How To Over-Seed Your Lawn For Best Results

Have your neighbours been out spreading grass seed on their lawns already? The rhyme says we'll only see showers in April, the reality is closer to almost anything can happen. But the overall warmer temperatures do have us staring at our coming-back-to-life lawns and thinking ahead to summer.

After all, a lawn may only be as healthy as its healthiest patches. What can you do right now that would give your lawn it's best foot forward going into summer? We asked our expert team for their best tips to share with you and they're dishing on all the tricks of the trade to over-seed your lawn (with help from your inground irrigation system) and turn it into thick lush lawn that chokes out weeds.

With just some basic tools (and help from your inground irrigation system) by mid-to-late May, you won't be able to tell the new lawn from the existing lawn.

How To Grow Grass As Thick As Sod

Sod is awesome, right. You just unroll it and presto-chango, you have a thick healthy lawn largely without weeds. The trick to getting rid of weeds is to have your lawn so thick that weeds can't reach the soil and take root.

However, sod can be expensive and who's going to rip out an existing lawn just to lay down sod? There's got to be an easier way.

Why Over-Seed In Spring?

Between the extreme fluctuations in our weather, budding soccer and baseball players,pests, disease, pets, and foot traffic, the wear and tear on your lawn can take a toll. Grass is a plant, after all.The problem is that once a bare spot appears in your lawn, the weeds will move in.

Like every other living thing on this plant, grass gets old. Most of the turf grasses popular in Ontario are bunch grasses, so as the plant ages it spreads less and puts out fewer blades leaving the soil exposed to the sun in places-which is exactly where weeds will dig in and take root.

Over-seeding also strengthens your lawn. You can choose a blend of grass types that are more resilient in different types of weather and better withstand the weeds, insects, or diseases that you struggled with the summer before.

By adding new plants to the mix in your lawn, you're reducing your lawn's vulnerabilities. Having a grass seed that's suited for the conditions present in your yard is just smart. If you're looking for sturdy grasses that can withstand heavy traffic, try tall fescue or Kentucky bluegrass. Tall fescue is low maintenance, and doesn't require frequent mowing if you have a busy schedule. To save on water, this is an especially good seed to try as it can survive on minimal irrigation.

Bluegrass is another stout grass that can grow in almost any soil. The shallow root systems, however, will require frequent deep watering in the midst of a hot summer. Its prime time for growth is the spring and fall when it's cooler.Your lawn care in general will be simplified if you have a native, strong grass seed planted in your lawn.

Having a thick and lush lawn means that your inground irrigation system doesn't have to work as hard to keep your lawn healthy because your lawn will use water more efficiently.

Over-seeding is the easiest lawn upgrade you can make!

Prepping Your Lawn For Over-seeding

There are two times that work best for over-seeding: Fall and spring. You don't want to over-seed too late in either season as extreme hot or cold temperatures will kill the seed or cause spotty growth.

Yes, there are shortcuts. You could just spread the seed out on top of the existing lawn and call it a day. We want to see your work rewarded and get the full benefit of your investment. For grass seed to take root, it needs direct contact with soil.

To ensure you're providing the very best growing conditions, start off by raking the dead thatch, moss, patches of quack grass, etc. Just toss it away -- add that to your composter. Take a stiff rake and loosen the top soil so your seeds have a fresh bed of soil to root into. Give those seeds something comfy to settle down into. Now's the time to add a bit of compost, fertilizer, or topsoil if needed. Don't hesitate to ask one of our Nutri-Lawn Burlington experts on choosing the fertilizer to perfectly partner with your inground sprinkler system.

Now you lay down new seed, but hold on! Don't go all willy nilly. There's a method here to ensure the best return on your investment!

How To Nurture Seeds Once You've Planted

Over-seeding combined with a bit of inground sprinkler systems magic will have your grass seed sprouting in no time! Once you've planted your seed, the most important thing is to keep it healthy and well nourished (read - lots of moisture). Your inground sprinkler system is going to take the guess work and reminders out of lawn care. New seed needs plenty of water for sturdy growth, and running your inground sprinkler system in the early morning is the best way to make sure your lawn gets all the water it needs. When you apply grass seed in the spring or fall, the weather is often unpredictable.Additionally, grass seed that is planted when the soil is at lower temperatures won't germinate until the soil temperature has increased.

Your new grass needs to stay consistently moist (not swimming or drowning) for about two weeks until the sprouts are strong enough to withstand the sun better. Water allows your grass to cool itself when it gets too hot and allows your lawn to hold itself up as opposed to becoming limp.

If you notice your grass seed isn't growing the way it should, take a look at how moist your seeds are. You don't want to drown out your seeds, but you also want to make sure they have enough water to grow full deep roots. Run the irrigation system just enough so that about 2.5 cm of topsoil is moist. Continue this until the seedlings are well established in the soil.

Once the seedlings are well-established, they will spread and fill in the gap. Within a month or six weeks, it'll be difficult to tell the existing lawn from the newly planted grass. Once the warmer weather takes hold more predictably, your lawn will need about 1-2 inches of moisture a week, but one deep watering is better than shallow frequent waterings.

We know saving time, water, and being efficient is important to you (because you have other things you'd rather be doing than watering new grass seed) so we wanted to include a few tips on getting your inground sprinkler system up and ready for summer!

You could call our expert team at Nutri-Lawn Irrigation Burlington to get the system up and running for you. Some of the things we'll be looking for are misplaced or knocked sprinkler heads - hey, winter happens right. We'll check the lines and look for leaks. We'll have a look at the program and get that set up and going for the season as well.

Whether you have an existing inground sprinkler system that just needs some spring maintenance, an older system you're looking to upgrade to make more efficient or upgrade to make use of better smart technology, or looking to install your first inground sprinkler system, give our experts a call. We love helping our clients have lawns they're not only proud of, but also free them up to spend more of their time off with family and friends.