Water Your Lawn Generously
Right after spreading the seeds and fertilizer, water the lawn deeply. After that, water lightly every day to keep the soil moist while the new grass establishes. Continue watering every day until the new grass is as tall as the established grass.
Always water in the morning, before 10 a.m., to keep the water from evaporating in the heat of the sun. Watch for signs of overwatering, such as puddles or spongy soil. If you notice these signs, cut back on the watering immediately.
Choosing The Best Time To Aerate And Overseed Your Lawn
In most landscaping and gardening projects, timing is everything. And thats true for aeration and overseeding.
But theres not a one-size-fits-all best time to aerate and overseed your lawn. Where you live, and the type of grass you have in your yard will dictate when you should tackle these projects.
This is because you want to give the grass time to grow and strengthen before harsher weather conditions arrive, so you want to aerate and overseed your lawn just before your grass has the ideal growing conditions.
Those conditions largely depend on your geographic location and how seasonal changes affect your grass.
That said, here are the best times for aeration and overseeding most lawns:
When to Aerate and Overseed Warm-Season Grasses
If you live in a southern climate, your lawn is probably made up of warm-season grasses. For you, the best time to aerate is during the late spring, and youll want to overseed your lawn at the same time.
This is because warm-season grasses thrive and grow best during the heat of summer. By performing these lawn improvement projects in late spring your seedlings will be established just in time for their ideal growing conditions and they can thrive and develop deep roots throughout the heat of summer.
When to Aerate and Overseed Cool-Season Grasses
For you, early spring or early fall aeration and overseeding will deliver the best results, with early fall my recommendation.
Water Deeply But Not Too Often
- Too much watering can lead to poor growing conditions and disease problems.
- Water only when your lawn needs it, usually no more than once a week when there is no rainfall.
- Apply at least 2.5 cm of water. Put a tuna or pet food can on your lawn to measure how much you’ve watered. Stop watering when it’s full.
- Consider the soil type and surface features. Grass growing on compacted, fine soil or on slopes needs lighter, more frequent watering.
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You Aerate And Overseed During Dry Conditions
Aerating is easy on your turf, and you, when your soil is slightly moist. Overly dry and compact soil is harder to penetrate and requires more manual effort to push the machinery. Especially during times of drought when you grass is already stressed, its best to wait until the day after a good rainfall before aerating.
What To Do Before Aerating A Lawn
Do it yourself aerating isnt recommended as it is labor-intensive, requires certain equipment and fertilizer, and could be harmful to your lawn if done incorrectly. You need to consider a few things before having your lawn aerated. Your professional lawn service personnel will be able to advise you on the proper fertilization and overseeding needed.
If your lawn is dry, water it one to two days before aeration. Core aerators are prone to clogging, which is more likely to happen on a dry lawn. Conversely, if the lawn is saturated from previous rain or watering, do not water it before aeration. The lawn expert may opt to hold off if the lawn is too wet. The homeowner should mark all areas where cable lines, sprinkler heads, septic lines, or other obstacles may be present to avoid damage.
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You Fight Weeds Too Early
Weed control can work wonders keeping invasive growth at bay on a healthy turf, but chemicals and herbicides can harm seedings roots and fresh blades. Even organic and natural solutions can cause stress on the young plants, so its often best to wait until your grass is strong before laying down any weed control substances. We advise waiting until youve mowed your new grass four to five times before tackling any emerging weeds.
Tree And Shrub Maintenance
Trees and shrubs can reduce available light to turfgrass and compete with the lawn for water and nutrients. When they are not properly maintained, lawn problems can occur. Having shrubs trimmed costs between $75 and $100. Tree trimming cost is determined by the size and type of tree and runs from $80 to $1,000.
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What Is The Cost Of Weeding Your Lawn
The average cost per hour of weeding ranges between $12 and $40. While many people enjoy gardening as a hobby, others would prefer to hire an expert to handle regular weeding around plants and flowers. Professionals who undertake this job would need to come back on a regular basis, or they can use weed killer as a more permanent solution.
Corsican Mint Ground Cover
If you plan to plant Corsican mint, expect to pay between $10 and $21 per pound. This is one of the simplest ground covers to plant and maintain. It creates a flat bedding of bright green leaves that look and smell great. This ground cover may freeze in colder temperatures but naturally regrows once the cold weather breaks. You have to water Corsican mint regularly, though it doesnt require as much as natural grass.
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How Much Does Core Aeration Cost
Core aerators are units that take cores of earth completely out of the soil bed. This method has a longer-lasting effect because of its unique way of creating deeper channels within the earth. Core aeration works best on bigger lawns.
Spike aeration is good for sandy, looser soils and is cheaper than core aeration. Lawn care companies generally recommend core aeration due to its maximum benefits. The average prices of $120 to $175 for a 10,000 square foot yard still apply for core aeration.
Grasses That Benefit From Overseeding
The practice of overseeding lawns is really nothing more than spreading grass seed over an existing lawn. The golf industry has been doing it since the sport began and is an important step in maintaining quality turf. Knowing how to do it correctly is the key. There is no need to invest in expensive equipment, just what is needed to do it correctly.
Not every grass type requires overseeding. The practice of overseeding lawns is primarily reserved for cool season bunch type grasses such as tall fescue, fine fescue, perennial and annual ryegrass and occasionally bluegrass. There are exceptions, but for most home lawns, grass types that spread by the production of ârunnersâ are not generally overseeded unless it is damaged or diseased. This includes most warm season grass varieties. An exception is bermudagrass that is occasionally overseeded in the fall using a cool season variety.
Understanding Grass Growth
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Comparing Diy Vs Professional Lawn Care
When making your decision keep in mind:
- How often you want to aerate your lawn
- The size of lawn or area that needs aerated
- How much time you want to spend working on your lawn
- Does the lawn need overseeding and fertilizer
- Your budget
From the estimates we came up with, it may cost you around $90 to aerate your lawn or $240 to aerate and treat your lawn yourself . If you purchase an aerator yourself the initial cost will be high, but then you will only have the cost of the seed and fertilizer for future treatments. Remember, if you do not have experience treating your lawn, this could take you all day to complete. The common cost to aerate your lawn with a lawn care company is $150 or $250-300 if you add the overseeding and fertilizing.
About Aeration And Overseeding
Aeration is the process of de-compacting the soil in your yard by cutting small holes into it. These holes allow oxygen, water, and fertilizer to reach your grasss roots, which strengthens your grass. Overseeding is a process for improving your yard by adding fresh grass seed to your existing lawn to thicken and revitalize your turfgrass. While these are two separate techniques for improving your yard and lawn, when combined into a single weekend project, these two tasks work in harmony and can help improve the health of your grass for the next several years. The holes created by aeration allow grass seed and starter fertilizer to achieve better soil contact, which improves results.
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Average Cost Of Hydroseeding
Hydroseeding is an efficient method of seeding a lawn. On average, hydroseeding prices range $2,000 and $4,000 per acre. That makes the hydroseeding cost per sq.ft. between $0.06 to $0.20. This spray-on grass seed price includes soil prep, materials, and installation.
This differs from traditional seeding in a few ways, starting with the fact that it is quicker and easier. However, it is often more expensive. The process involves combining fertilizer, seed, mulch, soil amendments, and water and using a high-pressure machine to apply it to the soil.
This causes seeds to germinate very quickly and stops erosion, weed growth, and dust pollution. The binding agents in the hydroseed mixture allow the grass to touch moisture in the mulch constantly. Binders and fiber in the mixture prevent the seeds from being washed away.
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Diy Lawn Seed Cost By Brand
Besides the above-mentioned factors, the brands of the different grass seeds also determine the cost. Among the most reputable grass seed brands includes Scotts Turf Builder, Jonathan Green, and Pennington products.
Heres how these and other brands price their seeds in the American market.
| Brand |
|---|
On average, reseeding an acre will cost you $18,000.
Again, this doesnt account for the labor costs and other expenses.
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Spread The Grass Seed
Before choosing a grass seed mixture, know your grass type. Use seeds for either the same type of grass already growing in your yard or a compatible grass type. Usually, compatible means cool-season grass types with other cool-season grass types and warm-season grass types with other warm-season grass types.
Fill a fertilizer spreader with your chosen grass seed mixture. Walk the spreader across your lawn in rows, following the same pattern you use when you mow. For information on how much seed to use, see the package label.
Compost Over Grass Seed
A cubic yard of compost costs between $10 and $35, which will cover approximately 100 sq.ft. of your lawn. When you cover grass seed with compost, you benefit from an extra layer of nutrients that break down and go to the seeds as the compost protects them during this early stage. This ultimately keeps your grass healthier and helps it grow more quickly.
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Professional Lawn Care Aeration And Treatment
The cost to aerate your lawn by hiring a lawn care company is about $15 to $17 per thousand square feet. The average lawn size is about ten thousand square feet, making the average aeration cost around $150. It will take a lawn care company about 30 minutes to aerate a ten thousand square foot lawn. Adding overseeding and fertilizing to your aeration will bump up the cost. The cost of aeration, overseeding, and fertilizing is around $250 to $300 if you use a lawn care company.
Why Aerating Helps Lawns
Grass roots need air, water and nutrients to grow thick, deep and strong. When soil becomes compacted, even slightly, it inhibit the flow of the essentials that support thicker, healthier turf growth. A layer of compacted soil just 1/4 to 1/2 inches thick can make a significant difference in the health and beauty of your lawn.1 Aeration creates holes down into the soil to alleviate compaction so air, water and nutrients can reach grass roots.
Deprived of their basic needs by compacted soil, lawn grasses struggle in stressful situations, such as heat and low rainfall, and lose their healthy, rich color. Grasses gradually thin and eventually die out completely, for lack of the oxygen, water and nutrients available just inches away. Even a single aeration session can open the avenue for these essentials to reach their mark and put your lawn back on an upward trend.
Core aerators pull small plugs of soil to the surface.
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Thicken Your Lawn By Overseeding
Mow low. Before overseeding, you’ll want to cut your grass shorter than normal and bag the clippings. After mowing, rake the lawn to help loosen the top layer of soil and remove any dead grass and debris. This will give the grass seed easy access to the soil so it can root more easily after germinating.
Choose the right seeding product. Which type of grass seed you choose depends on your existing grass type. If your lawn consists of Kentucky bluegrass, fine fescue, or perennial ryegrass, choose a product specially designed for overseeding thin lawns, like Scotts® Turf Builder® Quick + Thick Grass Seed Sun – Shade 12-0-0, which combines grass seed, fertilizer, and a soil improver into an easy-to-use product you apply with a spreader. If you have a different grass type or are unsure of the best grass for your area, the people at your neighborhood garden center can help you choose the right Scotts® Turf Builder® Grass Seed All Purpose Mix for your lawn.
Amend the soil. If you’re using grass seed to overseed your lawn instead of an overseeding product like Scotts® Turf Builder® Quick + Thick Grass Seed Sun – Shade 12-0-0, it’s a good idea to rake in a thin layer of enriched soil over your lawn to help the seed settle in. Don’t put so much down that you kill your existing grass less than a quarter of an inch is plenty. Scotts® Enriched LawnSoilTM 0.08 – 0.03 – 0.02 works well for this purpose.
Broadcast Seed With A Cyclone Or Drop
This second method of overseeding is also effective, if youre unable to use a slit-seeder. Aerate several times before broadcasting seed aeration holes should be spaced not more than 2-3 inches apart. Use core-type aerating tines that remove soil plugs for better seed-to-soil contact. After overseeding, give the area a heavy watering right away to wash seed into the aeration holes and help break up the aeration cores on the surface.
One challenge with broadcast seeding is that much of the seed gets hung up in the thatch layer and does not get into the soil where it can germinate. Be sure to use grasses that have a creeping growth method to ensure even growth grass types that do not spread will grow in the aeration holes only and give the turf a clump or spotted look. Remember broadcast seeding requires more grass seed and the germination rate is not as high as with slit-seeding.
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Cost To Aerate A Lawn
These estimates are for BASIC work performed in serviceable conditions by qualified trade professionals using MID GRADE materials. Work not mentioned on this page and/or work using master craftsman, premium materials and project supervision will result in HIGHER COSTS!
These estimates are NOT substitutes for written quotes from trade professionals. Homewyse strongly recommends that you contact reputable professionals for accurate assessments of work required and costs for your project – before making any decisions or commitments.
The cost estimate includes:
- Costs for local material / equipment delivery to and service provider transportation to and from the job site.
- Costs to prepare the worksite for Lawn Aeration, including costs to protect existing structure, finishes, materials and components.
- Labor setup time, mobilization time and minimum hourly charges that are commonly included for small Lawn Aeration jobs.
The cost estimate does NOT include:
Your Location And Climate
Lawn grasses are subdivided into two types: Cold season grasses and warm-season grasses. The cold season grasses grow best under 25 degrees Celsius like the Kentucky Bluegrass and the Ryegrass.
The warm-season grass refers to the grasses that do well within 25 32 degrees Celsius. This includes the Kikuyu grass, buffalo, and couch grass.
With this in mind, assess your areas climate and choose a grass seed thats suitable for it. For instance, residents in warm states like Kansas, Colorado, and Nebraska should opt for warm-season grass, while those in Montana, the majority of North America, can go for cold season grasses.
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How Soon Can You Mow After Aerating And Overseeding
Mowing weekly during the growing season is important for maintaining a healthy lawn, encouraging thicker growth. So you might be wondering when to mow after overseeding.
When grass first germinates, its very tender. So its important to wait 10 to 14 days until the seed has germinated to mow. Also, dont collect the clippings. Let them fall to the ground so you recycle nutrients and any leftover seed your mower may have picked up during mowing.
Lawn Aeration And Overseeding Aftercare
A thin, patchy, or worn out lawn can be frustrating for any homeowner. You might be embarrassed if your lawn seems to be the worst looking one on the block.
If youve taken care of your lawn, but it still feels like its not doing its best, your soil is possibly compacted and not getting what it needs to thrive. You might find that you need aeration and overseeding to revive it.
Through aeration, a machineremoves small soil plugs from your lawn, depositing them back into the turfgrass canopy. This process improves water infiltration, oxygen diffusion, and root growth.
Overseeding is a great partner to aeration because you need seed-to-soil contact to germinate lawn seeds, and youve just created the perfect seedbed through aeration. This maximizes your chances of overseeding success so you can thicken up that lawn to prevent weeds and give it that lush, green appearance you envy.
Once completing aeration and overseeding, you want to make sure you do everything to ensure these processes are successful. Here are some tips to guide you.
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