Timestamps: 0:01 Overview of today's test of what is the best way to overseed lawn in spring 0:15 This is one of the best time to overseed grass in spring! 1:30 What are the 3 tests today about overseeding lawn in spring? (how to overseed lawn in fall) 2:25 First test layout - do you need fresh soil for overseeding yard? 3:40 Second test layout - how well does overseeding work at all? (this test should mimic a normal spring overseeding application) 4:23 Third test layout - does it matter how much seed you use during overseeding grass seed? 7:08 Why does overseeding fail? (common overseeding problems and overseeding tips 8:15 Most important overseeding tips and why most grass seeding fails! 10:00 Spoiler alert! Something I didn't plan on... 11:55 Another tip when overseeding if you add dirt or are leveling your lawn 13:56 Start of Test for overseeding lawn in spring or overseed grass in fall 15:55 Scotts spreader settings for overseeding new lawn 19:02 Don't forget this important step! (needed for overseeding in summer especially or even overseeding in fall) 19:58 Water schedule for grass seed for best overseeding results 21:30 2 week update of my overseeding test 23:18 3 week update of overseeding lawn in spring 24:40 1 month update of overseeding before and after 25:46 What did we learn during this overseeding experiment test? What is the best way to overseed lawn?
Just found u. I follow a lot of lawn RU-vidrs. What is up with the algorithm where I just found u now 😂. Love your experiments. What you should have done is add another test plot… add a layer of soil to compacted soil, to see how that turns out. Or maybe seed compacted soil, then cover with peat moss. The point of this test plot would be to see how compacted reacts to good soil/moss. Thanks again for making great videos.
Thanks for the kind words! I love Tests as well, definitely not a fan of the algorithms I hear ya there. Sorry for the delay, just getting started this spring myself...Chicago weather has been late this year. Ya i definitely want to more videos with overseeding because this process was surprissing to me especially since it's a pretty high cost to have done annually (between seed, water, time).
Thank you for the encouragement, yes they do take a while that's why I can't just pop out new videos much quicker than monthly. But I love these tests and learning together! More definitely coming...
Imagine the poor results if the uneducated homeowner just throws down seed and only spritzes the lawn every morning not understanding watering, etc. No wonder so many do so little. It is time consuming for sure. No free lunch. Good test!
Yep that's usually my best practice too, but top dressing should be done as well to get best possible results by these video results. That's a much larger project then unfortunately. :-/
Despite a thin layer of topsoil for leveling, I pretty much did test#2 and hoped for the best. Not impressed so far after 2 months I think I'll order extra topsoil next time and commit to test#1 You think test#1 conditions still work over compacted soil covered in weeds/pine needles? I'm thinking a 2 inch layer of fluffy topsoil/compost for this difficult & dry part of my lawn by pine trees, then lay on the grass seed. Thanks for your tests so far!
Great video! For a future test it would be interesting to compare the growth of seed with tilled existing soil vs cheap $1.50 topsoil vs premium topsoil vs compost vs peat moss etc
@@JealousLawnCare This is the first time I’m gonna be doing your test one. The past two fall season, I’ve been laying it down and got the same result in your test two , more so in the test three, LOL. My neighbors even told me I was doing it wrong I should be doing it the same way you did in the test one. I was always wondering where my seeds went LOL, I was feeding the birds instead of growing grass 💁🏼♀️
There's no debate if over seeding works or not. What are you talking about? Plus that's bare dirt. That's not overseeding. That's planting a new lawn. Cmon guy
Also would be super interesting to see tilled vs non tilled vs aerated vs aerated with holes filled (e.g. compost or topsoil). The pros say you should aerate before overseeing...
Yes i usually aerate before seeding as we'll out of routine, but I wanted to test how much aeration helps. Thats a tough one to test well to show the effects unfortunately. Haven't figured a way yet...
Love the experiments. Helps us understand how things actually work. Wonder if a starter fertilizer would make a difference. Or spreading the seed over the lawn. So many possibilities. Thank you!.
Yes there are many more varieties of tests possible, I'll get to all of them eventually. Lol. Starter fertilizer I always recommend when seeding though because my weed and feed test I did proved starter fertilizer actually helps quite a bit. 👍
Do the roots actually go deeper looking for water or will the plant automatically shoot roots down and can it handle less frequent watering because of it?
@@JealousLawnCare I have heard people say that a lot. But they also say I should feed my grass in autumn to green up faster in spring! I am doubting everything now
I did a test on fall fertilizer and it doesn't seem to green grass up in spring earlier than normal. That's why I do all these tests, to get the real truth.
As long as possible honestly, if it's a little section you seeded then I usually don't mow for a monthly (only weed whacking the area as needed). Just important to stay off the new seedlings when they are so small or you could kill them. Minimum of 2.5 weeks or a month is preferred.
I think with test#2 there is a slight "fault", if you will, with the test method. I think the recommended setting for overseeding isn't designed to look like a newly seeded lawn. What I mean is there isn't grass there to hold the seed in place. Like there would be with an overseed. The seed could have fallen thicker in the areas where there isn't thick existing grass currently. So essentially you just lightly seeded a new lawn under the recommended setting. Either way, I absolutely love the tests that you do. With so many lawncare RU-vid channels, you need something that is different. Your tests are original and one of a kind. Keep at it! 👍
Thanks yes i also love these tests, but they take soooo long to do. Lol. So you are saying my increased overseeding rate for test #2 isn't for bare ground or what? Not sure I'm following fully and want to make sure I understand your comment.
@@JealousLawnCare yes my understanding with overseeding is you're trying to fill in a thinner lawn. In your test, the soil was bare. So it made the test look like you were just seeding very lightly. #1 you seeded as I would have. #2 looked like you just lightly seeded. And #3 you seeded heavier. It was a good test for compacted soil. But didn't think it was for an overseed. Definitely informative either way.
@@JealousLawnCare I think if you use the same seed rate in an established but thin lawn, you'd have more seeds fall into the thin areas. Whereas when you use bare soil, there isn't grass already there. It's hard for me to describe. I guess if I were to do it, I would have tried to thin out that area instead of completely removing all grass for plot 2 and 3. If that makes sense
