How to grow grass seed fast
How to Grow Grass Fast
There’s no secret trick to get grass to grow overnight, but here are the top tips to get your grass to grow in thick and lush as fast as it can.
Reviews by This Old House Reviews Team 11/17/2022 12:00 am
If you wish your lawn would spring up thick, green, and vibrant overnight, you’re not alone, but there’s simply no secret method of ultra-accelerating grass growth. However, by following a proper process, you can minimize the time it takes to establish your lawn. Choosing the optimal grass type and planting at the ideal time go a long way toward getting the lawn you want.
Whether you choose seed or sod, This Old House has all the tips right here for you. Read on to discover how to grow grass as fast as you can.
To maintain your lawn, we recommend hiring a lawn care company like TruGreen to handle your routine fertilization, weed control, and more. To get a free quote, call 1-866-817-2287 or fill out this simple form.
How Do You Grow Grass Fast?
The best way to grow grass fast is to plant the best grass seed for your climate and follow the necessary steps. An even faster—but more expensive—option is to lay down sod, which is grass that’s already grown.
Determining Your Grass Type
Understanding your grass type is a crucial, fundamental step in the grass growing process. To get the best, fastest grass growth, you need to pick the ideal grass for your local climate—whether it’s a cool-season grass, warm-season grass, or a transitional grass type. It’s important to make the correct choice, or you may see your grass grow quickly, then falter, then fail.
Warm-Season Grass
Warm-season grasses grow best in regions with hot summers and mild winters, including the Deep South and Southeast. In general, warm-season grasses have vigorous growth from mid-to-late spring through early fall and go dormant in the winter. Their ideal growing temperature is between roughly 80 and 95 degrees Fahrenheit.
The best time to plant warm-season grasses is between late spring and summer.
The fastest-growing warm season grasses include:
- Bermuda grass: This grass type germinates in as little as seven to 10 days.
- Buffalo grass: This variety takes two weeks to 30 days to germinate.
- Centipede grass: This type of grass will germinate in 14 to 21 days.
Cool-Season Grass
Cool-season grasses’ active growth periods are during early spring and early fall. They grow best in areas like the Northeast, Pacific Northwest, and Upper Midwest. These grasses are usually green in the winter and turn brown in the summer. Their ideal growing temperature is about 60 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit. The best time to plant cool-season grasses is during the fall, about 45 days before the estimated first frost, or in spring.
The fastest-growing cool season grasses include:
- Perennial and annual ryegrass: Both germinate in just seven to 10 days.
- Tall fescue: This grass type germinates in 10 to 14 days.
- Kentucky bluegrass: It typically takes two to four weeks for Kentucky bluegrass to germinate.
If you live in a transitional zone, you’re in luck. Both warm-season grasses and cool-season grasses will grow in your region. Plant a warm-season grass first, and overseed it with cool-season grass.
How to Plant Grass Seed
There are several options for planting grass seed. You may look into hydroseeding—an efficient planting process that involves spraying a slurry of grass seed, fertilizer, water, mulch, and wood fiber through a high pressure hose. Because of the built-in fertilizer, hydroseeding helps your grass grow quickly.
If you opt not to hydroseed, whether you think it’s too difficult to DIY or don’t want to pay to hire a professional, you can plant seed the old fashioned way.
- Test the soil: Always test your soil first.
You want to make sure it’s set for optimum grass growth—proper drainage and full of the right nutrients. - Prep the soil: Be sure to remove any and all debris, including stones and wood. Scratch the soil with a rake and dig about six inches down with a spade to get rid of any roots. Till your soil either by hand or with a rototiller, then mix amendments, mulch, or compost into it. Smooth the area out to make it level, breaking up any clumps.
- Sow the seed: You’ll need a spreader to ensure uniform growth. Use a broadcast spreader or drop spreader for large areas, and a hand spreader in smaller ones. Once you’ve set your spreader to the recommended rate, fill it up with just half of the seeds. Cross once in one direction, and again in the opposite direction. The crisscross pattern will help with uniformity.
- Topdress the soil: Place peat moss over your soil to lock in moisture. This layer can also prevent seeds from washing away in a heavy rain and protect them from any pesky birds.
- Fertilize the soil: Apply a thin layer of starter fertilizer before covering and tamping the soil. Starter fertilizers are low in nitrogen, which is key because too much nitrogen can encourage the growth of weeds that could compete with your new grass.
- Water your lawn: Newly seeded lawns need plenty of moisture to allow the seeds to germinate. Watering just once or twice a week won’t cut it in the early stages. Instead, you’ll either need to take a mister and gently spray the area or run a sprinkler at a low setting two or three times a day for five to 10 minutes for the first week or so. When the grass grows high enough that you can mow the lawn, water your lawn 1 to 1.5 inches per week, so that the soil is moist but not soggy. Always be sure to water your lawn before 10 a.m., or between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m.
- Mow the grass: Once the grass reaches 3 to 4 inches, it’s time for the first mow.
Laying Sod
Sod is, without a doubt, your fastest way to an established lawn.
Why? Well, it’s already grown. Having sod installed is essentially rolling out an automatic lawn. However, it’s expensive and takes a fair amount of work. You have to install sod as soon as you get it, because it begins to spoil quickly on the pallet. It has to be kept moist while you lay it down piece by piece, making sure it’s smooth and has no gaps.
Our recommendation is to hire a professional landscaper to lay sod.
Professional Lawn Care
After you’ve planted your new grass, you can call TruGreen to make sure your lawn receives the proper care. TruGreen offers five annual plans, covering everything from aerating to soil amendments in every state except for Alaska. To get a free quote, call 1-866-817-2287 or fill out this simple form.
Frequently Asked Questions
Our Rating MethodologyThe This Old House Reviews Team backs up our lawn recommendations with a detailed rating methodology that we use to objectively score each provider.
We review lawn care plans and packages, navigate the provider website and speak with customer service representatives, request quotes, and analyze customer reviews for each provider. We then score the provider against our review standards for plan options, additional benefits and customizability, availability, trustworthiness, and customer service to arrive at a final score out of 100.
To share feedback or ask a question about this article, send a note to our Reviews Team at [email protected].
How to Grow Grass Fast - Lawn Care Blog
If you want to grow grass fast, there are a few methods that yield the quickest results. Combine your method of choice with the ideal time of year to plant grass in your area, and you’ll have full, healthy grass in no time.
Ways to grow grass fast
Before you decide how you’ll grow your grass, first you’ll need to determine what size patch you need to fill and select the method that works best for you.
Option 1: Sod
Mike Linksvayer | Flickr | CC0 1.0Sod is better than fast. A sodded lawn in an instant lawn. After you put down your chosen variety of sod, your lawn can look new in a matter of hours.
In short, the fastest way to grow grass is to pay for someone else to grow it for you. Whether you need to re-do the whole lawn or only repair a few bare spots, this is a great way to get an instant lawn.
Sod is the most expensive option on this list, but if you install it yourself (with a few friends, ideally), you save the cost of labor.
In a matter of three to four weeks, you will have a fully rooted lawn that you can mow and walk on. It doesn’t get much quicker than that.
Caveat: Your sod will only stay beautiful if you care for it as it becomes established. Ask your sod supplier for specific watering recommendations. A general rule of thumb is to water once or twice per day for the first three weeks or so. After that, water deeply once per week.
Don’t mow until the third or fourth week, and keep people and pets off the grass at least until after the first mow. Fertilize with starter fertilizer at about the one month mark.
Sod is great for small patch jobs, new lawns, and lawn renovations. Keep in mind that most sod varieties grow best in full sun.
| Pros | Cons |
| Instant lawn | Most expensive |
| Less work to establish than with a seeded lawn | Installation is key to its long-term success |
| Fast erosion control | Choices may be more limited than with seed |
| No weed pressure as it establishes |
Option 2: Seed
Seeding isn’t as fast as sod, but it has the advantage of being much cheaper. Most grass seed has a germination period of 5-30 days depending on the species of grass.
| Grass Type | Germination Time |
| Bermudagrass | 10-30 days |
| Centipedegrass | 10-28 days |
| Fine fescues | 7-14 days |
| Kentucky bluegrass | 14-30 days |
| Perennial ryegrass | 5-10 days |
| Tall fescue | 7-12 days |
The fastest-growing cool-season grasses are rough bluegrass, ryegrass, and tall fescue.
These varieties put forth a medium-full lawn in five to nine weeks.
The fastest-growing warm-season grasses are bermudagrass, buffalo grass, and centipedegrass. These warm-season species take slightly longer to become relatively full. Expect to wait six to 11 weeks for these species to grow in and start to look full.
For the best seed-to-soil contact in a large lawn, consider slice seeding. Slice seeders (AKA slit seeders) ensure the seed has good contact with the soil to allow for quick germination.
Note: Some species of grass are not available as seeds. St. Augustines, for example, is available as sod or sprigs only. Companies don’t sell this species as seed because St. Augustine doesn’t produce much viable seed, so it’s easier to propagate vegetatively.
If you are only seeding small patches in your lawn, this is called overseeding. If you are interested in learning more, read “What is Overseeding” and “Four Steps to Overseed a Lawn.
”
| Pros | Cons |
| Least expensive | Takes more time to germinate than sod or hydroseeding |
| Good for small areas | Labor intensive |
| Can hand-cast seed for small areas – no special equipment needed | May have to deal with weed pressure as the grass establishes |
| Great DIY project | Watering is key, or the grass will fail |
| Some grasses not available as seed St. Augustine) or too slow-growing to work well from seed (Zoysia) |
Option 3: Hydroseed
South Florida Water Management District | Flickr | CC BY-ND 2.0First, what is hydroseeding?
Hydroseeding is a technique for establishing grass that is time- and cost-effective for large areas or areas that are prone to erosion. The hydroseed is a mixture of water, starter fertilizer, green dye, wood or paper fiber, and grass seed. These ingredients are mixed well in a machine to create a slurry.
This slurry is then sprayed onto large areas via a hydroseeding machine.
This slurry or mulch mixture gives the seed a moist bed in which to germinate and ensures it stays where you put it as it becomes established, preventing erosion or rains from washing the mixture away.
Hydroseeding is slower to establish than sod but faster than seed. This method is most cost-effective for larger residential and commercial properties.
This method can result in a full-ish lawn in as little as 30 days to two months.
| Pros | Cons |
| Cost-effective for larger areas | Not good for small patch jobs |
| Less costly than sodding a large area | Costs more than seeding |
| Fast erosion control | Not as fast to install or grow as sod |
| Works well on steep slopes | Not as cost-effective on smaller areas |
Option 4: Homemade “Hydroseed”
Sometimes YouTube yields surprisingly simple, but practical, solutions.
Check out this video to learn how one woodworker turns his excess sawdust into a kind of homemade “hydroseed” to fill in bare patches in the lawn. The sawdust/grass seed mixture is similar to the mulch used in hydroseeding. In as little as two weeks, he saw a significant stand of grass growing in the lawn.
Pros and Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Fast and inexpensive | Sawdust may not be easy to get |
| Good for small areas | More challenging for large areas |
| Germinates faster than some seed | Not as fast to install or grow as sod |
FAQ
1. How long will it take before my lawn fully matures?
Experts say that a seeded lawn takes a complete year to become established. In a seeded lawn, you may have full growth in as little as a few months, but you’ll need to let the Earth complete a full revolution around the sun before your lawn is well established.
If you’re putting down sod, know that it takes much less time to establish itself.
2. When does grass grow the fastest?
Planting grass seed for small patch jobs can be done at almost any time of the year except during winter, dormant periods, or during the hottest time of the year.
If you want to plant grass seed at the optimal time of year, first know your grass seed: Do you have cool-season or warm-season grass? Cool-season varieties thrive in the top half of the country while warm-season grasses thrive along the bottom half of the country.
Common cool-season species include Kentucky bluegrass, perennial ryegrass, and many types of fescue. Warm-season grasses include St. Augustine, centipede, Zoysia, and bahiagrass. (These may not all be fast-growing, but they are probably names you’ve heard of depending on where you live.)
Plant cool-season grasses from late summer to early fall. Warm-season grasses are best planted from late spring to early summer.
Planting grass before their periods of peak activity results in the fastest grass growth and the best chance of success for healthy, green grass.
3. How do I plant new grass?
Start with a soil test.
–A soil test will let you know what kind of fertilizer your lawn needs.
–Contact your local Cooperative Extension office for a soil sample bag. They will send your soil sample to the state lab for a reasonable fee. You can also buy soil test kits from your local home improvement store or online.
Measure the lawn area.
–You’ll need to know how large of an area you need to cover, especially if you are seeding or sodding an entire lawn.
Mow the grass (or remove it).
–Mow the grass shorter than normal or use a sod cutter to remove it if you are putting down sod.
Aerate and Dethatch
–If you are doing a large area, consider dethatching and aerating if your existing grass has over ½ inch of thatch or if your soil is compacted.
–Thatch is a layer of living and dead material between the actively growing grass and the soil. If it gets over ½ inch or so, it can contribute to insect pressure and reduce the effectiveness of your water, fertilizer, and pest control routine.
–If you don’t have thatch, aerating is a good way to open up your soil before you put down seed, especially if you have clay or compacted soil. Aerating is the process of creating holes in compacted soil to allow water and nutrients to get down to the grass’s roots.
Fertilize.
–Apply a fertilizer based on your soil test results. You may want to put down compost at this point as a soil amendment.
Overseed, Seed, or Sod the Lawn.
–Put down the seed using a spreader, hand-cast for small areas, or put down the sod. (Read the articles linked in this article for more detailed information.)
Water.
–New grass seed is only as good as the watering you do afterward. A general recommendation is to water lightly two to three times per day for the first few weeks until the grass germinates.
Set the sprinkler to keep the soil moist but not muddy.
After Care.
–Wait until the grass is 3 to 4 inches tall before mowing. Keep foot traffic off the lawn for at least two to three months.
There are ways to grow a lush lawn fast
You have a few options when it comes to growing a new lawn fast. Choose the method that works best for your lawn, budget accordingly, and plant at an optimal time of year. If you follow these guidelines and best practices, you should have a fresh green lawn before you know it.
If your definition of fast is having someone else do the work for you, hire a professional to plant or patch your lawn in a jiffy.
Main Photo Credit: Ochir-Erdene Oyunmedeg | Unsplash
Total
11
Shares
Sav Maive
Sav Maive is a writer and director based in San Antonio. Sav is a recent graduate from the University of Virginia and is a loving cat and plant mom.
Posts by Sav Maive
Growing grass for cats at home
Contents of the article
- Benefits of grass for cats
- Three ways to grow grass at home
- What else can be grown
- with flowers. This is not surprising because, unlike their wild counterparts, they are unable to chew grass. You can solve the problem if you start a special cat "garden", because the grass plucked on the street can harm the pet.
Benefits of grass for cats
Cats eat grass and gnaw on green stems for a reason. Instinct tells them about the benefits of this meal. Therefore, it is worth introducing grass into the cat's diet for at least three reasons:
- will benefit digestion - pets tend to swallow hairballs, caring for it, and by eating fresh greens, these lumps will leave the body faster;
- will clean the intestines from toxins and fecal stones - the herb will work as a natural laxative;
- will replenish the supply of vitamins and microelements - magnesium, folic acid, zinc, sulfur, biotin, etc.
The fact that a pet gnaws indoor flowers can spoil not only the mood of the owner. Certain plants are harmful to cats - at least they will harm the body, and at the maximum they will pose a threat to life. Growing grass on the windowsill is very easy, the first shoots will appear in a couple of days, and after about a week already offer the cat a healthy green treat. It is especially useful to eat grass in winter.
Three Ways to Grow Grass at Home
In order not to risk your pet's safety, you should not buy seeds from the market. There is no guarantee that it has not been treated with toxic agents. Buy a few packets of the special herb at the pet store.
Experienced cat owners know three ways to sprout pet grass on the windowsill.
- The first method - allows you not to buy soil and not to breed dirt at home. You should not expect a big harvest, but if you want to offer grass to a cat for the first time, then you may well try this method.
You will need two plastic plates of different diameters, cotton wool, coarse gauze and plastic wrap. At the bottom of a wider plate, having previously made several punctures in it, spread cotton wool, pour water over it and spread the seeds, cover with gauze, top with another plate and wrap it with polyethylene. - The second method already involves the use of soil, which is sold in any flower shop. The earth is poured into any suitable container - a pot, flowerpot, tray or box. Seeds are soaked in water for about 50 minutes, slightly moisten the soil to speed up germination and sown. From above, you need to sprinkle the seeds with earth and cover with plastic wrap - this will create a greenhouse effect. After about three days, shoots will appear and the film is removed.
- Vermiculite or cat litter can be used instead of soil - this is the third way. Planted in the same way as the second method. The filler must first be soaked with water to a mushy state.
When the grass sprouts, it needs to be watered periodically - a little water 1-2 times a day every day.
Remember that you do not need to breed an entire plantation. Only young shoots are useful for cats, plant greens as needed. If the cat likes grass, then use the conveyor seeding method. After planting the first batch, wait until they hatch, and plant the second in a week, and the third in another week. The cat will be provided with fresh grass.
What else can be grown
Cats love not only grass, but also plants, and they may appear in the cat's garden in your home. They will not harm the animal, although you need to keep the pet's appetite under control.
How to grow:
- Lemongrass - cats like its smell, and the plant itself is useful to eat. Lemongrass is a natural antiseptic, antibiotic and sedative in one bottle, and it also helps the animal's digestion. The plant will switch the attention of the cat from other indoor flowers to itself.
- Melissa - cats also like it, but you need to eat it strictly in doses, otherwise the animal will face problems with digestion.
- Parsley - many fluffy gourmets love curly greens. It is both tasty and healthy, as it contains many trace elements and generally has a positive effect on the cat's body.
You can also grow cereals at home - wheat, oats, rye.
If the cat does not eat grass
Perhaps all the efforts of the owner to grow a garden for a mustachioed pet will be in vain. Then they accustom the pet to greens gradually, adding to food. If you put a pot of grass next to a bowl of food, perhaps a green garden will interest the cat, and he will be happy to "graze" in his garden. Otherwise, cat owners are advised to periodically offer grass to their pet, perhaps one day the animal will appreciate such care from its owner.
If the cat absolutely does not want to eat grass, it is not necessary to force the animal. But if, on the contrary, he shows excessive interest in vegetation, then this is an occasion to consult with a veterinarian. Perhaps the animal has developed health problems that need attention.
Authors of the articles: Belant clinic team
in soil, without soil, where to get seeds
The diet of a domestic cat must be supplemented with useful products, among which greens stand apart. Owners often notice what a magnetic property for pets have indoor flowers and plants on the site. You can grow grass for cats from special seeds at home. It's fast, easy and inexpensive.
Why cats need grass
Wild cats eat greens regularly, but the diet of domestic cats is limited. We need to correct this situation, because the grass is really necessary for cats, and here's why:
- Animals lick their fur every day. As a result, a certain amount of villi enters the stomach. The herb is irritating and helps induce vomiting so that hair does not accumulate in the body.
- Also, the gag reflex helps a cat if she ate something wrong or overate. With the help of green shoots, the pet will quickly get rid of the remnants of undigested food.
- This is how wild cats supplement their diet. Greens contain useful B-group vitamins, in particular folic acid. It is necessary for the animal to grow.
- The fixing effect of the plant for the intestines is also noted.
Another reason is that animals just love the taste of greens. They can bite grass without swallowing it. Some pets do this. Houseplants often suffer from such habits. Scolding a cat, especially an adult, is useless in such cases. To turn your attention away from flowers, simply plant cat grass seeds and make them available.
What kind of grass is grown for cats
Not every herb will be useful for an animal, some species threaten with poisoning. Always be careful when choosing indoor plants. Flowers such as ficus Benjamin, anthurium, begonia, geranium are toxic.
You can not take grass from the street, even if the animal wants to taste it on a walk. Such greenery is too polluted, especially within the city, it may contain parasite larvae.
It is better to grow the herb clean by yourself. Garden stores sell special grass seeds for cats. They are cheap and easy to grow. It's a good idea to plant other plants as well, such as oats, barley, wheat, and rye. Green shoots of these cereals are very popular with pets.
Another option is to buy already sprouted grass at the pet store.
Grow in the ground
For cultivation you will need a pack of seeds, soil and a small container. As the soil, the usual composition for the germination of flowers, for example, orchids, is suitable. The soil is best light, not overloaded with fertilizers. Seeds grow well in any soil and even without it, because they do not need special nutrition for flowering and fruiting.
Which container should I use for grass? Here, too, there are no special requirements. Any deep plate, flower pot, seedling box, and even a new cat litter box will do. Shoots will grow beautifully through the net.
How to grow cat grass, all steps :
- Seeds are soaked for an hour in warm water before planting. This will speed up their germination.
- The container is filled with soil, but not to the very top.
- Prepared seeds are poured onto the ground.
- From above they are covered with a thin layer of earth.
- Seeds can also be grown in vermiculite. To do this, the substrate is soaked for an hour along with the planting material.
- Seeds planted in the ground moisturize, vermiculite is simply sprinkled with water.
- Now we need to create the greenhouse effect. The growing pot is covered with a transparent cling film. You can use a plastic bag.
- In order for the grass to hatch, it is moved to a warm place, for example, near the battery.
- After 2-3 days, the first grass sprouts will appear above the ground. The greenhouse is removed only for 4-5 days. Moisten the substrate in time.
- The pet is allowed to nibble on a treat a week after disembarkation. It is desirable that the cat eat greens directly from the garden. A plucked shoot quickly withers.
- It is necessary to sow the seeds once a week, then the animal will be constantly supplied with a vitamin supplement.
Tip! Watch the amount of greens your pet eats. If the cat cannot be torn off from the garden in any way, it is better to consult a veterinarian, as digestive problems are possible. If your pet won't eat the treat, don't force it.
Method without primer
Catgrass seeds germinate well even without soil. For this method, gauze or bandage is used.
How to grow grass on gauze:
- Take a plastic container and make drainage holes in the bottom.
- Seeds are soaked in warm water for 1-2 hours before germination.
