Grass Re-seeding Questions

5 years ago

I'm planning to re-seed my 3000 sqft lawn in September, and I have a few questions:

1) My understanding is that I should put a 1/4" layer of soil on top of my lawn before I re-seed to help with germination. I am currently looking at Scott's Turf Builder ($0.14/L) or Scotts Select Black Earth ($0.13/L). I am wondering if there is a more cost effective alternative to using this soil.

2) I threw some Scotts Turf Builder Grass Seed Contractor's Mix Sun & Shade (Creeping Red Fescue, turf-type Perennial Ryegrass and Kentucky Bluegrass) onto my lawn in April of this year but unfortunately most of the seeds died. I'm wondering if it is vital that I re-seed with Scotts, or if I can use another brand that has the same seeds? The product I am thinking of using is Vigoro Contractor's Mix Grass Seed (Intermediate & Annual Ryegrass, Creeping Red Fescue, Kentucky Bluegrass and Perennial Ryegrass).

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Comments (3)

dchall_san_antonio
5 years ago
Need to know where you live before getting conclusive.

Generally spring seeding does not go well, as you found out.

No, you do not need 1/4" of topsoil. Could you post a picture of the area you are seeding? Is it already a lawn, or bare, or weedy, or mixed? Is it level? Mother Nature never, ever, applies 1/4" of topsoil before doing anything. Certainly not when reseeding the prairies. What She does is knock the seeds onto the top of the soil and then trample the seeds with Her hooves which press the seeds into the surface of the soil with a surprisingly gentle force. Animal hooves are big enough to distribute the weight so they do not generally compact the soil by walking over it. You can do the same thing using a water filled roller (rented) after you seed. What you want is seed to soil contact. You can get that without topsoil.

As for using Scott's seed: you can mix and match any seed you like. The biggest difference in seed is the weed and Other crop percentages. The ideal amount for those is 0.00%. The reason is that bermuda seed and creeping bentgrass seed are the size of dust, so the weight percentage of 0.001% weed could be thousands of seeds. You can get 0.00% seed online, but not in stores. It doesn't sound like you need the expensive seed.

Before getting into the nuts and bolts, it would really help to know where you are and see a picture.
Jon Chan
Original Author
5 years ago
I live in Vancouver, Canada (Pacific North West). I would consider my lawn patchy (ie - mainly grass, but some spots that are bare). There aren't too many weeds. I also have grass growing at different speeds. I have some super fast growing ones that require me to mow at least once a week (I think these are the ones I just planted), and others that don't seem to grow.

Link of my yard: https://imgur.com/a/mgBnEUY
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dchall_san_antonio
5 years ago
In Canada why don't they call it the PSW?

Ok, I have it on pretty good authority that spring seeding can go very well in the PNW. I'm going to call in the local PNW expert to look at this and comment on my first reply.