How Long Can Hydroseed Go Without Water + [Some Care and Maintenance tips]

The Hydroseed should always stay moist. That is to ensure that there’s proper germination. Also, for a newly hydro seeded lawn, you should make sure it is continuously wet for a minimum of 11 days.

After 4-6 weeks, you can start scaling back the watering with care. About the green dye, it’ll take 5-10 days for it to fade away.

You should water your hydroseed three times a day for about 10-15 minutes in every watering cycle. The ideal times to water your hydroseed law are 4.00 AM, 11.00 AM, and 4.00 PM. And one more thing, don’t water after dark. One thing to note; keep your seeds constantly damp and moist, but be careful not to create water pools on your lawn.

Additionally

It may be necessary to adjust your watering based on the temperature or season. You should water your lawn slightly longer and more frequently during the hot summer and less often and in a shorter cycle in cooler fall months.

The hydroseed conation mulch helps in retaining moisture. If you realize that your seeds are not growing, they are probably dry. Thus, it would be best if you were watering your seeds daily to maintain the soil moisture. 

Watering frequency of 2-4 times in a day may be crucial in adverse windy and dry conditions. You can start watering less frequently once your seedlings are 2 inches and above tall.  

As much as the seeded areas don’t require much watering than broadcasting, you’ll still have to ensure that germinating seeds get adequate water to take root and grow. In the beginning, it would be best if you don’t let the seedlings get too dry. It would be best if you watered them twice per day when the weather is warm.

How Often Should You Water Your Hydroseed?

As much as the hydro seeded lawns need extra water, you wouldn’t want to cut short the sprinklers immediately. You’ll have to wait for the mulch to dry before you start watering thoroughly. Typically, it can take up to a day, so ass to allow the tackifier, found in the mulch, to set up.

Once the mulch dries up, that’s the time you have to start your watering routine. In the first and second weeks, you will need to keep your lawn constantly moist. As we said, the moisture will help in the germination of your yard. In case you experience run-off issues, it’s okay to minimize the time you take in watering.

Always be keen on observing the weather. If there’s a prediction of rain, you should avoid watering. Also, it would help if you considered when it comes to watering is the temperature. If it rises above 85 degrees and it’s a humid day, avoid watering. High-temperature damages lawn and may result in fungus.

When there’s a drop in temperature below 85, you can get back to watering. Before watering, allow the areas under shades to dry first.

You can begin watering less often after the first mow but increase the watering period. That will help your lawn establish stronger and deeper roots.

Best Time to Plant Hydroseed

Both the spring and fall a good time if you want to hydroseed your lawn. There’s an advantage of moderate temperature when you decide to hydroseed your yard in spring. The spring favors faster growth compared to the growth rate during cooler seasons. Better still, they won’t need as much water compared to the lawns that began in the dry summer season.

For the first six weeks, after hydroseeding, the ideal temperature ranges from 65 to 75 degrees. The temperatures that fall far outside the range can result in various issues. The Hydroseed timeline is dependent on the weather, but the laws hydro seeded will begin sprouting in 5-7 days. And for that, they’ll require extreme care than the regular lawns.

How Do You Prepare Your Lawn for Hydroseeding?

In most cases, hydroseeding fails as a result of poor preparation. The soil environment also plays a significant role in the whole preparation process. On construction sites, soil can be too compacted. When such happens, it makes it difficult for roots, air, and water to breakthrough.

The addition of loose topsoil may help a bit, but that’s just a band-aid. If the rooting of your lawn is just a couple of inches of the topsoil used, it’ll be more vulnerable to floods and droughts.

To that your lawn is stable and healthy, you should make some adjustments to your soil. To modify soil, you’ll need to incorporate decomposed organic matter. For instance, you can till the soil with peat moss or fertile compost. 

In case your soil is impenetrable or too rocky, you can apply the topsoil method. You’ll have to ensure that you add at least 4-inches of soil for deeper roots.

Steps to Be Followed in The Preparation

There are steps to be followed in the preparation of your site. They will help your grass grow deeper roots and keep your lawn healthy and beautiful throughout the wet winters and dry summers.

1. Remove every debris you’ll come across. These include twigs, rocks, and stumps.
2. Grade the area. It will ensure that you avoid drainage issues.
3. Till the area, you’ll have to till a minimum of two inches deep. Do this before adding any extra topsoil or soil amendments. 
4. Add topsoil; 4-6 inches.
5. Conduct a soil test. If there’s a need to, make the necessary adjustment to correct soil ph.
6. Finalize on grading.
7. Settle the topsoil surface. You can use water with a lawn roller to make the surface even by rolling the topsoil. Also, make sure that you don’t make the soil too compact. Finish up by going through the whole lawn area using a landscape rake. That is to make the top quarter-inch loosen up a bit.
8. Now, the site is ready. It’s time to hydroseed.

So, How Do You Maintain your Hydro seeded lawn?

We all know how essential maintenance of the things we value is. For the success of a newly hydro seeded lawn, you should consider the following;

·        Watering

Appropriate watering of hydro seeded lawns is vital for germination and proper growth of the yards. 

You should water your lawn frequently enough to moisture in the soil. It would be best if you considered weather, soil type, and temperature before watering since you should do so a couple of times per day, as discussed earlier.

Too little amounts of water slow down the formation of the grass. The seedling may die if the germinating seed dries out. 

However, too much water causes washouts and puddling. Once germinated, excess water makes grass seedlings develop weak roots due to low oxygen supply to the sources. This leads to a slow establishment that result in a sparse lawn.

The seed, under optimum conditions, germinates in 5-10 days. However, it may take up to 14-15 days to grow if subjected to adverse conditions.

·        Mowing

You should mow your new lawn once the grass blades are 2-3 inches high. It usually takes place about 4 to 6 weeks after seeding. About the height, you should mow to a height of 1.5 to 2 inches.  

Also, mowing promotes tillers’ formation, and increased tillers will make your lawn fill in quickly. However, you need to be careful if you are to mow a newly seeded lawn. Ensure your mower blades are sharp to achieve clean cuts and set your mower’s speed slow to minimize the chances of pulling seedlings.

·        Fertilizing

Your new lawn is already hydro seeded with starter fertilizer, but you should apply balanced fertilizers such as starter fertilizer or 16-16-16 after your first or send mowing. Smoothening to note, you should follow the recommended rates of the manufacture.

Moreover, apply the fertilizer only when the lawn is dry and water thoroughly. It will minimize the possibility of burning. Finally, once the yard has taken roots, observe a fertilizer maintenance program; fertilize 4-6 times a year.

·        Traffic

You have to ensure that people or pets keep off the lawn for around 2-3 months. Unless necessary, you should avoid stepping on the area after seeding.

·        Weed Control

The hydroseed doesn’t have weeds, but they are present in the soil. Therefore, they can grow on your lawn. Please do not use herbicides of any type to kill the weeds in the first three months because they can damage the tender grass seedlings.

Nevertheless, if you want to control weeds after the three months, it’s recommended that you use an herbicide spray instead of a Weed n’ Feed. It is because;

You can select a specific region in the lawn instead of applying the herbicide all over the yard.

Sprays cover better parts of the weeds compared to dry granular products.

Wrapping Up

If you have a lawn for hydroseeding, then you must be glad to get the above information.

You now know that you have comprehensive information on hydroseed, the preparations to be made, and the best part, maintenance.