The establishment of a home lawn from
seed can be challenging. The keys to successfully establishing a lawn from seed
are selecting high quality seed, seeding at the optimum time, and following
proper establishment procedures. Today’s blog is a revised Iowa State
University extension publication on establishing a lawn from seed.
The following is a small introduction to
the publication.
Time
of Seeding
The best time to seed a lawn in Iowa is between
mid-August and mid/late September. However, lawns can be successfully
established as late as late-September in central Iowa and early October in
southern Iowa. Late summer planting is preferred to spring seeding because
seeds germinate and grow rapidly in the warm soil. The warm days and cool nights
are ideal for seedling growth.
Establishment from seed in the spring is
possible when irrigation is available. However, lawns established in spring
often become infested with annual weeds unless preventive steps are taken. A pre-emergent
herbicide such as siduron or mesotrione should be applied to the area during a
spring establishment. Most of these preemergent herbicides kill the seeds of
the cool season lawn grasses and cannot be used at the time of seeding. Mesotrione
and siduron are the only exceptions. Siduron can be applied to areas seeded with
Kentucky bluegrass, fine and tall fescues, and perennial ryegrass. Siduron
selectively control weedy annual grasses, such as crabrass, foxtail, and
barnyardgrass, while allowing the desirable turfgrasses to grow. Siduron is the
active ingredient of many crabgrass preventer/starter fertilizer materials.
Once the barrier of siduron has been established, the soil should not be
further disturbed. Wherever the barrier is broken, annual weeds will emerge. Mesotrione
is labeled for preemergent use
only on newly seeded Kentucky bluegrass lawns to help control crabgrass
seedlings and other annual weeds.
or use the following address: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BzSKKI3Akgy_TF9xZ09LSFZ0cXc/edit?usp=sharing
