Renewal Class for
Virginia Certified Fertilizer Applicators
This program is now active! Keep reading for an overview of this VTC Member benefit.
This class is 100% on-line, is free, and is only available to VTC members.
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Our on-line recertification programs are only available because of the strong support from:
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To register, email your request to virginiaturf@gmail.com. Use the words “Fertilizer Course” in the subject line. You will be sent a passcode within two working days. The course consists of four lessons, each taking about 30 minutes to complete, and a final exam. All lessons must be completed within 30 days of us sending you the registration information.
Upon successfully completing the course, a certificate of completion will be emailed to you along with instructions about uploading that certificate to the your personal VDACS Certified Fertilizer Applicator web page – the page you established with VDACS when you became a Certified Fertilizer Applicator (Log On (virginia.gov))
To join, please go to Join the VTC – Virginia Turfgrass Council (vaturf.org)
The Commonwealth of Virginia gives the following introduction to the Certified Fertilizer Applicator program on the program’s web page: “Virginia’s Regulations for the Application of Fertilizer to Nonagricultural Lands require certification for all licensees and contractor-applicators, state agencies, localities or other governmental entities engaged in the commercial application of fertilizers to non-agricultural lands. Anyone desiring certification as a Certified Fertilizer Applicator (CFA) must successfully complete approved training and submit an online application to the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. CFA certification is valid for four years from the date of issuance. Certified fertilizer applicators shall complete a minimum of two hours of coursework every two years for recertification.”
This course has been approved VDACS as meeting the requirements for recertification.
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First, do no harm!!!
Below is a picture of a newly installed landscape. It was taken at a Virginia hotel. Mistakes in design and plant selection abound. Certified Fertilizer Applicators tasked with maintaining such areas must take care to prevent environmental and plant damage caused by inappropriate fertilizer applications.
Remember, you can’t fix unworkable designs and installations. But make sure you do not misapply fertilizers when maintaining such areas.
No way exists to easily fertilize the landscape in this photo. Shrubs and trees require one fertilizer regime, fescue another, and the sickly annuals yet another. Be careful when maintaining this landscape! Regardless of fertilizer type and season of application, make very sure none of it remains remain on impervious surfaces, such as the walk and drive. The choice of application equipment is also critical. A rotary spreader should not be used on a landscape such as this. The diversity of plantings require a more precise application in a restricted space than typically applied by such spreaders.
