Overseeding
The method of overseeding a lawn is really nothing more than spreading grass seed over an existing lawn. This treatment is the easiest way of keeping grass young. As years go by, just like humans, mature plants reproduction rate begins to decline. Since a blade of grass lives approximately only 2 months, production of new tillers must continually outpace the dieback of older leaves. Young grass will produce tillers faster than older grass. Therefore, one of the most important ways to maintaining a healthy and thick lawn, is to make sure your grass is young. Also, before overseeding your lawn, you should mow your lawn short and bag the clippings. This will allow the seed to come into contact with the soil when it is spread.
When is the best time to overseed?
The best time to overseed your lawn is during the fall season. By following the natural life cycle of most grasses, which go to seed during summer and then germinate in the early fall, you will get the best and most vigorous stands of grass. You also avoid the chance of newly seeded grass from getting burnt in the hot summer months. Below are some more benefits as to why overseeing your lawn will give you the greatest results.
- Overseeding your lawn in the fall reduces or eliminates competition from summer weedy grasses, such as crabgrass, and other weeds.
- Competition is at its lowest point of the year from weeds and insects
- Soil temperatures are still warm in the fall, which is necessary for seed germination, while the cooler air temperatures are better for grass growth.
- Rain amounts and soil moisture is generally better in the fall.
- ***For the best results we recommend that overseeding be done following core aeration. This will create a seed bed by loosening the soil, which gives the most seed to soil contact and is crucial to seed germination. If you need any type of LAWN RENOVATIONS, contact us at (703) 337-5296 for a FREE estimate.