PURDUE UNIVERSITYCOOPERATIVEEXTENSION SERVICEWEST LAFAYETTEINDIANA 47907
AY-3
Establishing Turfgrass AreasFrom Seed
Zac Reicher and Clark Throssell Purdue University Turfgrass Specialists
Establishment of turfgrass areas is mostcommonly accomplished with seed, althoughsod can be used. Sod offers the advantage of an “instant lawn” whereas seed takes muchlonger to produce a green turf. Establishmentwith seed is much less expensive and issurprisingly less complicated than with sod.But in no way is establishing a lawn withseed an easy task that should be taken lightly.Following proper establishment procedurescan produce a healthy turf that one can beproud of for many years to come.
Time of Seeding
The best time to seed a lawn is in the latesummer to early fall. Adequate soil moisture,warm soil, and limited weed pressure allowfor excellent seedling growth. BetweenAugust 15 and September 15 is optimumseeding time in the northern half of Indiana,from September 1 to September 30 isoptimum in the southern half of Indiana. It iscritical to seed as early as possible withinthese windows. Even when seeding withinthese windows, waiting one week later toseed may mean the stand will take two tofour additional weeks to mature. Establish-ment in the spring is possible but not aseffective as fall seeding; refer to AY-20,Seeding a Turf Area in the Spring.
Preparing the Seedbed
A soil test should be taken from the site. Thetest will determine fertilizer recommenda-tions for the area. Correct any deficiencies innutrients or pH by following the recommen-dations on the soil test report. Use a tiller orother cultivation equipment to work the soilto a depth of 4-6 inches, incorporating thefertilizer or other soil amendments. Do nottill wet soil; it will clod. Do not overtill a soilbecause it will destroy desirable soil struc-ture. The soil should be allowed to settleafter tilling. Heavy rains and/or irrigationwill hasten settling. Allowing time for thesoil to settle now will prevent undulationsand difficult mowing in the future. Just priorto seeding, rake the area to the finish gradeand to create a good seed bed.After the area is at finish grade, apply a“starter fertilizer” to enhance seed germina-tion and development. Starter fertilizer ishigh in phosphorus which is listed as thesecond number in the analysis on the fertil-izer bag. For instance, a 16-22-8 fertilizercontains 22% P
2
O
5
. Apply the fertilizeraccording to the label at 1.5 lb. P
2
O
5
/1000 ft
2
.Refer to Table 1 for the proper amount of starter fertilizer to apply.
Table 1: Amount of starter fertilizer to apply to deliver 1.5 lbs P
2
O
5
/1000 ft
2
.
% P
2
O
5
lbs fertilizer in fertilizer/1000 ft
2
10151510207.5256305354.5404453.5
Seeding
Seed should be applied using a drop spreaderbecause rotary spreaders do not disperse theseed uniformly. However, there are nospreader calibration guides for turfgrass seed.The easiest way to apply seed uniformly is toset the spreader adjustment very low, sowone half of the seed in one direction, andthen sow the other half at right angles to thefirst direction of seeding. It might take threeor more passes over your lawn in a singledirection, but it is well worth the time to geta uniform seeding. Seeding rate recommen-dations are presented in Table 2.After the starter fertilizer and seed have beenapplied, the area should receive a light rakingfollowed by a light rolling to insure goodseed-soil contact. A roller designed to befilled with water, but left empty, is perfect for
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