For some of us our lawn is our pride and joy, we don’t spend all out time on our cars or fancy home entertainment systems…what we really enjoy is making our lawn look just perfect. And a big part of that is using the right lawn fertilizer. Generally when you talk about lawn fertilizers, the discussion comes down to two competing brands: Scotts Fertilizer vs Vigoro Fertilizer.
But which actually is better? Which should you use? In this article we will look at both of those questions and attempt to help you pick the lawn fertilizer that is right for you.
Which Lawn Fertilizer We Tested
For the purpose of this article, we chose to test the most popular lawn fertilizer from each brand:
- Vigoro Weed & Feed
- Scotts Turf Builder - Weed and Feed
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Cost
So, using the maths that we learnt at school that means that for each 100 sq. ft of lawn fertilized with Vigoro Weed And Feed it will cost you about $0.30
Now lets do the same maths for Scotts Turf Builder Weed and Feed.
A 15lb bag of Scotts Weed and Feed will set you back about $24, and this also fertilizes up to 5,000 sq. ft.
For every 100 sq. ft of lawn fertilized with the Scotts product, it will cost around $0.48
Want to see that in terms of percentage? Well that means that it costs you 28% more to fertilize with Scotts Weed and Feed.
If you like graphs, here is one that shows it clearly.
For some of you that may be all you need to know to make a decision. But cost is only a small part of our verdict, so lets move on and look at how each company performs with regards to customer support.
Ease of Application – How To Apply Lawn Fertilizer
- Do not apply if rain is forecast. Rain will wash the fertilizer away before it does it’s magic.
- Fill your chosen fertilizer spreader and set it as per the fertilizer instructions.
- Ensure the lawn is wet either from dew or from a light watering.
- Apply the lawn fertilizer
Customer Service
This is another area where the Scotts and Vigoro differ quite substantially.
Online Presence
When I did a quick Google search on how to use each product, the results were quite different.
The results for “Scotts weed and feed instructions” came up with links to the Scotts website that had all the required instructions and handy tips. Scotts also had a very handy tool that helps you create a lawn care plan that makes it much easier to choose a fertilizer and a feeding schedule that suits your yard. You can find the tool here.
However the results for “Vigoro weed and feed instructions” were quite different. All I got for Vigoro were links to big retailers that just wanted to sell me the product and unhelpful reviews. In fact, if you try to go to the Vigoro website www.vigoro.com it just takes you to Home Depot’s website. While this site did contain a few helpful tips, it was nowhere near as good as the information provided by Scotts.
Scotts vs Vigoro: Customer Support Options
Vigoro Support Options
- General Home Depot support phone number
- Contact form
Scotts Support Options
- Online live chat
- Text line
- Support contact form
- Mailing address
- Dedicated Scotts support phone number
So I think the clear winner in customer support is Scotts Lawn Fertilizer by a long way. It is MUCH easier to get into contact with Scotts and actually speak to someone that knows what they are talking about when it comes to the best lawn fertilizer for your grass and how to use it.
But once again, this is not the end of it. Now we look at how the product performs.
Vigoro vs Scotts – Which Performs Better?
Ok, so this is where the article might get a bit contentious. Lawn fertilizer works differently for different people depending on many different factors, so for some people Scotts fertilizer may work better, where as for other people Vigoro fertilizer is best.
I want to stress here that you need to pick the fertilizer that is right for you, your area and your lawn. Go into your local garden shop and talk to them about it, ask your neighbors about what works for them and find out what their experience is with different brands.
For the purpose of this article we obviously need to make a recommendation, so keep in mind that this section is based purely on our experience with each fertilizer. Your experience may vary.
Our Experience with Scotts and Vigoro
We found that Scotts fertilizer produces a much more lush looking, dark green grass that looked great. We also liked the fact that the Scotts Turf Builder had a smaller particle size which we found was absorbed much quicker by the grass producing results in a shorter time. We did find that as far as killing existing weeds goes, it kills some but others still need to be removed the hard way. However, it is great at preventing new weeds from starting to grow and will save you a lot of weeding time in the long run.
The Vigoro Weed and Feed certainly made our test yard look more lush, but the greens were not as bright or natural looking. Vigoro performed very similar to Scotts on the weed front and is much better for weed preventionr than weed killing. The particle size of the Vigoro Weed and Feed is quite a fair bit larger, and it does take longer to break down and be absorbed by the grass.
On Sale Now Scotts Turf Builder Check Local PriceConclusion – Scotts or Vigoro Lawn Fertilizer?
But, if cost is important to you, then by all means go with Vigoro Weed and Feed. It still has great results and if you are an experienced lawn connoisseur then you likely will not need any help from anyone anyway!
Hang on, we arent finished yet!
The final point we want to make is this: Do your research.
Yep, it really is not even hard to do so, go and talk to your local garden supplier. Take in a sample of your grass and ask them what type it is. Ask them what fertilizers are best for it.
Choosing the right lawn fertilizer depends on a number of factors, just some of these are:
- How much sun/shade your lawn gets
- The type of grass
- Your location
- How is the grass used? e.g. does it get a lot of foot traffic? Is it likely to get scuffed up?
- Will children or pets be on the grass regularly?
- How often you mow your lawn and what sort of mower you use.
Where to Buy
Scotts Turf Builder Weed and Feed is available on Amazon here.
Vigoro Weed and Feed is available from Home Depot here.