Care for New Grass Seed

Watering New Grass

After you’ve planted your grass seed, continue to water it at least twice a day (or more frequently if the weather is hot), until after you’ve mowed it once or twice. Once your new grass is established, you can go back to a normal watering routine.

Water is essential to lawns. But too much or too little can harm them. Running the sprinkler all night sets up the right conditions for disease. Frequent, light watering causes the grass to grow shallow roots and sets your lawn up for trouble in hot weather

Mowing Newly Seeded Grass

If you’ve seeded some bare spots or a whole lawn, hold off on mowing the area until the new grass is between 3 and 3 ½ inches long. Make sure your mower blade is nice and sharp, and then cut your grass only when it’s dry. You also want to avoid mowing too short. (You only need to remove 1/3 of the height) If you’ve seeded over your existing lawn, you can mow as needed, but try to cut back the frequency to limit traffic on the new seedlings.

Feeding New Grass

Feeding is important for all lawns, but it’s especially important for new grass plants.  Continue with regular feedings every 6-8 weeks to provide the nutrients your lawn needs to crowd out weeds and withstand the stresses of heat, drought, and family activity.

Weeds in Your New Grass

It happens. Weeds do pop up now and then among newly planted grass. That’s because dormant weeds seeds are always present in the soil, and they’re waiting to sprout when they get a chance. A good rule of thumb is to wait until you’ve mowed your new grass at least 4 times before you treat the weeds with a crabgrass preventer or other weed-control product. The exception would be if you are using a weed-control product specifically designed to be used when seeding. As always, remember to read the product label for specific information related to the weed-control product you are using.

Bugs in Your New Grass

Most bug-control products can be used any time on newly planted grass. Even so, remember to read the product label for specific information related to your pest-control product.

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