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I have a few patches in my yard that I had to fill from the neighbors letting their dogs pee on my grass. I dethatched with a rake to pull up the dead grass and exposed the soil. I added the seed but I mixed a bag of black cow manure with the peat moss and new growth filled in within about 8 days. I appreciate your video and have been sharing this info with my neighbors.
Sprinkle cayenne pepper powder in the spots where their dog likes to pee. Dogs don't like it and will stop peeing there. It doesn't harm the little critters either which is good.
Peat moss is great because birds don't like it, so it prevents them from eating the seeds. I have fond memories of finding out the hard way that in not covering the seeds, I inadvertently created a food buffet for them in my front yard.
Just did the same. I mowed short, dethatched twice, I think I even used the same peat moss. Warning to those throwing down dry peat moss...stand with the wind to your back unless you want to wear a thin layer of brown and smell like a barn. The great thing about peat moss is it goes lighter brown as it dries letting you know to add water. The established grass is starting to visibly grow faster and it's day three, so the race is on. Mowing short and dethatching has bought me a few days though because it will take a smidge longer before the established grass crowds out the seedlings. I use a leafblower to try to keep the leaves off the lawn as any debris can stunt the growth. Keep your lawn free of sticks, stones and debris people!
Mowed twice now. Switched to Scott's Green Max over the starter fertilizer. Now the color is consistent and much greener than all the neighbors. Lady across the street put the same seed I use down on a bare spot where a bush was and the patch has filled in. I'm using cool season grass seed from Scotts. Perennial Rye, Fescue and Kentucky blue mix. I think I should have been a bit more aggressive with the dethatching but I have hit up the areas I don't like with a rake. It looks like a carpet to the passerby but I still have a very small area I am dealing with.
It looks better. One of the mistakes people make is cutting grass constantly below 4 to 4.5 inches. Cutting the grass too short is bad for the lawn. I never cut my grass below 4.5. It always looks thick and lush even in August.
I always aeriated the lawn first in late fall, seed and starter fertilizer after, use Scotts 4 step system for whole year, people were knocking on my door for lawn recipe
Rent an aerator if you can surely will not hurt , actually the plugs that get pulled will help take on new seed. Be sure b4 u seed tho to mow the existing grass on low as this will help the new seed reach all of the dirt and also so the existing grass doesn’t shade the new seeds too much
You can use a metal leaf rake to spread the seed to allow it to get under the grass and reach the dirt better. Saw this in another guys video and he has great results as he does his neighbors yards to help them out. He also uses milorganite for his starter fertilizer and mixes it with his seed to spread. Like I said he has great results.
I tried Pre-germinating some Kentucky Bluegrass and spreading it with Milorganite, the scott's spreader you have in the video ended up getting a little gummed up but I think that was mostly my bad for not letting the seed dry enough before attempting to mix the two together, but so far things look great. I'm seeing germination less than a week after spreading it. The big downside? Milorganite smells so awful I was nauseated for hours.
Milorganite smells awful because it is literally human feces from the city of Milwaukee. Their sanitation department had to stop dumping it in Lake Michigan and they didn’t know what to do with everyone’s poop, so they decided to start baking it down and selling it in bags. Works great for growing grass! (This is true btw)
One thing I learned the hard way , is that, if you have grass with runners like couch, buffalo etc. The lawn self spreads, you don't need grass seeds. All you need is some top soil and some nitrogen/fertilizer along with regular watering. Usually in 4-8 weeks , bare patches self heal.
But those are warm season and will probably struggle in his area. Given that you called it buffalo I am guessing you are like me in Australia. Our temps are far warmer that in the northern USA.
yea, I agree. This guy just spread the seed on compact ground, not tilling or breaking up the soil. Then no embedding the seed in soil, and it's a miricle he has a new lawn.
I put down sta green 18-24-6 on my poor front yard along with some seed in some bare spots today rain in forecast i sure hope it helps make my yard fuller
The one change I'd make: Use a starter fertilizer instead of nitrogen only, and apply it a couple days after seeding. The starter fertilizer pushes root growth instead of top growth, and the few day delay will result in giving the new seedlings a few days more of growth before needing to cut.
I'd recommend waiting 1 week to apply starter fertilizer after seeding. If you apply starter fertilizer at the same time, it'll just promote existing grass root growth which can compete with your need seedlings. Once the seeds establish into baby grass is when applying starter fertilizer will push them and strengthen them.
@@pandarush. Scotts Turf Builder Triple Action Built For Seeding: for cool season grass. It also has mesotrione (tenacity) to prevent weeds. Apply grass seed first, then Scott’s turf builder, water lawn.
Besides the previous starter fertilizer change…..I NEVER use a power mower, or tractor…..near new grass seed, or when new seed is ready to mow at 3-3.5”….I use a sharp bladed manual Scott’s (or any brand, new or used) push reel mower. I found power mowers blow seed around, damage it, yank fragile seedlings out of the soil, or blades if dull leave a jagged cut on young grass blades, possibly making new grass prone to disease. I picked up a lightly used Scott’s reel mower, adjusted and leveled the blade. I usually do minimum 3 mowings of new grass, along w adequate watering, to allow roots to dig deeper, before I use my power mowers. I have a lg lawn, but became more patient w a reel mower until most of grass seed germinated, usually 20-25% does not germinate. BTW, recoat w peat moss, light layer of top soil or compost….if first dose of peat moss washes away exposing seed. Yes, I am a HUGE advocate of ALWAYS using a roller to mitigate peat moss washout…push or tow roller. Clay soil, or bank run gravel-clay mix soil….NEEDS soil loosened, and mixed w peat, top soil or compost…clay is the worst soil to support new seed germination. Hope this helps! Great video, lots of good techniques….success was very evident. NEW SUBSCRIBER, 👍🏻😎
One thing I’ve really enjoyed nowadays is the super cheap electric dethatchers you can get. It’s a lot of work once per year (yard is nearly 1 acre) but it makes everything look so much better
I overseeded JRK Sunny Mix on the 21st. Just started seeing some sprouts come up. 100% sun 100% of the day on pure sand as far as you can dig. Wife has been telling me I'm watering too much at 3 to 4 times a day... Psh. Hopefully at 21 days my sunny mix does what you did in the shade.
The best video I’ve seen! Very thorough and not complicated! Thank you. I live in Washington state I’m going to do this next week I hope it’s not to late in the season we are still mid 80’s 90’s.
So glad to hear that! You should be fine but don't wait too long. OR & WA weather can change very quick in early Autumn. Seed when it's hot (now) knowing that in only a few weeks we'll be borderline cold. The seed will germinate in heat of Sept and then thrive in the cool fall weather we get around Oct 1. FWIW - tomorrow here in OR I'm expecting 100-degree temps but overnight temps in the upper 40's next week. It changes fast here.
Thank you for making and posting this informative and useful video. It’s going to inform my reseeding of patchy lawn areas in our early Spring after I top-dress around an apartment building in Parramatta, Australia. In terms of the lawn care part of my gardening effort, I’ve spent the last 5 years going from zero lawn when I moved in to achieving mixed results through some pretty extreme weather (the 2019/20 Black Summer heatwave and huge 2022 La Nīna rain event) and constant improvement of poor clay soil contaminated with 1980s vintage builder’s back-filled rubble. There’s been a looooot of soil improvement to get where I am today. Seeding and tending of the lawn has been the easier part of my overall effort. I agree with you on the importance of soil improvement. That’s the foundation of successful gardening full stop. Using coir peat when re-seeding is a very helpful tip that made me wonder: “why hadn’t I thought of that?!” I’ve bought two compressed coir peat bricks to save me money and extra trips to and from Bunnings. I have typically used it to beef-up potting mix and add organic matter to garden beds. I just reconstitute it with water in a wheelbarrow. As we’re anticipating a long, hot and dry Summer this year I have to get lively now if my lawns are to grow in enough to handle consecutive days of 38°C temps without browning off completely. An extra smattering of coir peat in early Summer along with soil-wetting agent will no doubt improve the lawn’s chances of recovering from extreme heat as Autumn rolls around.
Good stuff. I'd recommend against the Scott's Edge Guard as the wheels are hollow and when the fertilizer or seed hits the wheels it falls out in lines, and will stripe the lawn. An Echo RB60 is a great investment at $130 and the last one you'll ever need. Scott's Elite is also good at about $80.
Whenever I plant grass I also plant Rye, or other grain as a cover crop. It grows quickly, provides cover for the first season, but does not come back the following summer
The short of it: 1) Deep water 2) Fertilizer 3) Seed 4) Peat moss 5) Water Did you do this all in one day? The caption under the peat moss says “day two”, but if you don’t want the seed to blow away, then I imagine it should be topped with the peat moss immediately.
Ha love the snow shovel illustration, i guess this does not apply to my area. My sprinklers are already shut off, and sandals are put away. In three weeks or so patio furniture and everything else will follow along.
Don’t use peat moss if you’re concerned with acid pH. Peat moss is quite acidic. Around 3.0-4.5 pH. In fact if you haven’t used lime in the spring just skip the peat moss and broadcast 1/8 inch of top soil instead.
Thank you for this video!! It's exactly what I've been looking for. My bare spots still have dead and brown grass hanging around. Do i need to clear that suff first before step 1??
Do I have remove the old grass roots , weeds & little stones prior to starter fertilizer or just get started with the seeding and cover it up from the top & water ? Many thanks
I worked on this lawn from February 2022 through end of Sept 2022 and never noticed crabgrass there. Always possible I missed something but I don't think so. In this lawn we did kill off the old lawn in the early Spring with two rounds of Glyhosate but I think a fraction of one percent of the old lawn held on so it's not a pure fescue but it's seriously close.
@@TurfMechanic thank you for the reply! So a clump of grass growing from about a size of a baseball can just be the normal grass growing in a dense patch? That’s nice to know because I know whenever I see that in my lawn I really thought it was crabgrass but maybe not!
Me thinking Brian was quiet lately because he was taking some time to chill............(I should've known better) Great video Brian!!!🔥💯 Thank you for as always going into the minuscia of the "process" and being REAL about the results. You do a spectacular job of setting realistic expectations and allowing the viewer to weigh the pros and cons of such an project!! The lawns looks way better, but as you pointed out there are some light spots still remaining. I personally needed that.💯 As a homeowner you undergo these projects expecting professional results and it's simply not realistic. It takes blood, sweat and patience. Thank you for sharing this as well as your Buffalo grass journey. These videos give hope to many DIY'ers like myself. BTW, added thank you's for which grasses you recommend for this project. I think I may go w creeping red and TTTF. GREAT CONTENT B!
Man, I wanted to respond to you days ago! Thanks Jigg! I'm always busy, when I'm online or off; can't stop tinkering. I greatly appreciate your thoughts on the results and expectations of the average homeowner. I worry about my next video on buffalograss that I just filmed the main content for. Talk about real, I'm being uncomfortably real in that vid. Good choice on creeping red too, I am really liking it as a variety, works better than people realize in high heat too because when it's shaded high heat is way less harsh. I'll be using it in a lot of mixes going forward I think...in fact I just planted it in my front yard this month (video will be out in a week or so). :) I should be packing my garage now, gotta get back to the things that need to be done. :) October vids will be coming from Camariilo, CA
There's issues with lawn tractors being too heavy If possible use a push mower I get ruts with the wheels and it is too aggressive that it lays the grass down then rots If anything don't water for like 2 days before mowing to have the roots push down and top growth to not be as soft to tolerate as much of your heavy abuse
Turf Mechanic , I am facing same situation as you showed in demonstration , I have been using Scotts fertilizer , but grass is not green some area and few spots dead ,So I Watched your video ,thanks for that ,can I get the name of fertilizer you used ,I had some grass seed and peat moss , I waiting for name of that fertilizer please let me know ,Thanks a lot
Thanks Felix, the irony is this video was supposed to glaze over the top keeping it as simple as possible. :) Glad I'm able to deliver helpful info even when I try to keep things simple. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
How do I fight the spurge weeds that are also growing in the lawn and competing with the new seed grass ? Can I spray for weeds at the same time ? Or fight them later.
From what I’ve read, spray the weeds, wait at least three weeks, then overseed. I sprayed at the same time as overseeding this year and the results have been underwhelming.
I have a 1 year old cool season lawn in PA. Lawn has a lot of weeds. Would like to thicken, overseed and eliminate weeds. In what order should I approach this.
Ohh that's awesome! I've got affection for my Oregonian viewers! You gotta check out the Crater Lake Zipline sometime - well worth the price of admission!
absolutely, especially if you aren't planning on overseeding this Spring. Best rule of thumb for spring is to fertilize heavier than normal for thin lawns while applying pre-emergent weed preventatives then overseed in the early Fall (labor day) assuming you have a cool season lawn. For warm season lawns then definitely fertilize before a rain and get ready to mow often as spring gets closer to summer. Lateral growth of warm season grasses should fill in dead spots with ample water fert and frequent mowing. Brown spots can indicate fungal diseases though so if you haven't fertilized well over the years (meaning NPK and micros) then preventative or curative fungicides may be necessary for you to fully alleviate the brown spots. Hard for me to know for sure without walking the lawn.
My lawn is thin right now in the spring. So I’m guessing I’ll have to wait the whole way until the end of summer to fill in the bare spots with seed since I live in cold season grass area.
I'd like to overseed too and in a cold zone - CT....My questions is, do I have to get rid of the weeds first before overseeding or will they just get crowded out by the new grass? Lots of crazy weeds in there!!! I've just been mowing them down all summer and they make the lawn look green, but if I let them grow, they're 6 feet tall in a week!!. Thanks so much for the info!!
Excellent question! You don't need to kill them off first but it can help...so long as you don't wait too long. If you apply weed killer today and wait 10 days then fertilize and seed you'll probably be fine but if seed goes down in October it may not establish and mature in time before winter if you get an early cold snap. One option is to overseed immediately and mow with a bagger way more often then normal for the next few weeks to ensure weed seeds don't form and fall to the ground, then in early October apply an iron based herbicide to the weeds which most baby grass types can stand up to but many weeds can't. My latest video is about that topic, published this morning actually. Good luck!
Takeout the weeds especially from their roots or they will be back! If you have neighbors who have weeds throughout their lawn like i do, it's going to be a lost battle unless your on top of it like everyday! The over grown weeds your neighbors r harboring r kicking out seeds that are making their way to your yard by wind, leaf blowers just to mention a couple of ways why if like me you keep finding weeds popping up in ur yard more frequently than ever. It's so bad that the edging of my lawn is where weeds are entering & taking over competing for soil nutrients, water! And when over seeding those weeds will feed on & help the weeds grow faster establishing their roots foundation in your yard! Also to mention leaves are your grasses enemy! If you have bare spots half the time it's because a leaf covered & killed the grass on that spot & most likely is under a layer of dirt masking the leaf! Now i know why pops was always yelling to rake the leaves eveyweek even when there were like a couple leaves on the lawn! And to note the animals who piss & shit on the grass that u might not catch right away! Rocks being found from neighbors drought tolerant landscaping yards! Debris from construction dumpings, like cement leftover, stucco crumblings! The list goes on in a inconsiderate world where common decency is fading away!
Unfortunately, Ammonium Sulfate is not easy to find here in West Michigan. The only stuff you can find is the 4lb bag of Hi-Yield which is $17.99 in my area. Everything else contains Urea.
another option for super fast plant uptake is sodium nitrate which is sometimes used in bags of OMRI listed fertilizers or as a stand alone product. Otherwise just use an uncoated fast release urea and give it a few extra days. If all you can find is urea blends then it'll take a week longer or so which isn't that big of a deal. 28 days vs 21 days. probably want to push that faster growth before late June though as temps usually get pretty high by late june and july.
Hello, I have a problem that no one seem to be able to have a clue how to fix. For some reason the roots of my lawn are aerial. So instead of having the crown of the grass touching the soil, I have the root aerial for like 2 inches and then the crown. Incredible the lawn is green BUT its terrible to walk on because if feel you are floating. Someone suggested putting A LOT of soil to cover the roots but I dont want to do that and risk messing the slopes of the backyard for drainage purposes. Any Ideas? The only upside is that there are no weeds because its almost impossible to get to the soil.
I have a Bermuda grass in Texas. It got bitten hard by last summer heat and burned and got thick a lot of places. I am thinking to put amonium nitrate and watering only till next March . Your opinion??
Hi, just subscribed. I just bought scott's ez feed. I don't ever see people putting a thin layer of top soil on it. How does that work? I bought a bag of top soil the other day. Can I replace a little of the current top toil on the small patch I need to fill with the new top soil? And can I stil put a thin layer of top soil on top of the ez seed? Thanks
I'd go with a cool season grass unless you can't or don't water to irrigate through the summer, a Bermuda would have such a short growing season there. If you want a short season though look to Buffalograss, it's got low temperature tolerance like cool season grasses (dormant brown) and doesn't need as much water as Bermuda does through the main growing season. It's a USA native warm season grass that likes full sun and low humidity could be a great option for Reno lawns that don't care about having a green lawn in both Nov and March.
Is it to late to begin a project like this say if I started today? Average high of 55 and average low of 40 over the next 10 days give or take a few degrees each way, but never going below mid 30s. Or should I just wait at this point? My lawn is patchy not bare if that makes a difference. Any input would be great, thank you for this video.
I would do it if I was you. Any improvement you get before Halloween will be noticed next spring for sure. I've germinated perennial rye In soil temps of 45 and it took about 11 days I think...also I've germinated fine fescue in temps of about 40, took about 21 days. Just give the seed some patience but the fertilizer should go to work right away still.
wonder where is your location? I am in Kansas City, when around the year do you recommend to start this, early/mid August as you showed in the video? @turf mechanic
There is no rye grass in this lawn. It's a new stand of tttf and creeping red fescue at roughly 50% each. It was thin at the beginning of this video as it was baby grass (less than two months old) just exiting its first summer season.
I’m just curious why you didn’t have to rake the seed in? Is it because you watered the grass prior to seeding. I was concerned with seed to soil contact but it looks like you did a great job without that step!! Thank you for the informative video
Not always the case but raking seed into loose soil is usually more important than raking it into established soil. We didn't scarify the soil so everything was nice and firm. Wetting it deep in advance helps the seed "stick" to the soil then covering with peat moss kind of sandwiches it in there with good soil contact...especially when you walk all over it. Thanks for the question and comments Bobby!
@@TurfMechanic Wow that actually helps me out a lot with future projects thank you so much. I didn’t even think about it like that, as far as the seed being sandwiched between the soil and the peat moss. I always appreciate all the videos that you make they help out a lot keep up the good work.
We live in Montana..cool Spring...hot dry summers.. extreme cold winter..warm dry fall....we have a spot in front of the house in partial shade we've replanted for years..fertilized ..winterized ..and even added topsoil to..and grass will not grow..were at a loss as to what we can do to maintain grass in that area..help please...
A few thoughts, your area might have a particularly poor ph so check that out, for shade kbg (my guess as to your grass type) doesn't like that so much so consider mixing in some fine fescue, there could be something buried in the ground there like rocks or old tree roots or old construction material so you could dig down to see, for your area I would do my fall seeding in August. If you are waiting to seed that spot in Sept or October it may not be mature enough for your early winter weather. Lastly, maybe you need to go the extra mile on seeded prep. Here's a vid I did last year where I overprepared a seeded for a couple hundred square feet of new grass. You don't have to go to extreme like I did but kicking it up a notch might help. th-cam.com/video/Pf2xNYdPo-I/w-d-xo.html feel free to reach out anytime.
@@TurfMechanic.....you could be right about the PH..we have well water but we don't use it..we use irrigation from the river..but the neighbor waters that area with well water from his yard through the fence...I will let my husband watch the video..THANK YOU SO MUCH..we've considered putting landscaping rock down..but it will spoil our otherwise beautiful yard..
One thing is don’t mow over seed it’s never a good idea mulching mowers won’t spread it evenly just take a weed eater to the tips of the tall blades so they don’t take the sun from the smaller ones
Grt job....can you tell me why my backyard grass is not even turning green..it's seems like it's trying in a few spots but it just won't come in like it would normally every yr????...I believe that grass is centipede....my yard is a mess...
@@TurfMechanic well everyone else grass has come back and our common area in my community has come back full green that's why I can't understand what could be going on with just my little area.....both of my neighbors came back.... something wrong and I definitely can't figure it out and I can't seem to get a company that knows what they are talking about neither so it leaves me lost looking here on UTube hoping to get some help
Hard to know for sure but it could be a micro climate thing. The backyard may be north facing so soil warmed up slower there - centipede and st Aug tend to grow in the same regions so maybe neighbors have different grass types or are set to different heights now or through the winter. If you are really unsure about your grass type you could look closely to figure out if it's bermuda which stays browner a little longer and benefits from a spring scalp for green up. Regardless of the type if you can see any green when you get on hands and knees then maybe you could try a basic scalp and removal of debris, not to the ground but down around 1.5" and see if you can get sunlight down to the green leaves under the seemingly dormany canopy
Yep it is, they have a large in-ground pool in the back so the front yard is the play area for their kids. Nice neighborhood too so it works well for them.
►►► Want to fix your lawn for the long haul but don't know where to start? I can help! Click here right now and get started today: turfmech.link/dont-know-where-to-start ◄◄◄
What’s nice about peat moss is it will tell ya when it needs water as the color changes from dry to wet pretty nicely!!
Bro, you’re providing true value and great information to folks. Keep up the great work.
Thanks a bunch! That's the goal afterall 😀
I have a few patches in my yard that I had to fill from the neighbors letting their dogs pee on my grass. I dethatched with a rake to pull up the dead grass and exposed the soil. I added the seed but I mixed a bag of black cow manure with the peat moss and new growth filled in within about 8 days. I appreciate your video and have been sharing this info with my neighbors.
😅
Sprinkle cayenne pepper powder in the spots where their dog likes to pee. Dogs don't like it and will stop peeing there. It doesn't harm the little critters either which is good.
Peat moss is great because birds don't like it, so it prevents them from eating the seeds. I have fond memories of finding out the hard way that in not covering the seeds, I inadvertently created a food buffet for them in my front yard.
Just did the same. I mowed short, dethatched twice, I think I even used the same peat moss. Warning to those throwing down dry peat moss...stand with the wind to your back unless you want to wear a thin layer of brown and smell like a barn. The great thing about peat moss is it goes lighter brown as it dries letting you know to add water. The established grass is starting to visibly grow faster and it's day three, so the race is on. Mowing short and dethatching has bought me a few days though because it will take a smidge longer before the established grass crowds out the seedlings. I use a leafblower to try to keep the leaves off the lawn as any debris can stunt the growth. Keep your lawn free of sticks, stones and debris people!
I have a filbert tree; it’s nearly impossible to keep all the filberts off the grass 🥲
I just overseeded yesterday and laid peat moss down. I was covered 😂😂😂
Mowed twice now. Switched to Scott's Green Max over the starter fertilizer. Now the color is consistent and much greener than all the neighbors. Lady across the street put the same seed I use down on a bare spot where a bush was and the patch has filled in.
I'm using cool season grass seed from Scotts. Perennial Rye, Fescue and Kentucky blue mix. I think I should have been a bit more aggressive with the dethatching but I have hit up the areas I don't like with a rake. It looks like a carpet to the passerby but I still have a very small area I am dealing with.
“Even if your lawn looks dead. I promise you there’s a lot of grass in there that’s still alive even if it doesn’t look like it” this will PREACH!
Yessssss
I didn't think about it thinning out every year. Thanks for the tips!
A simple drum-type non- motorized Peat moss spreader is SO much easier and very cheap to rent. Approx $15/day from Home Depot. Worth it to me!
Just bought won, it was $60 on Amazon. . Well worth it.
It looks better. One of the mistakes people make is cutting grass constantly below 4 to 4.5 inches. Cutting the grass too short is bad for the lawn. I never cut my grass below 4.5. It always looks thick and lush even in August.
My lawn seeds at 4.5 inches….
Noobie here, I live is hot sunny south Florida, I think Augustine grass. What height shoul I cut? Thank in advance if you answer this lol
I always aeriated the lawn first in late fall, seed and starter fertilizer after, use Scotts 4 step system for whole year, people were knocking on my door for lawn recipe
Rent an aerator if you can surely will not hurt , actually the plugs that get pulled will help take on new seed.
Be sure b4 u seed tho to mow the existing grass on low as this will help the new seed reach all of the dirt and also so the existing grass doesn’t shade the new seeds too much
You can use a metal leaf rake to spread the seed to allow it to get under the grass and reach the dirt better. Saw this in another guys video and he has great results as he does his neighbors yards to help them out. He also uses milorganite for his starter fertilizer and mixes it with his seed to spread. Like I said he has great results.
Top soil and organic fertilizer never disappoints. Thanks for the informative video
I tried Pre-germinating some Kentucky Bluegrass and spreading it with Milorganite, the scott's spreader you have in the video ended up getting a little gummed up but I think that was mostly my bad for not letting the seed dry enough before attempting to mix the two together, but so far things look great. I'm seeing germination less than a week after spreading it. The big downside? Milorganite smells so awful I was nauseated for hours.
Milorganite smells awful because it is literally human feces from the city of Milwaukee. Their sanitation department had to stop dumping it in Lake Michigan and they didn’t know what to do with everyone’s poop, so they decided to start baking it down and selling it in bags. Works great for growing grass! (This is true btw)
One thing I learned the hard way , is that, if you have grass with runners like couch, buffalo etc. The lawn self spreads, you don't need grass seeds. All you need is some top soil and some nitrogen/fertilizer along with regular watering. Usually in 4-8 weeks , bare patches self heal.
But those are warm season and will probably struggle in his area. Given that you called it buffalo I am guessing you are like me in Australia. Our temps are far warmer that in the northern USA.
@@nickg9170 Yes good observation, I am in Australia.... Our weather kind of helps these self spreading grasses
A manually pushed drum type Peat moss spreader is SO easy and also takes the place of a lawn roller. Also very inexpensive. It was worth it for me.
yea, I agree. This guy just spread the seed on compact ground, not tilling or breaking up the soil. Then no embedding the seed in soil, and it's a miricle he has a new lawn.
Thank you. I’ve been looking for a video to explain the process in detail and you did it!!
That's always my goal, sometimes I do better than others; so glad to hear this one resonated with you and so many others.
I put down sta green 18-24-6 on my poor front yard along with some seed in some bare spots today rain in forecast i sure hope it helps make my yard fuller
The one change I'd make: Use a starter fertilizer instead of nitrogen only, and apply it a couple days after seeding. The starter fertilizer pushes root growth instead of top growth, and the few day delay will result in giving the new seedlings a few days more of growth before needing to cut.
Do you have a few starter fertilizers you can recommend please?
I'd recommend waiting 1 week to apply starter fertilizer after seeding.
If you apply starter fertilizer at the same time, it'll just promote existing grass root growth which can compete with your need seedlings.
Once the seeds establish into baby grass is when applying starter fertilizer will push them and strengthen them.
@@pandarush. Scotts Turf Builder Triple Action Built For Seeding: for cool season grass. It also has mesotrione (tenacity) to prevent weeds. Apply grass seed first, then Scott’s turf builder, water lawn.
@@seth8982 Thanks for your help.
Why and how are starter fertilizers strictly for warm or cool grasses?
@@pandarush. the brand I mentioned says it’s for cool season. Well it list cool season grass types.
burlap is the best way to cover the bare spots that may be in direct sunlight too.its quite inexpensive and you can reuse it for years!
Besides the previous starter fertilizer change…..I NEVER use a power mower, or tractor…..near new grass seed, or when new seed is ready to mow at 3-3.5”….I use a sharp bladed manual Scott’s (or any brand, new or used) push reel mower.
I found power mowers blow seed around, damage it, yank fragile seedlings out of the soil, or blades if dull leave a jagged cut on young grass blades, possibly making new grass prone to disease. I picked up a lightly used Scott’s reel mower, adjusted and leveled the blade. I usually do minimum 3 mowings of new grass, along w adequate watering, to allow roots to dig deeper, before I use my power mowers.
I have a lg lawn, but became more patient w a reel mower until most of grass seed germinated, usually 20-25% does not germinate.
BTW, recoat w peat moss, light layer of top soil or compost….if first dose of peat moss washes away exposing seed.
Yes, I am a HUGE advocate of ALWAYS using a roller to mitigate peat moss washout…push or tow roller.
Clay soil, or bank run gravel-clay mix soil….NEEDS soil loosened, and mixed w peat, top soil or compost…clay is the worst soil to support new seed germination. Hope this helps! Great video, lots of good techniques….success was very evident.
NEW SUBSCRIBER, 👍🏻😎
Great video… got great results without spreading Pete Moss lawn looks great and I was able to skip that messy step
That's fantastic and saves a bit of cash too! 😁
🤷♀️ 🤷♂️ idk why but seeing baby grass spring up is so satisfying
One thing I’ve really enjoyed nowadays is the super cheap electric dethatchers you can get. It’s a lot of work once per year (yard is nearly 1 acre) but it makes everything look so much better
Where do you get them from?
@@LifeExplainedforHumans Amazon
I overseeded JRK Sunny Mix on the 21st. Just started seeing some sprouts come up. 100% sun 100% of the day on pure sand as far as you can dig. Wife has been telling me I'm watering too much at 3 to 4 times a day... Psh. Hopefully at 21 days my sunny mix does what you did in the shade.
Keep it moist! If it dries, it dies.
The best video I’ve seen! Very thorough and not complicated! Thank you. I live in Washington state I’m going to do this next week I hope it’s not to late in the season we are still mid 80’s 90’s.
So glad to hear that! You should be fine but don't wait too long. OR & WA weather can change very quick in early Autumn. Seed when it's hot (now) knowing that in only a few weeks we'll be borderline cold. The seed will germinate in heat of Sept and then thrive in the cool fall weather we get around Oct 1. FWIW - tomorrow here in OR I'm expecting 100-degree temps but overnight temps in the upper 40's next week. It changes fast here.
Thank you for making and posting this informative and useful video. It’s going to inform my reseeding of patchy lawn areas in our early Spring after I top-dress around an apartment building in Parramatta, Australia. In terms of the lawn care part of my gardening effort, I’ve spent the last 5 years going from zero lawn when I moved in to achieving mixed results through some pretty extreme weather (the 2019/20 Black Summer heatwave and huge 2022 La Nīna rain event) and constant improvement of poor clay soil contaminated with 1980s vintage builder’s back-filled rubble. There’s been a looooot of soil improvement to get where I am today. Seeding and tending of the lawn has been the easier part of my overall effort. I agree with you on the importance of soil improvement. That’s the foundation of successful gardening full stop. Using coir peat when re-seeding is a very helpful tip that made me wonder: “why hadn’t I thought of that?!” I’ve bought two compressed coir peat bricks to save me money and extra trips to and from Bunnings. I have typically used it to beef-up potting mix and add organic matter to garden beds. I just reconstitute it with water in a wheelbarrow. As we’re anticipating a long, hot and dry Summer this year I have to get lively now if my lawns are to grow in enough to handle consecutive days of 38°C temps without browning off completely. An extra smattering of coir peat in early Summer along with soil-wetting agent will no doubt improve the lawn’s chances of recovering from extreme heat as Autumn rolls around.
Just put down some sta-green 20.5-0-0 yesterday, never used product we’ll see how it looks in couple of days
I like using the soil conditioner from the grange co-op instead of peatmoss. It doesnt move around when watered.
Finally an effective strategy 5-Step Strategy without the recommendation of roughing up the soil. Wet, Seed, Fertilize, Cover, and Keep wet.. VOILA!
Good stuff. I'd recommend against the Scott's Edge Guard as the wheels are hollow and when the fertilizer or seed hits the wheels it falls out in lines, and will stripe the lawn. An Echo RB60 is a great investment at $130 and the last one you'll ever need. Scott's Elite is also good at about $80.
Can the wheels be changed on the Scott's Edge Guard. I ask because that is the spreader I currently have. 🤣😂😊
@@seczee411 I think spraying expanding foam into the wheels and cutting the excess flush is the play here. Some people use tape.
@seczee411 if you walk at a brisk pace it will fling the granules above the wheels and you won't have that issue
@@zunedog31 Thank you for your advice. I actually went and purchased the Echo RB60.
Whenever I plant grass I also plant Rye, or other grain as a cover crop. It grows quickly, provides cover for the first season, but does not come back the following summer
Annual rye is awesome for this! And if you want to gone early it's way easy to eradicate it from a lawn after your main grass establishes.
I have to do this but was going to use "sticky straw" to protect the seed. I never thought about peat moss!
The short of it:
1) Deep water
2) Fertilizer
3) Seed
4) Peat moss
5) Water
Did you do this all in one day? The caption under the peat moss says “day two”, but if you don’t want the seed to blow away, then I imagine it should be topped with the peat moss immediately.
this comment is what's up!!! 🎉
cool video brian! wish i had this when i was a noob!
That's the best compliment my friend! Thanks George 👊
Ha love the snow shovel illustration, i guess this does not apply to my area. My sprinklers are already shut off, and sandals are put away. In three weeks or so patio furniture and everything else will follow along.
Oh man that looks good. My front lawn is doing good, but my back yard has been struggling to thicken up.
I like doing a nitrogen blitz Sept thru nov. Spring grass comes alive already a deep green.
Wow thats an awesome looking lawn.
would spreading mulched grass over the seeds do the same thing as the peat moss?
Don’t use peat moss if you’re concerned with acid pH. Peat moss is quite acidic. Around 3.0-4.5 pH. In fact if you haven’t used lime in the spring just skip the peat moss and broadcast 1/8 inch of top soil instead.
Many people are against Peat Moss because it will hold too much water, and the seedling won't develop good roots in its search for water.
Ryegrass is perfect for quickly thickening the lawn!
It sure is, the easiest of them all and fastest too, not only that but its seed is usually pretty affordable. 👊
Do you remove the grass clippings when mowing, or rather you leave them on the surface to build organic matter?
You mentioned watering x3 per day but not the duration or times. Can you disclose your recommendation?
Are you mulching or bagging those clippings? Also any suggestions if there are leaves starting to come down?
I appreciate your clear, concise instructions. Does this apply to Zoysia grass too?
Thank you for this video!! It's exactly what I've been looking for. My bare spots still have dead and brown grass hanging around. Do i need to clear that suff first before step 1??
not really, just run a basic lawn rake over it to remove the loose material and everything should work out just fine.
Thank you for this video. This is the information I really needed.
So glad to hear that! Good luck with your project!
Do I have remove the old grass roots , weeds & little stones prior to starter fertilizer or just get started with the seeding and cover it up from the top & water ? Many thanks
I have a lot of weed in my lawn (that's thin also). What should I do first? Kill the weed?
Are those big chunks of grass crabgrass? I have some of those chunks and I thought it was crabgrass if it looks like that?
I worked on this lawn from February 2022 through end of Sept 2022 and never noticed crabgrass there. Always possible I missed something but I don't think so. In this lawn we did kill off the old lawn in the early Spring with two rounds of Glyhosate but I think a fraction of one percent of the old lawn held on so it's not a pure fescue but it's seriously close.
@@TurfMechanic thank you for the reply! So a clump of grass growing from about a size of a baseball can just be the normal grass growing in a dense patch? That’s nice to know because I know whenever I see that in my lawn I really thought it was crabgrass but maybe not!
Me thinking Brian was quiet lately because he was taking some time to chill............(I should've known better)
Great video Brian!!!🔥💯
Thank you for as always going into the minuscia of the "process" and being REAL about the results. You do a spectacular job of setting realistic expectations and allowing the viewer to weigh the pros and cons of such an project!! The lawns looks way better, but as you pointed out there are some light spots still remaining. I personally needed that.💯 As a homeowner you undergo these projects expecting professional results and it's simply not realistic. It takes blood, sweat and patience. Thank you for sharing this as well as your Buffalo grass journey. These videos give hope to many DIY'ers like myself.
BTW, added thank you's for which grasses you recommend for this project.
I think I may go w creeping red and TTTF.
GREAT CONTENT B!
Man, I wanted to respond to you days ago! Thanks Jigg! I'm always busy, when I'm online or off; can't stop tinkering. I greatly appreciate your thoughts on the results and expectations of the average homeowner. I worry about my next video on buffalograss that I just filmed the main content for. Talk about real, I'm being uncomfortably real in that vid. Good choice on creeping red too, I am really liking it as a variety, works better than people realize in high heat too because when it's shaded high heat is way less harsh. I'll be using it in a lot of mixes going forward I think...in fact I just planted it in my front yard this month (video will be out in a week or so). :) I should be packing my garage now, gotta get back to the things that need to be done. :) October vids will be coming from Camariilo, CA
@@TurfMechanic Good luck Sir! Keep up the GREAT WORK and GREAT CONTENT!!
Can I do this in the spring as well. If so when is the best time? Mid April?
Nice video! I thought you were supposed to wait to mow the lawn after reseeding. Is running a heavy mower over the grass hindering the growth a bit?
There's issues with lawn tractors being too heavy
If possible use a push mower
I get ruts with the wheels and it is too aggressive that it lays the grass down then rots
If anything don't water for like 2 days before mowing to have the roots push down and top growth to not be as soft to tolerate as much of your heavy abuse
You talked/looked like my big boss. Do you have any relatives working in Germany now~?
I was going to purchase Medina fertilizer to apply after placing the seeds. Is the peat moss the better option?
Very great informative and helpful video about LANDSCAPING. Thanks for sharing. Keep up the good work.
Thanks!!! Do you recommed any weed killer in themix? I have my beautiful grass full of weed and not sure what to do! TYYYYY
Turf Mechanic , I am facing same situation as you showed in demonstration , I have been using Scotts fertilizer , but grass is not green some area and few spots dead ,So I Watched your video ,thanks for that ,can I get the name of fertilizer you used ,I had some grass seed and peat moss , I waiting for name of that fertilizer please let me know ,Thanks a lot
😂I’m a mail carrier who found himself watching this video on his break!
ok thanks now we have grown the lawn .. whats the maintenance suggestion to keep the lawn lush green please??
The low nitrogen plan, here the video I made on it th-cam.com/video/aUacusLzXJo/w-d-xo.html
Is Epsom Salt the same as Ammonium Sulphate?
Very detailed video! Thank you for sharing!
Thanks Felix, the irony is this video was supposed to glaze over the top keeping it as simple as possible. :) Glad I'm able to deliver helpful info even when I try to keep things simple. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
How do I fight the spurge weeds that are also growing in the lawn and competing with the new seed grass ? Can I spray for weeds at the same time ? Or fight them later.
From what I’ve read, spray the weeds, wait at least three weeks, then overseed. I sprayed at the same time as overseeding this year and the results have been underwhelming.
I have a 1 year old cool season lawn in PA. Lawn has a lot of weeds. Would like to thicken, overseed and eliminate weeds. In what order should I approach this.
thank you! any reason we cover on day 2 and not the first day?
Oh….love your Crater Lake shirt! I’m an Oregonian
Ohh that's awesome! I've got affection for my Oregonian viewers! You gotta check out the Crater Lake Zipline sometime - well worth the price of admission!
I’m from Mn when is cut off time to over seed lawn
My yard is a little over an acre but has a lot of brown spots. Would spreading fertilizer before a rain be a good idea to help out with those?
absolutely, especially if you aren't planning on overseeding this Spring. Best rule of thumb for spring is to fertilize heavier than normal for thin lawns while applying pre-emergent weed preventatives then overseed in the early Fall (labor day) assuming you have a cool season lawn. For warm season lawns then definitely fertilize before a rain and get ready to mow often as spring gets closer to summer. Lateral growth of warm season grasses should fill in dead spots with ample water fert and frequent mowing. Brown spots can indicate fungal diseases though so if you haven't fertilized well over the years (meaning NPK and micros) then preventative or curative fungicides may be necessary for you to fully alleviate the brown spots. Hard for me to know for sure without walking the lawn.
My lawn is thin right now in the spring. So I’m guessing I’ll have to wait the whole way until the end of summer to fill in the bare spots with seed since I live in cold season grass area.
I'd like to overseed too and in a cold zone - CT....My questions is, do I have to get rid of the weeds first before overseeding or will they just get crowded out by the new grass? Lots of crazy weeds in there!!! I've just been mowing them down all summer and they make the lawn look green, but if I let them grow, they're 6 feet tall in a week!!. Thanks so much for the info!!
Excellent question! You don't need to kill them off first but it can help...so long as you don't wait too long. If you apply weed killer today and wait 10 days then fertilize and seed you'll probably be fine but if seed goes down in October it may not establish and mature in time before winter if you get an early cold snap. One option is to overseed immediately and mow with a bagger way more often then normal for the next few weeks to ensure weed seeds don't form and fall to the ground, then in early October apply an iron based herbicide to the weeds which most baby grass types can stand up to but many weeds can't. My latest video is about that topic, published this morning actually. Good luck!
@@TurfMechanic bvij
Takeout the weeds especially from their roots or they will be back! If you have neighbors who have weeds throughout their lawn like i do, it's going to be a lost battle unless your on top of it like everyday! The over grown weeds your neighbors r harboring r kicking out seeds that are making their way to your yard by wind, leaf blowers just to mention a couple of ways why if like me you keep finding weeds popping up in ur yard more frequently than ever. It's so bad that the edging of my lawn is where weeds are entering & taking over competing for soil nutrients, water! And when over seeding those weeds will feed on & help the weeds grow faster establishing their roots foundation in your yard! Also to mention leaves are your grasses enemy! If you have bare spots half the time it's because a leaf covered & killed the grass on that spot & most likely is under a layer of dirt masking the leaf! Now i know why pops was always yelling to rake the leaves eveyweek even when there were like a couple leaves on the lawn! And to note the animals who piss & shit on the grass that u might not catch right away! Rocks being found from neighbors drought tolerant landscaping yards! Debris from construction dumpings, like cement leftover, stucco crumblings! The list goes on in a inconsiderate world where common decency is fading away!
Unfortunately, Ammonium Sulfate is not easy to find here in West Michigan. The only stuff you can find is the 4lb bag of Hi-Yield which is $17.99 in my area. Everything else contains Urea.
another option for super fast plant uptake is sodium nitrate which is sometimes used in bags of OMRI listed fertilizers or as a stand alone product. Otherwise just use an uncoated fast release urea and give it a few extra days. If all you can find is urea blends then it'll take a week longer or so which isn't that big of a deal. 28 days vs 21 days. probably want to push that faster growth before late June though as temps usually get pretty high by late june and july.
So when you say 3 times a day 7 days is that a deep soak? Or just maybe 10 mins in every spot?
Hello, I have a problem that no one seem to be able to have a clue how to fix. For some reason the roots of my lawn are aerial. So instead of having the crown of the grass touching the soil, I have the root aerial for like 2 inches and then the crown. Incredible the lawn is green BUT its terrible to walk on because if feel you are floating. Someone suggested putting A LOT of soil to cover the roots but I dont want to do that and risk messing the slopes of the backyard for drainage purposes. Any Ideas? The only upside is that there are no weeds because its almost impossible to get to the soil.
I have a Bermuda grass in Texas. It got bitten hard by last summer heat and burned and got thick a lot of places. I am thinking to put amonium nitrate and watering only till next March . Your opinion??
Hi, just subscribed. I just bought scott's ez feed. I don't ever see people putting a thin layer of top soil on it. How does that work? I bought a bag of top soil the other day. Can I replace a little of the current top toil on the small patch I need to fill with the new top soil? And can I stil put a thin layer of top soil on top of the ez seed? Thanks
Can I cover seed with topsoil?? No need to loosen existing soil?
Thank you for sharing all this great information! It is much appreciated!
Great results thank you for taking the time to make the video, very helpful
What state you love?
Great video!! I have a bermuda lawn, would I follow the same steps? We are just about to enter into a cooling phase here in North Texas.
I live in Reno. It's fairly cold in the winter and fairly hot in the summer. Would I be better off with a cool season grass or something like Bermuda?
I'd go with a cool season grass unless you can't or don't water to irrigate through the summer, a Bermuda would have such a short growing season there. If you want a short season though look to Buffalograss, it's got low temperature tolerance like cool season grasses (dormant brown) and doesn't need as much water as Bermuda does through the main growing season. It's a USA native warm season grass that likes full sun and low humidity could be a great option for Reno lawns that don't care about having a green lawn in both Nov and March.
@@TurfMechanic Thank you! I appreciate the response.
Great video and explanations! Thanks!!
Would a liquid aerator be good for clay soil before fertilizing and seeding. Here in Texas and we've been 102+ for the last week or so?
Yes I think it would for sure, although a heavy watering session in late evening the night before seeding might accomplish the same thing.
Can I use it on bermuda grass along with peat moss
Is that fertilizer good on sandy dirt? I live in Florida
Is it to late to begin a project like this say if I started today? Average high of 55 and average low of 40 over the next 10 days give or take a few degrees each way, but never going below mid 30s. Or should I just wait at this point? My lawn is patchy not bare if that makes a difference. Any input would be great, thank you for this video.
I would do it if I was you. Any improvement you get before Halloween will be noticed next spring for sure. I've germinated perennial rye In soil temps of 45 and it took about 11 days I think...also I've germinated fine fescue in temps of about 40, took about 21 days. Just give the seed some patience but the fertilizer should go to work right away still.
wonder where is your location? I am in Kansas City, when around the year do you recommend to start this, early/mid August as you showed in the video? @turf mechanic
What was coming up early was ryegrass which you can grow on concrete.
There is no rye grass in this lawn. It's a new stand of tttf and creeping red fescue at roughly 50% each. It was thin at the beginning of this video as it was baby grass (less than two months old) just exiting its first summer season.
I’m just curious why you didn’t have to rake the seed in? Is it because you watered the grass prior to seeding. I was concerned with seed to soil contact but it looks like you did a great job without that step!! Thank you for the informative video
Not always the case but raking seed into loose soil is usually more important than raking it into established soil. We didn't scarify the soil so everything was nice and firm. Wetting it deep in advance helps the seed "stick" to the soil then covering with peat moss kind of sandwiches it in there with good soil contact...especially when you walk all over it. Thanks for the question and comments Bobby!
@@TurfMechanic Wow that actually helps me out a lot with future projects thank you so much. I didn’t even think about it like that, as far as the seed being sandwiched between the soil and the peat moss. I always appreciate all the videos that you make they help out a lot keep up the good work.
We live in Montana..cool Spring...hot dry summers.. extreme cold winter..warm dry fall....we have a spot in front of the house in partial shade we've replanted for years..fertilized ..winterized ..and even added topsoil to..and grass will not grow..were at a loss as to what we can do to maintain grass in that area..help please...
A few thoughts, your area might have a particularly poor ph so check that out, for shade kbg (my guess as to your grass type) doesn't like that so much so consider mixing in some fine fescue, there could be something buried in the ground there like rocks or old tree roots or old construction material so you could dig down to see, for your area I would do my fall seeding in August. If you are waiting to seed that spot in Sept or October it may not be mature enough for your early winter weather. Lastly, maybe you need to go the extra mile on seeded prep. Here's a vid I did last year where I overprepared a seeded for a couple hundred square feet of new grass. You don't have to go to extreme like I did but kicking it up a notch might help. th-cam.com/video/Pf2xNYdPo-I/w-d-xo.html feel free to reach out anytime.
@@TurfMechanic.....you could be right about the PH..we have well water but we don't use it..we use irrigation from the river..but the neighbor waters that area with well water from his yard through the fence...I will let my husband watch the video..THANK YOU SO MUCH..we've considered putting landscaping rock down..but it will spoil our otherwise beautiful yard..
One thing is don’t mow over seed it’s never a good idea mulching mowers won’t spread it evenly just take a weed eater to the tips of the tall blades so they don’t take the sun from the smaller ones
Is it ok to use a Tamper instead of foot method? Thanks 🙏
it sure is, most people don't have a tamper but if you do that will work great.
Isn’t ammonia sulfate acidic? If so, for those suffering from low PH is this a good idea to use?
Grt job....can you tell me why my backyard grass is not even turning green..it's seems like it's trying in a few spots but it just won't come in like it would normally every yr????...I believe that grass is centipede....my yard is a mess...
If you do have centipede then an abnormally cold winter might be the cause. Multiple freezing nights can push it past what it can handle.
@@TurfMechanic well everyone else grass has come back and our common area in my community has come back full green that's why I can't understand what could be going on with just my little area.....both of my neighbors came back.... something wrong and I definitely can't figure it out and I can't seem to get a company that knows what they are talking about neither so it leaves me lost looking here on UTube hoping to get some help
Hard to know for sure but it could be a micro climate thing. The backyard may be north facing so soil warmed up slower there - centipede and st Aug tend to grow in the same regions so maybe neighbors have different grass types or are set to different heights now or through the winter. If you are really unsure about your grass type you could look closely to figure out if it's bermuda which stays browner a little longer and benefits from a spring scalp for green up. Regardless of the type if you can see any green when you get on hands and knees then maybe you could try a basic scalp and removal of debris, not to the ground but down around 1.5" and see if you can get sunlight down to the green leaves under the seemingly dormany canopy
At the 10:00 mark how short are you beginning to cut the new grass?
Is that swing-set in the front yard? Never seen that before…
Yep it is, they have a large in-ground pool in the back so the front yard is the play area for their kids. Nice neighborhood too so it works well for them.
Thank you! Great tutorial!
How about applying organic fertilizer?