Growing a Lawn From Seed

The first step in creating a beutiful lawn from seed is to remove any weeds or old grass from the area to be seeded. This may be done by hand when the weeds are still alive, or you can spray the weeds and wait for them to die.

Next you will need to ammend the soil, unless you have soil that contains a lot of organic matter. This is the most time consuming and labor intensive part but it is very important. I like to add compost or manure and till in with the existing soil until the top four to six inches becomes lose and easy to work. The goal is about fifty percent compost to fifty percent soil. This seems like a lot of work, but it will pay off big time in the end. Having enough organic matter in the soil will help it to retain moisture, and will keep it from getting too compacted. The result is a lawn that is lower maintenance and looks good for years and years.

Now that the soil is well mixed it's time to rake it out smooth. I like to use a three foot rake for this part but a normal garden rake will work fine. Try to get any rocks larger than about the size of a nickle, and rake them out of the lawn area. Keep raking untill the area is as smooth as possible. You can use a two-by-four to screed across the soil to make it flat if it helps you.

Now that the area is as flat as you can possibly get it apply starter fertilizer according to the instructions.

Now if the soil is dry, it is best to apply enough water that the moisture seeps well into the ground. Just avoid puddles.

Time for the seed. I like to apply the seed fairly heavy so that the ground is almost covered. This will ensure that the new lawn comes in nice and thick.

If you have access to a lawn roller, roll the seeded area to press the seed firmly against the soil.

Next is an important step that many people skip. You need to cover the seed with a light layer of fine mulch or sawdust to keep it moist. This also keeps the seed from blowing away, and keeps the birds out to some degree.

The last step is very important to fast success. DO NOT LET IT DRY OUT. It's a good idea to get a timer that will spray every few minutes all day. If the seed drys out after it germinates it will die and your lawn will not look very good. I try to explain this to people, but they don't understand how important it is.

Usually there will be a few spots that don't come in very thick. This is normal and easy to fix. Just sprinkle some seed on the thin areas and cover with mulch very lightly and keep it moist untill it has grown in.

When the lawn starts to get thick, you can start to cut back on watering, just keep an eye on it so it doesn't get to dry. It will take a couple of months before the lawn has enough of a root system to survive drying out much. This is where the compost plays a big role. It gives you a larger margin of error.

You may notice a lot of weeds that have sprouted with the grass seed. If there are a lot of them you can spray them when the lawn is mature enough. Apply spray according to the label. If you only have a few weeds, just pull them by hand.