Tips and Tricks on Seeding and Getting the Best Lawn on the Block

When to Seed and How to Seed!  The All Important Questions!

Getting to the point of having a nice green and thick lawn is not something that can be done overnight.  In general, one should expect it to take a full season to get everything in order, if everything is done the right way.
One option is to sod, but at FRL, we prefer actual seeding, as it is easier to notice issues as they come up and make sure that the grass is rooting.

The optimal time to plant new seed is in the fall before temperatures start to drop too much.  It is important to get a solid 3 weeks post seeding to allow germination, and then at least 3 more weeks to allow growth before the cold weather and frost sets in.  

A secondary time to seed is in the early Spring.  We stop all seeding after the middle of May except under certain circumstances.  This is simply because waiting any longer will cause the grass to attempt to grow during the hot season, which will likely cause it to die off.  

Even if seeding in the Spring, we suggest aeration and overseeding in the fall to ensure a luscious lawn the following Spring.

The two most important pieces of this process in our minds are the Seed and the Soil.  Using bags of topsoil from a Box Store is fine, but you will pay significantly more for that than if you get bulk soil delivered.  If we are filling in low spots or just top dressing a full yard, we use high quality soil from local Garden Centers and Supply Yards.  Once the area we want to cover has a thin layer of soil (or thicker if filling in holes), we will then add a high quality seed. 
The most important part of seed is knowing where you live and what will grow.  Northern NJ the standard grass types are Rye, Fescue and Bluegrass.  You may see some Zoysia mixed in, which is a very nice and thick type of turf, but it is more common in the Maryland area and generally goes into dormancy early in the fall and comes out late in the spring.  All bags of seed have a label on them giving the percentage of each seed.  Make sure that there is NO (or almost no) weed seed or inert material.  This just means you are wasting your money and/or putting weeds into your yard.  Box Store seed brands are usually culprits of this.  At FRL, we prefer to use Jonathan Green Brand products.  We generally use their Black Beauty and Black Beauty Ultra seed with great results!
Another important step is knowing that the soil is very important.  With poor soil, you will not have a good result.  To help with this, we treat the Soil with Jonathan Green's Green Up Seed and Sod.  This helps the soil to let the seed germinate.
Once the Soil and Green Up is down, we add the seed and then possibly a starter fertilizer if needed.  This is followed by a Seed Accelerator such as PennMulch.  We then sow all of the products into the dirt and finally a Tack Hay to hold the seed down and keep birds off.

We use a hay that breaks down and does not have to be raked up at the end.  This also helps to give the grass seedlings more air and space as they start to grow.

Steps to Seeding

• Measure the Area
• Spread High Quality Top Soil
• Add Jonathan Green - Green Up Seed & Sod
• Add Seed (Jonathan Green Black Beauty)
• Add Starter Fertilizer if Needed
• Add Seed Accelerator (PennMulch)
• Sow all products together (rake so products mix with dirt)
• Add Tack Hay (EZ Straw)
• Water Following our suggested Guide
• Get onto a Fertilization Plan

One of our suppliers that we use that has all of these supplies is Glenwild Gardens in Bloomingdale.  Their information can be found at GlenwildGardens.com

We look forward to seeing your results!
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As we said above, it generally takes a few weeks to see progress.  We normally notice the Rye Grass start germinating within 1-2 weeks, the Turf Type Tall Fescue within 2-3 weeks, and the Bluegrass can take up to a month to germinate.  The most important thing to note about the seed we use is root depth.  As the grass matures the roots will grow deeper and allow for healthier turf.  This is also why once we get into May we do not cut below 2.75" to allow the grass to stay strong and grow deep roots.

Fertilization is extremely important for this process.  We do not currently offer this service, but we do work very closely with EcoLawn in Kinnelon.  They are a very responsive company and they do great work on many of our client's lawns!

Water is also important, and not just spraying a bit at night.  Email us and ask for a copy of our New Seed Watering Guide!