No, wishing to be a party-pooper, but I imagine that a very significant amount of this artificial fertiliser ends up in our surface water, contributing to the enrichment and eutrophication of our inland waterways. If you are not in a coastal region, the impact is obviously greater, as our fresh water has a more limited ability to absorb this enrichment.
I concede the argument in favour of fertiliser in terms of bringing a lawn from inadequate to adequate, but once your lawn is adequate I think you should stop: we should all bear in mind that these products have consequences for the environment.
Mob,
Decent point you;ve raised, however it's more relevant to intensive farmers who spread maybe 20 or 30 tonnes of fertiliser per year on their farm than to a householder spreading a couple of kilos of fertiliser on their lawn once a year.
The quality of our waterways is certainly a cause for concern and we all need to act responsibly. (Co. Councils included!)
Matter of interest is there a dog in the area using the lawn as a loo?
I had this problem with the neighbours dog not so long ago and I had dead patches of lawn, I invested in a set of gates and this sloved the problem.
If you want weed and feed B&Q have a good deal at the moment. Evergreen Complete 3.5 Kg with spreader plus 3.5 Kg Evergreen Complete for €15 normal price €23.46.