Is it ok to sow grass seed now?

Sunnyday

I'm getting rather desperate to get some grass on the back garden after all the bad weather.

The garden is part sunny and part shaded in the summer months but after all the rain its like a big muddy mess and a lot of the grass has died - this is mostly down to two big heavy dogs running around the garden and i'm getting rather impatient to do something about it.

When we first moved in this house all the back garden was covered in slate so we removed it and took up the weed fabric, the ground was really compacted so i dug it all over and levelled it after adding some sand and compost and then seeded it and we did end up with a decent grassed area but it was rather short lived.

Now its very bumpy and it does hold quite a bit of water, i've no intention of doing all that work again (it almost killed me lol) but i would like to treat it in rotation one area at a time as i can make a barrier of the garden furniture to keep the hounds off parts of it at a time and hopefully by summer have a decent grassed area that i can continue to overseed and try to keep the grass alive over winter.

I did one area last year but as soon as the winter came all the lovely new grass just died I took quite a bit of time raking the area making drain holes with a fork and then adding compost and sand and then the seed with regular watering

I've been looking for a decent grass seed as last year i used just a basic box of cheap seed from wilko and it did seem to do well for a couple of months and then it couldn't cope with the dogs over winter and was gone at the first sign of bad weather and large paws. This time i've been looking at this

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Westland-Start-Multi-Purpose-120m2/dp/B0031RG7T2/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1389955047&sr=8-4&keywords=grass+seed

and it seems to grow at a reasonable rate and be hardwearing, does anyone have an opinion on it and whether it is too early to try and make my mud bath a nice grassy area in time for summer and more importantly for it to survive the winter months too?

I have read some oth the other threads on reseeding a lawn but they all seem to have been posted much later in the year so maybe i am a bit too early to be thinking about this?

Thanks for reading

SD

annie123

You're too soon and the threat of snow and frosts are still there for where you are till the end of winter.
Grass will grow when temps are above 5c, but starting from seed you need longer daylight hours too.
Wait until spring, when you won't have frosty nights, your may get some sun and hopefully the days will be warmer too! And, thinking on it, the birds won't be so hungry that they eat your new seed.

spacey2012

Take a fork and piece the soil to keep it aired, look for buds on trees as this is usually first sign of things having conditions to grow.

cyclonebri1

annie123 wrote: »

You're too soon and the threat of snow and frosts are still there for where you are till the end of winter.
Grass will grow when temps are above 5c, but starting from seed you need longer daylight hours too.
Wait until spring, when you won't have frosty nights, your may get some sun and hopefully the days will be warmer too! And, thinking on it, the birds won't be so hungry that they eat your new seed.

Sorry annie but I simply don't agree. The idea is that the seed is in the ground, waiting for the sun as you describe.

You can plant grass seed anytime of the year given conditions.

The conditions are that if you plant in summer, you have to keep the lawn wet. Plant in winter, nothing grows.

SSSo we are left with spring and autumn, best time to plant by far, but the only reason for that is garden/wet conditions, seed may get washed away, if it is dry enough to seed then seed.

lostinrates

I know farmers who argue the time to plant grass seed is just before long heavy snow, so the snow insulates it and protects it from birds, lol.


Personally, I wouldn't sow now. Its too wet for my tastes.. Where I am the seed would be washed a way and if it didn't then I'd fear, rightly or wrongly it would rot.

annie123

cyclonebri1 wrote: »

Sorry annie but I simply don't agree. The idea is that the seed is in the ground, waiting for the sun as you describe.

You can plant grass seed anytime of the year given conditions.

The conditions are that if you plant in summer, you have to keep the lawn wet. Plant in winter, nothing grows.

SSSo we are left with spring and autumn, best time to plant by far, but the only reason for that is garden/wet conditions, seed may get washed away, if it is dry enough to seed then seed.

I didn't say sow seed and wait for sun if you read it.


Most lawn grasses need four to six hours of direct sun to survive. Some shade-tolerant grass types grow as long as light hits that four-hour quota – and that light doesn’t have to be full sun. Four to six hours of dappled or filtered sunlight can fuel the growth of a healthy lawn.


quote taken from:
http://www.bayeradvanced.com/articles/lawn-care-how-to-grow-grass-in-the-shade

If you sow grass seed now in the wet it may rot and if it starts growing and then the OP has a hard frost and the roots haven't established it will die.

Spring is the best time to sow seed. The OP will gain nothing by sowing now and may risk losing the lot if there is a hard frost/snow etc which is quite possible where they live.

https://www.lawnuk.com/faq/when-you-should-sow-grass-seed
It is also worth noting, that there needs to be adequate warmth in the soil, 6-8 degrees Celsius is required for germination, and this is usually when the air temperature is above 10 degrees Celsius.

shegar

Ive always sown seed in between March and October, thats when it will definitely germinate, I wouldnt sow in winter.........And if you look on the grass seed box instructions that too will say March to October .....

safestored4

Rather than ask a bunch of well meaning amateurs who will give you conflicting and often erroneous information just type in 'When to sow grass seed' into your search engine for an authoritative answer. This will explain why it is not a good idea to waste money sowing seed at this time of year.

silverwhistle

I don't know about Glorious Yorkshire, but here in Sunny 'Ampshire we haven't had an amateur game of footie for weeks and weeks (and I suspect I'll have a few guilt free drinks this Saturday nigh as well!) tand my back garden (clay) is a potential Somme.

I'd tend to wait a bit. Although there were some butterflies in my neighbours tree yesterday, all the signs are is that we are having a false spring. Drier and warmer weather should be along soon but they'll be a few hard frosts in between.. [surely?!].

wallbash

On the local golf course, seeds are thrown on the tees all year round ( the greens were mowed this week).
This has been a VERY mild winter, grass is growing ( and germinating)
but will it last?
With the cost of grass seeds so low , what have you got to lose?

lostinrates

wallbash wrote: »

On the local golf course, seeds are thrown on the tees all year round ( the greens were mowed this week).
This has been a VERY mild winter, grass is growing ( and germinating)
but will it last?
With the cost of grass seeds so low , what have you got to lose?

There is no doubt grass is growing ( amazingly, our fields have done better this winter than conceivable when one thinks they haven't been rested in all this rain and we are on clay :eek:) and where I am its mild enough for germination.


But its also wetter that i've known it here ( only lived here a few years).

I think what I would do would depend on soil, drainage and location.


Op, what killed your grass in winter? Was it pressure of use and dogs?