Feb 9, 2009
Did you loose turf this year from the weather? Was it already thin in areas? Consider late-season seeding.
Do you need seed?
Late summer is the time to decide what, if any, seeding work your lawn will need this year. Careful advance planning and follow-up can make the difference between seeding success and failure.
Thin lawns. Can you see the soil or thatch layer when you look down at the grass? Thinning turf allows weeds to get started in the lawn and causes the lawn to dry out much faster. A thin lawn should be seeded.
Heavy thatch. The thatch layer can become so heavy that the primary root system is growing more in the thatch than in the soil below. Shallow, thatch-rooted lawns are much more susceptible to drought damage.
Better turf variety. Do you want to develop a more disease, insect or drought tolerant lawn? There are grass varieties that bugs, diseases and hot weather don’t bother as much as others.
These are a few of the conditions that call for seeding work. Others include repairing lawn drainage problems and fixing worn or rutted areas.
Many of our customers don’t understand why late summer and fall are usually the best times to plant grass seed, but if you consider the following reasons, you’ll see the sense it makes.
Why late season seeding is best
- Seed planted late in the season has two good growing periods (fall and spring) to “harden off” before going through the drought and heat stress often associated with summer weather.
- In the fall, most fast growing weeds like crabgrass won’t be sprouting and choking out the slower-growing permanent grass being planted.
- Soil temperatures are higher in the late summer, which means faster germination and establishment of most grasses.
- Late-summer seeding does not disrupt the proper timing of weed control as spring seeding almost always does (new grass shouldn’t be treated for broadleaf weeds until after the fourth or fifth mowing).
What is the best way to plant seed?
There are many ways to plant grass seed, and there are lawn conditions that call for each. We’ll be happy to advise you on which is best for our lawn’s needs.
With common types of over seeding, the seed is broadcast evenly over the lawn and seed is hopefully washed into the soil where it lodges and sprouts. This method is simple and easy. However, when you are trying to achieve the maximum amount of germination, our method of over seeding is best. This method includes creating millions of growth pockets by spike and slice method. We run a hydraulic piece of equipment over your current lawn areas creating millions of holes. After that, we’ll do it again, but this time laying seed into those holes. By doing this your percentage of germination dramatically increases due to the seed to soil contact we are creating. After we spike, slice and seed your lawn areas we’ll broadcast a professional grade starter fertilizer. This starter fertilizer contains all the right nutrients the seedlings need to get established quickly. Not only does it contain the right nutrients, it also is a slow release fertilizer. This means rather than using the cheap starter fertilizers you can buy at the “big box” stores that are applied and gone within 2 – 3 weeks, you get consistent feeding for up to 12 weeks. This means the new seedlings grow more even and develop deep roots which are the building blocks of a healthy turf stand. Just throwing seed onto the lawn does nothing. You may get 10% germination if you are lucky. With our professional equipment and methods you’ll get upwards to 80 – 90% germination with proper watering.
