Don’t Wait for Fall—Why You Should Overseed in Late Summer (And How to Do It Right)

Late summer is often ideal for overseeding, but fall or spring may suit your lawn better depending on conditions. Prep by selecting the right seed and checking your spreader to ensure even distribution. For best coverage, use a checkerboard pattern when spreading seed across the lawn. One of the secrets to successful lawn care is getting the timing right for your lawn chores. From mowing at the right time to raking leaves at the right time, the when is as important as the how. It's no different with overseeding. There is a right time to overseed the lawn. Getting it right will give the seed enough time to germinate and the young grass seedlings enough time to become established before harsh weather conditions challenge their viability. In this article, you will learn why you should overseed a lawn of cool-season grasses in late summer and how to get the job done right, in addition to learning other maintenance tips for maintaining your lawn through summer and transitioning to the fall season. Why Overseed in Late Summer Instead of Fall? The best time to overseed the lawn is in late summer (provided you're not having a heat wave) because the weather generally isn't as hot as in mid-summer, plus the new grass will have plenty of time to grow before it gets cold. Getting the timing right for overseeding in the second half of the year requires a balancing act: On the one hand, you must wait to avoid overseeding in extreme heat. On the other hand, if you wait too long, the grass may not have time to become established before the cold weather comes. Even if you can overseed during a mild stretch of weather in late summer, you must keep the lawn properly watered for the grass seedlings to make it. How to Overseed Your Lawn the Right Way You can avoid certain lawn problems simply by having a thick, lush lawn. For example, weeds will exploit bare patches in the lawn that pop up during a hot, dry summer. If allowed to reseed, you may end up battling those weeds for years to come. But weeds have more trouble getting established in a lawn that is thick and lush. If a bare patch does develop, sow it with grass seed before weeds can exploit it. Better yet, overseed your lawn every year so that areas of thinning grass don't evolve into bare spots. Assuming your lawn is healthy, overseeding is easy. Here's how to do it: Select the right kind of grass seed. The most common types of cool-season grasses recommended for Manitoba are Kentucky bluegrass, perennial ryegrass, fine fescue, and tall fescue. Mow the lawn shorter (1.5 to 2 inches tall) than you usually do. Halve Your Setting Take a look at the recommended seeding rate on the back of your seed bag and cut this in half when you apply a setting to your spreader—you'll save more seeds this way when spreading in the checkerboard pattern. Using a spreader, spread the seed across the lawn in a checkerboard pattern. This means first pushing the spreader north to south, turning around, and pushing it south to north, and so on, until you've covered the whole lawn; then dropping seed east to west and west to east, once again covering the whole lawn. This pattern provides better coverage. If you have overseeded any bare spots, it will be easy for birds to see the seed. To prevent them from eating it, lay down a thin layer of straw or burlap. Keep the soil evenly moist until the grass seedlings are established. Avoid walking on the lawn, if you can, until the seedlings become established. Five weeks after germination, apply a quick-release nitrogen fertilizer. Contact us if you need help with taking care of Your yard. We are happy to help.