How to Get a Gorgeous Lawn Using Hydroseeding

By DoItYourself.com Staff

Are you worried about the amount of time it will take you to plant and grow a lawn? Do you wish you did not have to put up with the ugly-looking mulch mixture for weeks in your picture-perfect garden? Do you need to plant a lawn on a slopey area? If yes, the answer for you could lie in hydroseeding. It is becoming a popular option to planting lawns, both for garden owners and those in charge of landscaping, because it is easy to apply and effective.

Basically, hydroseeding is a procedure that consists of spraying a mixture on the land to be planted with a lawn from a tank using a hose. Water, seed, fertilizer, cellulose fiber or wood mulch, and other agents to treat the soil such as lime, are mixed together in the desired proportions. When sprayed on to the ground, the mulch in the mixture forms a moist protective coating for the seeds, allowing them to germinate.

Not only does it shelter them from sunlight, wind and soil erosion, but the mulch also helps create a bond with the soil, and supplies the seeds with crucial nutrition by adding a wide range of nutrients during its own decomposition. Best of all, the mulch is dyed green, so it is not an eye-sore while it is doing its work. Nor does it have to be manually taken away - it just blends down, giving way to the emerging lawn. And that is not all. The lawn grows a deep root system because of the protection it receives at its nascent stage, and a lovely even leaf-stock pattern, giving you that lush, dark, almost blue-green look that you want. Since the spraying is a machine job, it can cover vast areas in a little time, so whether you are a landscaper or homeowner, you can plant huge lawns in almost no time at all.

Spraying also means you can plant lawns on almost any kind of land surface, whether they are slopey or uneven - with hydroseeding you can easily carpet them under lawns. Hydroseeding is therefore great for erosion control and improving soil quality. The lawn growth is fast due to the boost received from the degrading mulch. You can see the first shoots in a week and mow your lawn for the first time in less than a month. Any areas where growth does not show up or is patchy can be re-sprayed, and gets repaired very easily. You can drastically reduce the introduction of weeds, too - the mulch mixture only contains uncontaminated grass seeds. Professional hydroseeding services are offered by various companies, and they usually provide all the required mixture and equipment.

But all these benefits do not mean that you can skip the part about testing your soil, grading the lawn area, and preparing it by rolling over in the same way as for a conventional sod planting. Also ensure that you get the spraying done exactly before the prime grass growing seasons, and do a thorough research on the kinds of seeds and fertilizers that will be available for your hydroseeding, because local companies tend to have limited seed varieties.

Once the spraying is over, you must take care to keep the mulch wet at all times for the first two weeks, to get a healthy growth. You need to sprinkle it lightly with water at least two to three times a day for the first two weeks and taper it down to 1-2 sprinklings a day for the next two weeks. Keep in mind your climate, the type of soil and the type of grass you are planting to determine the quantity of water and number of times you need to water the mulch. Your hydroseeding company should be able to advise you on your specific case. These steps will ensure you get the best results with your lawn.

But the best bit about hydroseeding is that it is so affordable. Since it does not involve too many process costs like growing, weeding, palletizing and shipping, hydroseeding is usually cheaper than other conventional methods. It is also one of the easiest ways to get a lawn that looks good, stays healthy, and does not cost an arm and a leg. Get hydroseeding done on the free space in your garden or backyard, and enjoy a beautiful lawn for years to come.

© 2006 DoItYourself.com