Home |
Search |
Today's Posts |
#1
|
|||
|
|||
Seeding backyard with grass seed
Recently we levelled the earth in an area of our backyard that has a lot of
direct exposure to sunlight. In the process, most of the existing grass was lost. The next day I spread grass seed on the ground which was very wet because of rain the previous night. Then each morning I have watered the area well. Some people tell me that I need to cover the grass seed with topsoil otherwise they say the seeds won't grow...other people tell me that this is the wrong approach and that the best thing to is to keep the seeds exposed, but well watered each morning...I live in southern Ontario and the temperature is around 16 C / 65 F daily, with close to 15 hours of daylight. I'd appreciate advice from other people who have successfully reseeded large patches of their lawns...should I spread topsoil or not?...if so, what kind and how deep?...should I be watering the area every morning? Thanks, M. |
#2
|
|||
|
|||
Seeding backyard with grass seed
"The Filers" wrote in message ... Recently we levelled the earth in an area of our backyard that has a lot of direct exposure to sunlight. In the process, most of the existing grass was lost. The next day I spread grass seed on the ground which was very wet because of rain the previous night. Then each morning I have watered the area well. Some people tell me that I need to cover the grass seed with topsoil otherwise they say the seeds won't grow...other people tell me that this is the wrong approach and that the best thing to is to keep the seeds exposed, but well watered each morning...I live in southern Ontario and the temperature is around 16 C / 65 F daily, with close to 15 hours of daylight. I'd appreciate advice from other people who have successfully reseeded large patches of their lawns...should I spread topsoil or not?...if so, what kind and how deep?...should I be watering the area every morning? Thanks, M. You don't want to cover the seed as it needs sunlight to germinate. It does need good contact w/ the soil though or else it will germinate and then die off right away. Watering should be light. Wet it but don't soak it and don't let it dry out completely. Hopefully you purchased your seed from a reputable garden center and not a hardware store as the latter have a reputation for lots of weed seeds in the mix. Be patient. Your success rate would probably have been better had you put down a bit of tripple mix before seeding, but as long as the soil isn't too firm for the young seedlings to penetrate you should be ok. Good Luck Peter H |
#3
|
|||
|
|||
Seeding backyard with grass seed
We grew a new lawn three years ago. We had no topsoil, just hard, red clay.
We seeded, didn't not cover with topsoil and after a few weeks, the grass grew. It took awhile but it grew. Watering helps imbed the seed to the ground. If the ground is hard, scratch it up a bit with a rake. Brandi "The Filers" wrote in message ... Recently we levelled the earth in an area of our backyard that has a lot of direct exposure to sunlight. In the process, most of the existing grass was lost. The next day I spread grass seed on the ground which was very wet because of rain the previous night. Then each morning I have watered the area well. Some people tell me that I need to cover the grass seed with topsoil otherwise they say the seeds won't grow...other people tell me that this is the wrong approach and that the best thing to is to keep the seeds exposed, but well watered each morning...I live in southern Ontario and the temperature is around 16 C / 65 F daily, with close to 15 hours of daylight. I'd appreciate advice from other people who have successfully reseeded large patches of their lawns...should I spread topsoil or not?...if so, what kind and how deep?...should I be watering the area every morning? Thanks, M. |
#4
|
|||
|
|||
Seeding backyard with grass seed
"Brandi" wrote:
We grew a new lawn three years ago. We had no topsoil, just hard, red clay. We seeded, didn't not cover with topsoil and after a few weeks, the grass grew. It took awhile but it grew. Watering helps imbed the seed to the ground. If the ground is hard, scratch it up a bit with a rake. Sounds like a rock hound job. -- GO# 40 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- http://NewsReader.Com/ 50 GB/Month |
#5
|
|||
|
|||
Seeding backyard with grass seed
It was horrible! My guess is that the builder sold the topsoil before
building the houses. wrote in message ... "Brandi" wrote: We grew a new lawn three years ago. We had no topsoil, just hard, red clay. We seeded, didn't not cover with topsoil and after a few weeks, the grass grew. It took awhile but it grew. Watering helps imbed the seed to the ground. If the ground is hard, scratch it up a bit with a rake. Sounds like a rock hound job. -- GO# 40 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- http://NewsReader.Com/ 50 GB/Month |
#6
|
|||
|
|||
Seeding backyard with grass seed
"Brandi" wrote:
It was horrible! My guess is that the builder sold the topsoil before building the houses. They have to remove it. Then you can buy it back. -- GO# 40 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- http://NewsReader.Com/ 50 GB/Month |
#7
|
|||
|
|||
Seeding backyard with grass seed
"The Filers" wrote in message ... The next day I spread grass seed on the ground which was very wet because of rain the previous night. Then each morning I have watered the area well. Some people tell me that I need to cover the grass seed with topsoil otherwise they say the seeds won't grow...other people tell me that this is the wrong approach and that the best thing to is to keep the seeds exposed, but well watered each morning... Watering the seed very lightly a few time a day will work better. You don't want it to dry out, or just sprouted seed may dry and die. The seed is all on the surface, so deep watering won't help much. Bob |
#8
|
|||
|
|||
Seeding backyard with grass seed
We seeded the lawn on a new house 12 years ago.
What worked for us was: 1) Tilling the soil. But, we had hard clay, and very little topsoil, and added some composted manure. If the soil is decent, no reason to do this. But, make sure there is some loose soil on top. Might just need to rake it with a dirt rake. 2) Rolled the area with a half-full lawn roller so the soil was not hard-packed, but also would not tend to runoff when watering. 3) Spread the seed. Check the coverage on the bag, then put on twice as much. 3b) You can spread some starter fertilizer here, too. I don't think we did initially, but did later for patching an area that was dug up. 4) Raked very lightly so the seed was mixed slightly with the soil. 5) Rolled the area again so the seed gets good contact with the soil. After this, the seed should be barely covered by soil (actually some will be covered, and some will be exposed, but all should be rolled down into the soil). 6) Cover with a mulch - very lightly. You don't have to do this, but it helps keep water from evaporating, helps keep birds from eating the seeds, and helps hold warmth in the ground. The grass seed likes warm moist conditions to germinate. When we first seeded, we got straw from a farm not far away and spread that lightly. 7) Water, water and water some more. Soil should ALWAYS be moist until the grass is growing. I'm sure there's many ways to do it, but I think the more of these steps you take the better chance of success you have. And the mulching can reduce some of the watering work. It sounds like lot of work.. and it is.. but our lawn was nicer than any of the sodded lawns around us, especially when it got dry. "Bob" wrote in message news:QsYAa.1012235$F1.122520@sccrnsc04... "The Filers" wrote in message ... The next day I spread grass seed on the ground which was very wet because of rain the previous night. Then each morning I have watered the area well. Some people tell me that I need to cover the grass seed with topsoil otherwise they say the seeds won't grow...other people tell me that this is the wrong approach and that the best thing to is to keep the seeds exposed, but well watered each morning... Watering the seed very lightly a few time a day will work better. You don't want it to dry out, or just sprouted seed may dry and die. The seed is all on the surface, so deep watering won't help much. Bob |
#9
|
|||
|
|||
Seeding backyard with grass seed
To what's already been offered I would add:
The fall is the ideal time to seed. There is less competition from weeds and the cooler days and nights help keep the seed moist. Early spring is the second best time. It's generally too late at this point to be starting seed. If you want a really good lawn, soil preparation is key. If the soil is not rich in organic material, you can till some organic matter, like peat moss in. This is something you can only do upfront and will affect how well it looks, how much water it needs, how disease resistant it is, etc. Get the soil PH tested and adjust with lime for the proper ph for the type of grass you are growing, generally in the range of 5.5 to 7.0 for blue grass/fescue. The seed needs to be in contact with the soil. For small areas you can rough it up with a rake, toss the seed, rake a little more. I found the best hand tool is one of the small garden tools that has a bunch of tines about 3 inchs long on it that you roll around and is used to break up soil, weeds etc in the garden. You can just throw the seed down and work it around with this tool. For larger areas, renting a slice seeder is the best choice. You can rent one of these for about $40 for a half day. It's gas powered and cuts grooves in the soil, dropping the seed at the same time. You can also use this to overseed areas that have grass, but need some more. If the soil is compacted, you can also rent an aerator, which makes holes about 3/4 of an inch around in the soil, allowing water and air in. If you're doing an area that has poor growth to begin with, kill what's there with roundup first. You don't want undesirable grasses and weeds there that you may not be able to get rid of later. You can reseed within a few days of using the roundup. Buy the best grass seed you can find, preferably endophyte enhanced and make sure it's appropriate for the area. Use a starter fertilizer at the recommended rate. Cover the newly seeded areas lightly with weed free straw. Peat moss is another alternative which will help keep it wet. You want sunlight to be able to get in, don't over do it. You don't need to use much water at a time, but you need to do it frequently enough to keep the surface wet. When you mow it, make sure you use a sharp blade. "Keith Carlson" wrote in message news:r5eBa.1026507$F1.123262@sccrnsc04... We seeded the lawn on a new house 12 years ago. What worked for us was: 1) Tilling the soil. But, we had hard clay, and very little topsoil, and added some composted manure. If the soil is decent, no reason to do this. But, make sure there is some loose soil on top. Might just need to rake it with a dirt rake. 2) Rolled the area with a half-full lawn roller so the soil was not hard-packed, but also would not tend to runoff when watering. 3) Spread the seed. Check the coverage on the bag, then put on twice as much. 3b) You can spread some starter fertilizer here, too. I don't think we did initially, but did later for patching an area that was dug up. 4) Raked very lightly so the seed was mixed slightly with the soil. 5) Rolled the area again so the seed gets good contact with the soil. After this, the seed should be barely covered by soil (actually some will be covered, and some will be exposed, but all should be rolled down into the soil). 6) Cover with a mulch - very lightly. You don't have to do this, but it helps keep water from evaporating, helps keep birds from eating the seeds, and helps hold warmth in the ground. The grass seed likes warm moist conditions to germinate. When we first seeded, we got straw from a farm not far away and spread that lightly. 7) Water, water and water some more. Soil should ALWAYS be moist until the grass is growing. I'm sure there's many ways to do it, but I think the more of these steps you take the better chance of success you have. And the mulching can reduce some of the watering work. It sounds like lot of work.. and it is.. but our lawn was nicer than any of the sodded lawns around us, especially when it got dry. "Bob" wrote in message news:QsYAa.1012235$F1.122520@sccrnsc04... "The Filers" wrote in message ... The next day I spread grass seed on the ground which was very wet because of rain the previous night. Then each morning I have watered the area well. Some people tell me that I need to cover the grass seed with topsoil otherwise they say the seeds won't grow...other people tell me that this is the wrong approach and that the best thing to is to keep the seeds exposed, but well watered each morning... Watering the seed very lightly a few time a day will work better. You don't want it to dry out, or just sprouted seed may dry and die. The seed is all on the surface, so deep watering won't help much. Bob |
Reply |
Thread Tools | Search this Thread |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Forum | |||
Where else to buy seed germination blankets aside from Lowes and HomeDepot? Seeding during a drought? | North Carolina | |||
seeding a garden plot with grass seed | Gardening | |||
Seeding bald spots in grass | Gardening | |||
Grass seeding | Gardening | |||
HELP...grass seeding | Gardening |