Hydroseeder here, Although sod is great, cost benefits of hydroseeding are much better. Also a note after seeding and grass behind to grow, if u need to cut the grass make sure you cut it as tall as possible. Need to make sure the roots are well established before cutting shorter.
Glad I found your video. We’re in then northern Mpls metro and plan to hydroseed all the areas wiped out by the drought last summer and some really pesky moles. Moles will be managed this year. I just need to power rake the areas to he seeded first. Hopefully it’ll warm up a bit in May 😆.
Dealing with this same problem right now. We have 3 dogs. German Shepard, border collie, sheltie and just bought a house last summer. My dogs have completely destroyed about 4000sq ft of what was a gorgeous back yard we had.
it makes sense with hydroseeding because you can mix the different varieties you want. with sods lot of them a whether blue grass or fescue which are not doing well in shady areas. thanks for the advice
Just wanted to comment on something that was said. He mentioned he watered the sod heavy and it never took root. Well you answered your own question. Sod only needs to be damp, if you water too much the roots never have to go in the ground to search for water.
I put in sod in multiple new construction houses and watered them solid for two weeks straight and the sod took perfectly so I can’t say I agree with that. That being said we predominantly do hydro seeding
I have the same situation, I work my but off to get grass growing and it works. After the second year, if you don't overseed all the time it just disappears again. With the roots from the trees and the shade, you are pretty much out of luck!
Depending on your location, try red creeping rescue or a shad mix. The mixed are usually a variety of 5 shade mixes. Also get your seed from an actual supplier not lowes/home depot, those seed mixes have so much trash in them your not getting s quality seed.
Great Video. How much do you need to water then or do you have a sprinkler system? I have a very similar yard where it was basically woods but have been since cleared out. My concern is that we do the hydroseed and without a sprinkler system it will die.
Thanks for the video. I am having the same issue with my yard. It is mostly shade and I have two 100lb dogs running around and they are destroying the lawn. I've tried overseeing the current lawn but it doesn't last long. How long did you keep your dogs off the lawn once you hydro seeded it? I'm afraid to pay to hydroseed only to have the dogs ruin it once they are able to run freely.
Thanks for the comment. I used a temporary fence to keep my dog off the hydroseeded area for at least a month, but we have a side yard where the grass wasn't hydroseeded, so he still had some room to move to around. After about a month I would let him to on the hydroseeded area to do his business, but would then bring him back to the side yard if he started getting wild. Even a year later I have to pay attention to distract him from covering the same paths if he starts running, so once an area starts to look stressed I'll move the hammock in front of it, or put a lawn chair there or something to at least make him change his pattern. With two 100-pound dogs I don't know if you'll ever find a good solution in a shady area, unfortunately. It will be a challenge, but good luck.
@@BryaninMSP Thank you so much for the quick response. Unfortunately I think you are right, with two big girls we will never have a really nice thick yard. I think it may be time to think about a yard renovation.
You spent quite a lot my friend and I understand. I am in twin cities too and there is a maple tree on the front which I plan to take down. I am deliberating between hydro seeding vs sod since the corners of the front yard is still a bit shady. I would say 30 to 35% of the yard will still be a mix of sun and shade. I spent $2k this year and put dirt and pulverized soil but because of the shade no grass came up and I ended up with same situation I was in before. I am right now planning to grade even and thinking about the the yips of seeding to be done. By the way, were you happy with rainbow company? I didn’t know they did hydro seeding. Thank you for the video.
BryaninMSP Did rainbow decide on the type of mixture of seeds or did you recommend? How are they holding up? Do you also have a lawn care program or do the fertilizer your self each season?
@@worldpeace5853 They recommended the seed blend. It has held up OK. It is a little thin/patchy in places but I think that's mostly due to heavy traffic in those locations. I didn't sign up for any regular service from them; I handle my own lawn care and fertilizer.
BryaninMSP I think the trees not only shades but they drink a lot of water too. At the same time they say they help prevent flooding the basement. There are pros and cons.
Any idea why you had to frequently water your hydroseeded lawn but when MN-DOT hydroseeds highway embankments, it doesn't return to water but yet produces decent grass? We also have a heavily shaded yard due to being surrounded by woods. We've repeatedly aerated, raked, sodded large areas, over-seeded using various mixtures from big box or Bachman's, covered new seed with straw, added new clean topsoil, installed sprinkler system... We've done our own fertilizer/weed or hired it done. Finally just gave up. p.s. thanks for taking the time to share your experience ~Red Wing
Yes, so the reason is, when you go by at 70 mph, it looks good, secondly the grass is not for looks, but for performance. Erosion control, slowing a vehicle down and creating a manageable space for visual safety. Residential and commercial walk in areas, visual effect is the key. Thick luscious turf relaxes and makes an area inviting. to get the thick turf , it needs to be maintained heavier.
I have been in the green industry for 5 years. What do plants need to not only survive but thrive? Sunlight, well drained , nutrient rich soil, lack of competition from other plants, the correct saturation amount, and little to no compacted soils. Figure out what is out of balance, if you desire the trees , install tree circles , with a bed edger and mulched up to but not touching your woody plants, from the root crown to the dripedge of the trees.
It held up better than the sod did-that being said, it's still pretty wispy and bare in high-traffic areas, so we're overseeding this spring. In places where my 90-pound dog doesn't race around it took really nicely.
@@BryaninMSP have you done any soil samples? It's possible the leaves from the trees and the old forest have made the ground acidic and tou might need to alkaline it once in a while
Sure, the material does, but that does not include removal of the old turf, working and installing new soil. Fertilizer and the labor of installing it.
He was ripped off. Judging by the fact that he said Twin Cities, and his name has MSP, he is in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro. I live in the same area and just got a quote for 20,000sqft to be installed for $6,800. That would be $1,700 for his sized lawn. Not too dissimilar as your rates. Also, all of the sod fields are Kentucky BG with Fescues. There is no such thing as a shade grass sod farm here.
