Lawn overseeding

alot depends on the lawn your overseeding. If its sod, there is a layer of peat that needs to be penetrated to get the seed in contact with the dirt. Slit seeding is how they do it.

IF its a seeded lawn initially all you have to do is scuff up the soil. The are several ways of doing that. I use a veritcal rake (dethatcher). Sometimes theyu will top dress the soil with a thin layer of dirt. you want to make little nooks and crannies for the seed to wedge into (grass seed needs sunlight to sprout and cant be buried)

You can also buy paper pellets that swellup and break down in water. Its also a good way to get seed in contact with dirt. Regardless, the key is getting the seed in contact with dirt

I believe that aeration is too deep for any seed to grow, unless they are depending on the plugs decomposing to provide the nooks and crannies and then I think it would be a rather clumpy lawn.

Reply to
Jmagerl
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I gotten estimates from three companies to overseed my 12,000-sq. ft. lawn in central New Jersey. Each uses a different method to apply the seeds.

  1. Slit the soil. The seeds fall immediately behind slitting blades into the slits/grooves. This will cause the sprouts to be all in a row, "military" style, until they spread and fill in. An alternative is to make two passes, at 45 or 90 degrees, so the rows are less noticable before they fill in.

  1. Aerate, then spread the seeds. Some seeds drop into the holes; most remain on the surface. The cores also remain on the surface. At first watering or rain, the cores breakdown and cover the surface seeds. A concern: the aeration holes are over 1.5" deep. So the seeds that fall into them may be too deep. I don't know the long-term impact on a lawn where maybe 10% of the seeds start from a much deeper depth.

Scott's instructions say that for overseeding, it's only necessary to work the top 1/4" in thin and bare areas; for a new lawn they say to loosen the top 2 to 3 inches.

  1. Lawndoctor uses their own patented machine, which seems to work like a slitter. But it has many more blades, with smaller spacing between rows, and the slits each blade makes aren't continuous. They sort of stir-up the soil, without damaging existing grass. So there shouldn't be that initial "military" look.

After putting down the seed, none of the companies followup with rolling, to improve seed-soil contact.

Thanks for your comments and recommendations.

Ray

Reply to
Ray K.

I see you are considering fesque. Be aware that this is a "clump" grass as opposed to a "tiller and Rhizome" grass. WHat that means: Fesque grows in a clump. it spreads by growing the clump bigger. IT is considered a non invasive grass. It won't spread to the flower beds. Blue grass and Rye grass spread by tiller and rhizomes. Kinda like strawberry runners but underground. IF you slit seed with a spacing of 3 inches it will take a long time for fesque to knit together. Blue grass/Rye grass will spread faster and fill in faster. ALso consider dogs. A dose of urine will kill either grass but it takes longer for the fesque grass to fill back in. Usually you have to reseed the spot.

There is rhizominasious (is that a word?) fesque. but its usually not offered in northern climates.

I would c>

Reply to
Jmagerl

Bare and thin spots, and too many weeds of various types (clover, violets, crabgrass, and others I can't identify). Yes, I'll put a crabgrass preventer down next spring. If there were a magic weed killer that can get rid of the other stuff, too much of my lawn would be gone.

I'm not sure of present composition - whatever is appropriate for New Jersey. Reseeding will probably be fescue, as recommended by the companies.

Thanks.

Thanks.

Reply to
Ray K.

I don't think there's a peat layer. In 2004, I dethached the lawn. This year, I don't bag the clippings, so there is a season's worth of clippings there. I use a mulching mower, so probably most of those clippings have decomposed.

I bought a bag (from Lowes) of something called starter fertilizer and seedling mulch. They portrayed it as something that, besides fertilizing, will capture evening dew and release it thoughout the day to maintain seed moisture. No mention of improving soil/seed contact.

That's my fear.

Thanks.

Reply to
Ray K.

Suggestions (2) and (3) are excellent. I don't know about (1). How do I get a meaningful reference concerning satisfaction with new jobs that aren't complete? Maybe I should also get references for seeding jobs done last fall, so I can judge results after a full growing season and exposure to the four seasons.

Thanks.

Reply to
Ray K.

See my response to Joseph.

That's what the salesman also say.

They are more like three inches apart.

Thanks.

Reply to
Ray K.

First question: Why do you want to overseed?

Second question: What type of grass do you have now and what kind are you using to overseed?

Reply to
Joseph Meehan

I have over seeded before and it causes as many problems as it solves. Any grass seed has a percentage of weed seeds. Every time I have over seeded I have had to spend hours of weeding the following yea. If you are willing to put up with the introduction of new weeds then go ahead.

The best solution is to keep your existing lawn in shape so that you don't feel the need to put more seed down.

Reply to
tnom

I can't imagine why anybody would recommend core aeration as part of a reseeding program. Company #2 sounds like a bunch of hacks - drop them from consideration.

Companies #1 & #3 both sound reasonable. Get some references from them on (1) new jobs they'll be starting soon, (2) jobs very recently completed, and (3) jobs performed earlier this year. That way, you can observe their methods and results yourself.

Good luck, Gideon

Reply to
Gideon

What condition is your lawn in? If there's quite a bit of thatch, core aerating it would be a good idea. Also, core aerating will help the existing grass grow better and expand. As for the method #1, unless they slits were an inch or closer, it doesn't seem to me to be a good idea.

Reply to
FDR

Joseph is right.

I spent about a dozen years with my own lawn care business in a climate not far removed from yours. Overseeding is rarely the solution. If you have weeds now they will just crowd out the new grass plants.

In defense of the industry lots of times people will convince themselves of the proper solution and then just call you up for a quote. When you try to explain to them that there are better options many just assume that you are trying to gouge them somehow.

I suggest that you have a lawn care "expert" out to see if you have an insect problem. If so get rid of them first. Then wack the weeds really well this fall and again in the spring w/ a good liquid herbicide. A good fertilization in the spring and my guess is that by this time next year you'll have a great lawn.

Good luck with it.

Peter H

Reply to
Peter H

Much of the above post is incorrect. Creeping red fescue is sold quite a bit in the northern areas for dry/shady areas. It spreads will spread quite well. Rye grass clumps and does not spread by rhizome.

Be careful with overseeding.

Peter H

Reply to
Peter H

Sorry, I was refering to the turf type tall fesques

Reply to
Jmagerl

I suggest you contact your local county extension agent.

A lot of times products and services suggested as solutions to lawn problems create even more problems and certainly make money for the guys providing the services. Over seeding is one of the services that I see as more likely to be a money maker than to offer the homeowner any real value.

Before you go over seeding, I suggest you start with the basics and fix the problems first and then if needed (depends on the type of grasses you have now) over seed. I have found that most of the time just good care will do far more and cost less and look better than all those special services. Sometimes less is more, for example in my area fertilizing in the summer will damage lawns in most year (it looks good for a couple of week though) but people keep doing it.

The county extension office does not make money from you or they guys selling the products and services. They know the local conditions.

Reply to
Joseph Meehan

Frankly, I don't think overseeding would be a good idea. It sounds like you need to take a soil sample (and maybe some pictures of the problem areas in the lawn) down to the country extension agent and get the soil tested.

Offhand, I'd say improving the soil structure by core aerating and raking compost into the holes would be a good first step. If the soil is really compacted, it may take a few years to get the soil back into shape. Overseed if you want, but simply improving the soil so that the existing grass can compete against the weeds would do a world of good.

Reply to
Andy Hill

Ray,

Come on - if I want to check on a contractor, I always want to observe a job which is going to start soon. That way, the company can't cherry-pick and only give you references for past customers who are very happy with their work. You can learn a lot by observing a new job in progress.

Gideon

Suggestions (2) and (3) are excellent. I don't know about (1). How do I get a meaningful reference concerning satisfaction with new jobs that aren't complete? Maybe I should also get references for seeding jobs done last fall, so I can judge results after a full growing season and exposure to the four seasons.

Thanks.

Reply to
Gideon

Yea, I may have sounded like the whole industry is out to get you, but there are good guys out there. Generally they will be independents and not a chain that has their standard sales requirements.

Reply to
Joseph Meehan

Go here:

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Weeds are a sign that grass cannot grow well. Test the soil, add the reccomended fertilizer and fix the ph if necessary. I highly recommend the core aeration and I have mine done once a year in the fall. I fertilize once in the spring and once before winter. Our grass here in central ny takes a pounding from the cold, snowy weather, but by summer it looks great. What exit are you near? I used to live in NJ.

Reply to
FDR

As others have suggested, I would first fix the problems you have and then overseed if necessary. A lawn full of crabgrass and weeds is going to offer tough competition for the new grass. You can whack the weeds with a broadleaf weed killer and hit the crabgrass with Aclaim. If you do that now, you could still overseed in a couple of weeks.

For overseeding, I would go with the slice seeder, which offers excellent soil/seed contact. It's true the grass will come up in rows, but that's only an issue for new lawns, without existing grass and even then, I don't think it's worth worrying about. It will be hardly noticeable in an existing lawn.

Reply to
trader4

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