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Yard Care in Phoenix and Glendale AZ

How to Plant Winter Grass in Phoenix

How to Plant Winter Grass in Phoenix

You will need to scalp, possibly thatch, seed, and set the water in the month of October to accomplish a beautiful winter lawn. Therefore, you will need a mower that can scalp the grass really low, possibly a thatcher or rake for any layer of thatch that may need to come up, lots of bags for excessive grass that will come out of the lawn from scalping, a line trimmer for edging, a spreader for the seed and of course you will need Perennial Rye Seed (as apposed to Annual Rye Seed).

When scalping, if you can get the mower low enough to scalp the lawn so that you can see the soil or dirt for the seed to access. We also recommend turning your water off at least a week before scalping to make this job much easier. After scalping you may need to use a thatcher or rake to the areas that are blocked by thatch (layers of dead grass that block the seed from accessing the soil). As long as you can see dirt, you are good to spread the Perennial Rye Seed.

We then recommend a lower setting on the spreader so that you are not applying too much all at once. It is better if you can also spread the seed one direction and then go over the same section perpendicular to the first direction to get optimum coverage. It is wise to measure the area you are overseeding so that you know how much seed you must apply to the area and that way you can go over the area as many times as needed to get the proper amount of seed down.

You will need one (1) pound of seed for every 100 square feet of area (or 10 lbs per 1000). You will also need extra seed for bare areas after most of the grass comes up in about 3-4 weeks. Using topsoil to cover the seed decreases germination time so that the grass can come in about a week sooner and also prevents some exposure to the birds since they like to eat the seed. Topsoil is not required but is an added perk if you have the time and money for this added application. Just make sure not to put down the layer to thick since that can inhibit the seed from germinating.

Watering is very important to ensure that the seed germinates since the seed must stay moist without too much pooling water for at least 3-4 weeks. Here is my video blog on the watering schedule:

https://azlawns.com/phoenix-winter-grass-watering-schedule/

If you have any other questions, please contact AMS Landscaping at www.azlawns.com.  Also, please subscribe to our YouTube page and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

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