Planting Grass Seed

Let's face facts, your lawn says a lot about you. Who hasn't based at least a little bit of their initial impression of someone based off of how the exterior of their home looked? Well, your lawn can go a long way to imparting the impression that you want to give to others. Properly planting grass seed is an essential step in preparing the perfect lawn. Good thing that this is something anyone can do, if they are willing to put in the care and effort.

1. Break it up. Before you can actually even begin thinking about planting some grass seed, you will need to break up the soil. Generally speaking, doing this work will make you dirty and sweaty, so be prepared. For small areas of lawn you will only need a garden hoe and a willingness to work. For larger areas (such as the entire lawn) you will need to rent a till. Proceed to break up, or loosen, the soil up to a depth of about roughly six inches. This will help to bring up and mix the layers of soil, helping to provide a better growing area for your grass seed.
2. Prepare and fertilize. Once you have broken up the soil, it is time to actually prepare the area. To do this, you will need a garden rake, some gloves, a few bags of top soil, a few bags of lawn fertilizer, and a fertilizer spreader. Rake over the area where you will be planting the grass seed, and spread the soil around, while you are doing this be sure that you also remove any weeds, leaves, and sticks that you come across. After mixing the regular soil up a little more, it is time to add some top soil. Spread the top soil around using your garden rake, and mix it into the regular soil. This helps to properly prepare the initial growing area for the grass seed. Once you have finished preparing the soil, it is time tot fertilize. Simply use your spreader to...well, spread the fertilizer. Be sure that you apply an even coat of the fertilizer throughout your entire planting area.
3. Spread it around. You have finally finished preparing the soil in the growing area, so it is now time to actually plant the seeds. This is fairly easy, since all you basically need to do is spread the seeds around in the growing area. A spreader can be a big help in doing this, since you can use the spreader to help ensure that the seeds are evenly distributed. However, a spreader is not necessary, since you can spread the seeds around by hand. You will know you have finished spreading the seeds around when your future lawn area looks more "gray" than the normal brown you see from tilled soil.
4. Watering. After you have planted the grass seed, it is time to begin watering. Initially, you will want to water the lawn deeply, but not deep enough that you begin washing the seeds away. The best way to do this is through the use of a "drip" irrigation system. However, if you do not have one, then simply spray the water through a nozzle so that it comes out more in a mist than a stream. Water your lawn daily, to the point where all the seeds and the ground are covered, and continue to do this for the next three weeks. Do not cut your lawn until it has grown to at least three inches tall, and be sure that you do not cut it all the way back to the ground.