#1. GRASS SEED IS HARD TO GROW
It can be hard, if you're doing enough things wrong. Here's how to do it right. Prepare a soft bed of soil. Mix some peat moss into the soil to increase how much water it can hold. Sow seed on top of it and keep it watered consistently for 21 days. Remember that because the seed is on the surface, it can dry out quickly. The surface MUST remain moist at all times for up to 21 days. This is why seed is easier to sow in spring and fall when the weather is cooler and the soil dries out more slowly. You can also use one of those seeding mulch products mentioned above if you're having a hard time keeping things moist.
#2. GRASS SEED SHOULD BE BURIED
Grass seeds aren't strong enough to punch through much soil. They’re meant to be placed on top of loose, prepared soil. Germination can quickly suffer from too much soil on top of them. Don't worry about the birds eating some of it, they won't eat enough to make a difference. Grass grows just fine in the wild where no one is burying it or protecting it from birds. It's OK to use a seeding mulch to help hold moisture if you want to. That doesn’t count as burying the seed. Seeding mulch is usually made of paper pulp, coco fiber or peat moss.
#3. LAY IT DOWN HEAVY FOR A THICK LAWN
A grass plant isn't one blade of grass that comes from one seed. A grass plant is a tuft of blades that covers an area the size of a quarter. This means that a good stand of grass needs one seed to germinate for every quarter of an inch. To put it another way, if you have at least four grass seeds germinate per square inch, you are in good shape.
Now get out there and enjoy your freshly seeded lawn!
Comments