and clover, the list of potential invaders seems endless. Luckily, there are many different options to control and eradicate weeds from invading your lawn and garden. Here are some of our top choices for weed control.
Pre-emergent weed control products must be put down before weed seed germinates to effectively prevent weeds in your lawn. We recommend following the application instructions on the bag of the specific product and re-applying during the second application window for the product to be most effective.
Preen Crabgrass Control is a granular weed control product that can be applied to already established lawns and ornamentals in the fall or spring before weed seeds germinate. It can be used to control weeds including chickweed, crabgrass, henbit, spurge and yellow foxtail. Both warm and cool season turfgrasses will benefit from the addition of Preen Crabgrass Control.
Fertilome Broadleaf Weed Control with Gallery helps prevent winter weeds specifically. Apply it in the fall to prevent bittercress, chickweed and henbit. For perennial weeds like clover, dandelion and plantain, the best time to apply Fertilome is in spring or fall.
Typically, weed control and seeding should not be done at the same time. Fertilizing and insect control is fine to do while seeding, but if you apply a weed control while seeding, you may injure young grass that is trying to grow. Scott’s Turf Builder, however, is the only weed control product that is fine to use while seeding at the same time.
Once weeds are present in your lawn, you can use a weed control product to eradicate them. Weed control products should not be applied to newly seeded lawns.
Trimec Speed controls over 200 different kinds of perennial and winter broadleaf weeds, including chickweed, clover, dandelion, ground ivy, henbit and wild violet. You can use this product when you start to see the weeds appearing in your yard and it will yield results after just 8 hours following application.
Along with chickweed, clover and oxalis, this product also eliminates speedwell, veronica and ground ivy. We recommend watering the area prior to application if the soil feels dry so that it will absorb into the area better. We also recommend refraining from mowing the area one to two days before and after to allow the grass leaves to soak up the product.
This product can be connected to a hose and sprayed over lawn areas to remove pesky, tough weeds, such as purple and yellow nutsedge, kyllinga, pigweed, purslane, redroot and more.
This dry-application granule product works well on both warm and cool season grasses. It kills broadleaf and grassy weeds down to the root, eliminating weeds effectively. It will work on weeds, such as goosegrass, ground ivy and nutsedge.
We carry a couple of tried and true insect killers and preventers here at Merrifield Garden Center. We recommend taking photos of any insects you come across in your yard or bring in a specimen of the issue to our plant clinic so we can help you choose the best product for any given insect infestation.
From crickets to chinch bugs, this product eliminates many different species of both grubs and other lawn dwelling pests. It only needs to be applied once during spring, summer or fall to work effectively. You can use this when you first notice pests in the lawn.
We recommend using this product when grubs are feeding from May through October. It will reliably exterminate insects, such as ants, armyworms, billbugs, chinch bugs, crickets, cutworms, earwigs, grasshoppers, leafhoppers, millipedes and more within 24 hours of application.
Diseases may occur in your yard, but have no fear, we can help diagnose and treat any problem you come across. If you notice any sign of disease in your yard, come visit us at the plant clinic with photos or specimens so we can help find the best solution to your disease problems.
Along with lawns, this product works well to prevent and control diseases on trees and shrubs, flowering and non-flowering. You can use this to prevent lawn diseases, such as brown patch, dollar spot, powdery mildew and more. It comes in a user-friendly spray container for easy application.
This granular disease control product prevents and stops over 30 different diseases, such as leaf spot, snow mold and many more. It is best used to prevent diseases from occurring, but can also be useful at the first sign of disease.
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