What is Overseeding?
Have you ever been strolling around your local park in the middle of January and wondered how the grass is still green? How come one of your neighbors has a yellow lawn in March, but the other neighbor is growing green grass? What can you do to beef up your own lawn? The trick to maintaining lush green grass throughout the year is overseeding. Overseeding is a common landscaping practice that’s been used for decades, but what can overseeding do for your Colorado lawn? Let’s answer the question, “What is overseeding?” and learn what it can accomplish, and how to overseed your lawn. Overseeding can help create a thick, healthy turf that outcompetes weeds, reducing weed issues. It also introduces new grass varieties, which can improve your lawn’s resilience to heat, shade, and heavy foot traffic. With a little research and time, you can enjoy the benefits that overseeding brings to your turf without a ton of elbow grease. If elbow grease isn’t your thing, you can at least talk to your custom landscaping company about overseeding during your next landscape project.
Overseeding Basics
When Should You Overseed Lawns?
- For More Color – Overseeding can help extend the green life of your lawn by several months. You can add a cool season variety to a similar warm season variety for a lush, green lawn that looks great well into winter while your neighbor’s grass withers for the season. Cool season grasses are best overseeded in early fall or late summer, when warm soil and cooler air temperatures provide optimal conditions for seed establishment.
- For Thin Spots – Where one type of grass might struggle, another might thrive. You can supplement thin spots in your lawn with varied grasses for a better chance of success. Mixing different grass species helps fill in any unsightly or bare spots and improves overall lawn resilience, especially during challenging summer months.
- For More Variety – One type of grass is boring. You’ll only get one texture and one color. Overseeding lets you supplement your lawn with other textures and colors for a varied and more aesthetic appeal. Kentucky bluegrass is a popular species of choice for overseeding due to its availability and advantages over seeding other types.
Overseeding in early spring is possible, but seed growth may be slower because the soil warms up gradually. Late summer and early fall are ideal times for overseeding cool-season grasses, as these periods take advantage of warm soil and cooler air, promoting strong growth before winter. Summer can be challenging for overseeding due to heat stress, so proper timing is key for the best results.
What Types of Grass are Used for Overseeding in Colorado?
Selecting the right grass species is important for overseeding. Cold climate grasses, also known as cool season grasses, work best for overseeding in most Colorado lawns. The most popular grass species in Colorado include Kentucky bluegrass, perennial ryegrass, and fescue, which are all cool season grasses, as well as warm season grass types like blue grama and buffalo grass. Kentucky bluegrass is a popular species for overseeding in Colorado due to its drought tolerance, cold resistance, and ability to create a lush, resilient lawn. Tall fescue seed is another excellent option, as tall fescue has deep roots that allow it to stay green during most drought periods. For shaded areas, fine-leaf fescues are the best choice because they thrive in low-light conditions. If your lawn consists of warm-season grass, note that overseeding should be done in late spring to early summer when soil temperatures exceed 75°F. At JS Enterprises we can help you determine the best seed choice for your unique lawn or match the current grass species you’re already growing.
The most popular types of grasses in Colorado are bluegrasses, rye grasses, fescue, gama, buffalo, and more.
When Do You Overseed in Colorado?
How to Overseed in Colorado
- Remove all debris – Remove all branches, organic debris, or anything else that would limit the seeds’ contact with soil.
- Mow Your Lawn – Mow the entire lawn. You can set your mower deck to lower than you normally would.
- Dethatch the lawn – Thatch is dead grass that accumulates on top of the dirt. Thatch can block seed to soil contact so dethatch your lawn for overseeding. You can rent a gas-powered dethatcher for big lawns or purchase a hand dethatcher for smaller lawns.
- Further Preparation – Use this time to introduce fresh, enriched soil over your topsoil. Fresh soil will make a better growing environment for both your current and new grass.
- Spreading the Seed – Load your seed into a hand or walking seed distributor. Use the directions on the seed package directions for ideal distribution.
- Fertilize and Water – Give your new seeds a soaking in liquid-based fertilizer. Avoid letting your lawn dry completely out over the next week.
- Enjoy – Enjoy your lush new turf in a few weeks.
Tips on Overseeding Your Lawn
Using a Professional to Overseed
Overseeding isn’t too complicated, but there’s a lot of work that goes into choosing the appropriate seed, prepping the lawn, and spreading seed over your property. You can avoid all the grunt work by hiring a professional landscaper to overseed your lawn. A Colorado landscaper knows the best grass that will mix and thrive on your unique lawn and how to expertly prepare your turf for overseeding. If you want to take the guesswork out, use a landscaping professional to overseed your lawn.
Overseed for Better Grass
Whether you want a thicker lawn, longer periods of green grass, or want to patch bare spots, overseeding is the way to do it. Do your homework for a DIY overseed or talk to a local landscaper and get your lawn overseeded this season.
