Need Help with Patchy Lawn - 3 weeks from Seeding a new Lawn

8 years ago

Hello Experts,
I am new here. Both, in this forum and growing a new lawn by seeding. We live in Livermore, CA. We used Scott's lawn starter fertilizer, followed by turf builder tall fescue mix.
Good Part: We are into 3 weeks today and we see a lot of grass.
Bad Part: It looks very patchy. I am attaching some pictures taken from multiple angles. Top view is really patchy with patches without grass all over the lawn.
Side view is Ok good. Not what I wanted or expected though.

My questions are:

1) Is it too soon to be worried ?

2) If not, then how should I fix ?

Option 1: Look for the patches, till them lightly, resow the seeds, put some topsoil on them and water. And wait for next 3 weeks ? When should I start doing this ? But again, there are so many of those tiny small patches scattered all over the lawn. Is it realistically possible to even till them and sow ?

Option 2: Regardless of the patches, just add some Lawn food. But when ? I did add starter fertilizer the first time around.

Option 3: Can I walk on the grass already ? If not, how am I supposed to reach to the patches ? I am concerned that If I walk on them, some newly germinated seeds will stick to my slippers and get more scattered. I am not sure if they are ready to be mowed yet.

Thanks for your help.

Deb

Featured Answer

owlnsr

8 years ago

last modified: 8 years ago

Don't do any of those things.

Let the grass that has germinated continue to grow. Cut back on the watering frequency but start increasing the volume per session. You want to slowly start transitioning to watering only once a week (and watering for a long enough time to put down 1 inch of water as measured by a rain gage or tuna can).

Cut it when it's 3 inches tall to a height of 2 inches; make sure it (and the soil) is dry on that day! After the first cut, raise your mower blade height to the highest setting (ideally 3.5 to 4 inches). That is the height you want the fescue to be maintained at. Never cut off more than 1/3 off at once (so cut when it's about 5 inches tall).

Because your lawn is new ... And because you made the big mistake of planting in the spring, you WILL get weed pressure. Resist the urge to apply any herbicide. Your grass will weaken as a result. Resist the urge, resist the urge, resist the urge. Fall is the ideal time to plant fescue, but what's done is done and you will be throwing money away by spraying herbicide. Resist the urge.

On Memorial Day, think about putting down an application of lawn food. I wouldn't recommend any Turf Builder or other synthetic fertilizer until the fall, but organics are great. I like Milorganite personally because it's safe for kids/animals and won't burn the lawn. Give it another dose of organic lawn food on July 4th.

Once the lawn your put down has established, you might be surprised how well the bare spots will fill in. (Even with fescue.) deep and infrequent watering + mowing high and often is the recipe for success.

For any bare spots that you are still unhappy with come September, save yourself some trouble and just buy a jug of Scotts EZ Seed. It should match the Scotts tall fescue that you put down already. It's meant for patching and it's kind of goof proof.

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Comments (8)

dchall_san_antonio
8 years ago
It could be you scattered the seed in a patchy pattern, but I would suspect you covered it with topsoil unevenly and that stopped some of the seed from sprouting. Grass seed should not be covered with anything. Once you scatter the seed it should be rolled down or walked on (for very small areas) to press the seed into the surface. That's all.

You can mow when the grass is upwards of 4 inches high. Then mulch mow it down to 4 inches.

NEVER rototill in preparation for a lawn. Many people feel the need to till the ground, but I think the jury is out as to whether it is ever beneficial. As for lawns it is definitely going to be a problem for you for years to come. How deep did you till originally?
debabrata15 thanked dchall_san_antonio
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Kaillean (zone 8, Vancouver)
8 years ago
I would agree some patches probably got covered with too much soil. I laid down new seed in bare spots a couple of weeks ago and it is growing in nice except where my neighbor "helpfully" covered my seeds with more soil because she saw birds eating the seed. Sigh. I have scattered more on top and lightly raked it in in hopes that it will take.
debabrata15 thanked Kaillean (zone 8, Vancouver)
debabrata15
Original Author
8 years ago
hi all,

thank you for your comments and this is really helpful. sad to know that we did some mistakes. But I am confused how to avoid danger of washing away during watering, or blow away during winds (its windy in Livermore, CA now).

It was recommended on the bags as well and some youtube videos also.

Anyways, will follow some guidelines as you all recommended and monitor the results.

Thanks,

Deb
Kaillean (zone 8, Vancouver)
8 years ago
It does help to put a little soil down but you only need 1/8 to 1/4 of inch and this can be hard to control. I find it's easier just to put the top dressing first and then lightly rake it in. You can use a roller to press it down but I just walked over it. Maybe not ideal, but seems to have worked. If you are keeping the seeds slightly moist by frequent light watering, usually the wind won't carry it away.

I'm no expert, but I'd be inclined to scatter some more seed in the bare spots.
debabrata15 thanked Kaillean (zone 8, Vancouver)
Jamie Fairlie
last year
last modified: last year
your best to use a rake and rake over the soil scratch it if you call it after you do that you put your grass seed into a spreader on a high setting then walk after your finished put over top soil or compost then lightly rake then water in
Dean Clarck
last year
last modified: last year
I was just wondering how things turned out for you with your patchy lawn. It's always interesting to follow up on great topics like this. Speaking of lawns, I recently bought a house in California as well, but the previous owners filled the backyard with concrete. I'm thinking of removing it and putting in a nice lawn instead. I found one website that sells turf rolls, and I'm curious to know your thoughts on them. Anyway, I hope you were able to get your lawn looking the way you wanted. As a newbie to this forum, I'm always excited to connect with other homeowners and exchange tips and ideas about lawn care and landscaping.
dchall_san_antonio
last year
Hi Dean. Since your question is basically unrelated to the originator of this topic, you should open a new with your own subject, so people can respond and follow your progress. When you post it is much more helpful to mention where you live. California covers every USDA zone, climate, and soil type, so you can't just pick a grass type for 'California.'