Keep your lawn looking its best by adding seasonal overseeding to your exterior home care routine. Not only is overseeding an effective way to prevent weeds, and bring new life to a thin, browning lawn, but it can also be applied to a healthy lawn to ensure that it remains looking its best.
When overseeding, there are a few important steps to consider which will ensure the effectiveness of your treatments. Keep these things in mind and you’re certain to enjoy a healthy, thriving lawn for years to come.
Time it Right
In Canada, when it comes to overseeding your lawn, there are two seasonal windows of opportunity –early fall and mid to late spring. The moderate temperatures mean warm soil and cooler aid. This promotes healthier growth and allows you to repair any damage caused during the active, scorching summer months. Weed growth is also less significant at this time.
Select Your Seed
There are three ways to get the overseeding job done. You can choose to use grass seeds and soil independently, complete the process via a specialty overseeding product, or hire a professional to handle the process for you.
Overseeding products consist of grass seeds that have been coated with a water-absorbing mix of fertilizer and nutrients. They offer an all-in-one solution to overseeding that means you won’t need to purchase separate bags of dirt and fertilizer in addition to your grass seed.
An overseeding mix is an excellent choice when you only need to cover a small area, or if you don’t need a budget-friendly overseeding option. However, since these coated mixtures actually contain fewer seeds per pound than a bag of grass seeds, you may find that they don’t provide the same amount of coverage. These mixes might not be entirely cost-effective for someone looking to overseed an entire lawn.
If you’re looking for more budget-friendly means of overseeding, then you may want to opt for separate bags of seed, soil and fertilizer. Just know that the tradeoff is that you will need to spend more time amending your soil, spreading seed, and feeding your lawn.
Alternatively, you can hire a local lawncare service to overseed your lawn, along with other services like core aeration, seasonal fertilizing, weed control, and pest management. This option is the most expensive method for overseeding; however, it provides you with the most freetime to simply enjoy your lawn.
How to Overseed Your Lawn
Here is a look at the steps involved in overseeding your lawn, broken down by three different overseeding methods.
If you are using grass seed…
- Mow and Rake–Prior to distributing the product, ensure that your existing grass has been cut short. Then use a rake to remove thatch and debris.
- Amend the soil –Provide a nutritious home for your new grass seeds to settle into by spreading a thin layer of soil across your lawn. Ensure that you don’t add too much, or it can damage your existing grass.
- Spread –Distribute your grass seeds with a rolling or handheld seed spreader.
- Fertilize –Dress the new seeds with a fertilizer that is specially designed to get new lawns off to a good start. Note: most experts agree that weed and feed products are not ideal for this purpose, since they may actually impede seed germination.
- Water–Water lightly, once in the morning and once in the evening to ensure that the soil retains enough moisture throughout the day. Maintain this watering schedule until the new grass grows to the same height as the rest of your lawn.
If you are using an overseeding mix…
- Mow and Rake
- Spread –Distribute your overseeding product with a rolling or handheld seed spreader.
- Water –Water lightly, once in the morning and once in the evening to ensure that the soil retains enough moisture throughout the day. Maintain this watering schedule until the new grass grows to the same height as the rest of your lawn.
If you are hiring a lawncare service to do the overseeding for you…
- Find a lawn care professional on eieihome.com
- Schedule service
- Water –Water lightly, once in the morning and once in the evening to ensure that the soil retains enough moisture throughout the day. Maintain this watering schedule until the new grass grows to the same height as the rest of your lawn.
