Is Lawn Fertilizer Safe after 2 Months?

dhruvstortoise

New Member
Joined
Aug 15, 2017
Messages
9
Location (City and/or State)
Bay Area, CA
Hi,

My lawn was fertilized at the start of June 2017. I recently read that tortoises should have a lot of grass in their diet. My lawn has Bermuda grass so I gave some to my tortoise to eat. I'm wondering if it's safe because it has been two months and the gardeners have clipped the grass 2-3 times. I've seen many conflicting sources, so I'm a bit scared that my tortoise will fall sick.

-Thanks,
Dhruv
 

Kasia

Well-Known Member
Joined
Aug 15, 2015
Messages
807
Location (City and/or State)
Poland
What kind of fertilizer?
I would say no, pesticides are hard to get rid of and they are made to not be washed away easily.
If I were you I would wait 6 months till year at least dependent on the chemical used. Better safe then sorry.
 

Bambam1989

Well-Known Member
Joined
Aug 15, 2017
Messages
3,112
Location (City and/or State)
East Texas
You might consider growing your own fodder for your tort. There are lots of videos on YouTube showing how to do it. You just have to decide what kind of grass to use.
 

Alaskamike

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jul 2, 2014
Messages
1,742
Location (City and/or State)
South Florida
You need to know exactly what was used on your lawn.

Anything pesticides can poison torts.
Fertilizer - unless eaten directly - just feeds the plant.

If it's maintained by a rental company , condo association , etc , I would not trust it. Sometimes even the gardeners don't know.

If you own it , did it yourself , or have a company do it. You can find out for certain.
 

wellington

Well-Known Member
Moderator
10 Year Member!
Tortoise Club
Joined
Sep 6, 2011
Messages
49,660
Location (City and/or State)
Chicago, Illinois, USA
I wouldn't trust only two months. A lot depends on the amount of rain or watering that was done too. Try to find out the length of time the fertiler is active for. Some are 6 months, some are less. If no info can be found, then I would wait a month or two more and water the heck out of it to get it washed down further into the ground.
 

Big Charlie

Well-Known Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Jul 28, 2015
Messages
2,801
Location (City and/or State)
California
It depends on the type of fertilizer. We used manure, which is safe.
 

New Posts

Top