There’s only one thing more unsightly than a big, boring patch of hard dirt – and that’s a big, boring patch of hard dirt with helter-skelter patches of grass strewn about. Learning how to plant grass seed on hard dirt is completely doable. You just need to know how to do it properly. While it might seem like a challenge at first, your nice-looking yard will be well worth your hard work.
This article explains the art of how to plant grass seed in hard dirt.
Guide on How to Plant Grass Seed on Hard Dirt
You may not be surprised to learn that the basic step for anyone wanting to plant grass seed on hard dirt is to make the dirt more workable. In other words, you’re not just going to force the grass seed into the tough dirt. You need to make it easier to work with first.
The reason that you do this is to make sure that you can get air into the soil before you seed your lawn. While this might not be the simple and immediate solution that you were hoping for, it works and ensures a healthy lawn.
Prepping Hard Dirt for Planting Grass Seed
Here are some basic tips on prepping your soil for planting grass seed.
- Test your soil. This step isn’t necessary but can certainly be helpful. A soil test can help you figure out what sort of nutrients are in your soil, and therefore what plants will grow best.
- Add air to the soil. Hard dirt is a sign that there is no air in the soil, and air is one of the most important parts of soil. No air makes it dense and hard to plant in. You can use an aerator or a rototiller to mix up the soil and introduce some air to the region. Make sure you remove any rocks and debris before you do this.
- Flatten the surface and make sure that you’re not dealing with any unsuspected inclines. If you feel it’s necessary, even out the grade of your yard. This will help to minimize flooding or other risks.
- Improve soil quality. Now you get to improve the actual quality of the soil by introducing healthy, organic matter like compost into it. Again, this isn’t necessary, but certainly provides a better environment for your grass.
- Start seeding & feeding! Now, you can actually add the grass seeds to your lawn and add fertilizer. The order is a matter of personal preference, unless your seeds or fertilizers have specific guidelines.
- Add another layer of soil. This will prevent the seeds from drying out or from being blown/washed away.
- Water! Don’t use too much or too little water – just enough to moisten your seeds.
Conclusion
Once you know how to plant grass seed on hard dirt, then you just need a bit of time and dedication. Is it a lot of work? Yes. But the end result is that you can turn an old, brittle patch of dirt into a beautiful, flourishing lawn.