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August

grass seed mistakes
grass seed mistakes

When you are putting down grass seed to create a new lawn, there are 5 grass seed mistakes that you want to avoid. Making these mistakes can cause you problems and make you lose time and money.

Grass Seed Mistakes 1 – Not Testing the pH Level of Your Soil

Before you seed a lawn, it’s important to test the pH level of the soil to find out how acidic it is. Even if your soil appears to be healthy, it might be too alkaline or acidic for growing your grass. For most grass varieties, a level of 5.5-7 is needed.

Grass Seed Mistake 2 – Not Using the Right Kind of Seed

Another mistake that many homeowners make is they choose the wrong kind of seed. When you’re looking for a seed for your lawn, you’re going to find a lot to choose from. Some types prefer a different kind of climate so they can grow. Before choosing your seed type, make sure that it works in your particular climate.

Grass Seed Mistakes 3 – Only Relying on Rain

It’s not a good idea to just rely on the rain to water the grass seeds. If there isn’t rain in your forecast, a sprinkler is needed. If they don’t get water, those seeds aren’t going to grow. However, you also don’t want to use an excess of water.

Grass Seed Mistake 4 – Not Aerating Your Soil

You want to make sure that you’re aerating your soil before you seed a lawn. This will create tiny holes in your soil for the seeds to enter. If the lawn isn’t aerated, your grass seeds simply will sit on the soil. As time goes by, these superficial seeds are going to be eaten by the animals or blown away by the wind.

When you aerate the lawn, those seeds are going to dig deeper in the soil, protecting themselves from animals and wind.

Grass Seed Mistake 5 – Not Correctly Measuring the Yard

One of the biggest mistakes that you can make when you are putting down grass seed is not measuring the lawn. Before you seed, it’s important to know just how much of the seed you are going to need for covering your yard.

When you put down too much, it’s going to mean that the seeds are competing for their root space. It can also negatively impact nutrient uptake and structure. You also don’t want to use too little. This is going to cause bare patches. Measure the yard and then order the seeds accordingly. This will help you get the right density.

If you are interested in having new grass seed put down and you are looking for a company to do it so you can avoid these grass seed mistakes, contact us. We’ll be happy to give you a quote and help you have a beautiful lawn.

August

When you are going to seed your yard, one of the things you have to do is to choose your grass seed type. But with so many types of grass seed available, how do you know which one to choose? Below are three factors you want to consider to help you find the right one.

grass seed type
Choosing the right grass seed can make a difference

Shade Levels in Grass Seed Type

This will generally affect how much shade and sun exposure your grass is able to take. Some types of seed, such as fescues do well in partial shade. Other kinds, such as bermudagrass, need full exposure to the sun.

How Much Wear & Tear Your Grass Seed Type Will Go Through

Traffic’s all about the amount of footfall you expect your lawn to take. When you choose a type of grass seed, you want to consider the species heartiness. This is going to help you with making the right decision.

This is important because you’ll choose a kind that isn’t likely to get patchy brown spots or become dry in particular conditions. You also won’t want to choose a seed that’s too coarse, too delicate, or too thatchy for what you’re going to do.

For instance, people who have young children and plan to enjoy the lawn with mini pools or water spots should choose Kentucky bluegrass instead of fine fescue.

When you are choosing your grass seed, think about what your lawn’s going to go through on a regular basis. This will help you with choosing the right one.

How Big Your Yard Is

The lot’s size is going to affect the type of seed and the amount you’ll need for a beautiful healthy lawn. If you have a large site and you are on a tight budget, a good choice is turfgrass seed.

Something to look for when you want to know how good the bag of grass seed is is to look for the PLS percentage. This measures whether a seeding reduced price is really saving you money.

PLS gets calculated by looking at how much, or the percentage, there is of pure seed is, and then multiplying that number by the germination percentage. Then that product’s divided by the number 100.

For instance, if there’s a pure seed of 85%, and a germination of 72%, the output’s 61% PLS.

Now you divide 100 by the PLS. In this example, you get 1.6, so you would need 1.6 pounds of seed with 85% purity and a germination of 72%>

The price that you have to pay is going to tell you if it’s a deal or if you want to look elsewhere.

These are three things to consider to help you choose the right grass seed for you. We offer lawn seeding and renovation, so if you are interested in a no-obligation estimate, please contact us today.