Of these nutrients, at least 16 are known to be essential elements. All essential elements except carbon, hydrogen and oxygen are obtained from the soil and absorbed by plant roots. If limited nutrients are available in the soil, lawn growth and quality may be limited. However, essential elements can be added to the soil through fertilizer applications. Lawn fertilization is the application of sufficient amounts of all essential elements to produce optimum turf growth.
Lawns require nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium in the greatest quantities.
They should be applied as recommended by soil test results. Nutrients needed in minor amounts and applied less frequently are calcium, magnesium and sulfur. These minor elements are usually present in a large enough quantity in the soil that they do not need to be added with a fertilizer. Nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium, calcium, magnesium and sulfur are called macronutrients, and are the basic nutrients required by plants in relatively large amounts. Nitrogen is probably the most important element you can apply which affects plant growth.