[CPA Nerd]

I had my lawn in the Chicago area power seeded last fall, and unfortunately a lot of it did not take. The company came back out in April and re-did the backyard and side of the house and it looks really good now after six weeks of diligent watering and some rain thereafter. I've mowed it several times already.

My question is, how do I ensure that the grass survives the summer dormancy and comes back in the fall? I don't mind in general if my lawn goes dormant, but I am concerned about letting grass that just sprouted in April go dormant.

Will the new grass be able to survive summer dormancy? If not, do I just have to water regularly? If so, how often and how much? Will an inch a couple times a week suffice?

 

[Greenrebellion]

What kind of grass?

 

[CPA Nerd]

Northern lawn mix - mostly fescue.

 

[Suburban Jungle Life]

Early spring seeding, when the soil temps are in the 40's shows good promise for summer stress. Late seeding generally doesn't give the grass a strong root mass. I always had poor results from mid to late spring seeding. Granted, I didn't water. I imagine if you water, even if it is periodically, you might get a lot more of the grass through to the fall. Fall really is the best time. With fescue, I definitely would seed every fall.

 

[CPA Nerd]

Thank you. My lawn was about 50% bare a year ago, so there is a lot of new grass. I want to make sure most or all of it makes it to the fall.

 

[Delmarva Keith]

I never had much luck with Spring seeding except in shady areas but my guess is it gets a lot hotter and for longer stretches here than in Chicago. I'd keep a close eye on the water situation and make sure it never gets too dry. Not a whole lot that can be done about the heat but keep in mind it will need even more water as it tries to cool itself in the heat.

I doubt new baby grass would survive drought induced dormancy. Has no reserves to use to regrow when it comes out of it. Just an opinion - not anything I've tested.

 

[Sinclair]

I seeded some areas with KBG in April, and it's the healthiest and most vigorous grass in the lawn right now, as it didn't waste a bunch of resources throwing seed heads.

Keep it watered and don't cut too low and it'll be fine.

 

[Greenrebellion]

Yup, just keep it watered. It is best to keep new grass out of drought stress / dormancy for the first year if you can.

 

[CPA Nerd]

Thanks! I'm mowing at 3.75 inches and will keep it there through the summer.

How often and how much to water? Deep and infrequent, correct? Is an inch once a week sufficient? Or should I do slightly less but water twice a week?

 

[g-man]

We are averaging 0.19in of ET per day in Indy. You should be close. I would water 0.5 every 3 days. But keep your eyes open. If it looks dry, water it before it dies.

 

[CPA Nerd]

My water pressure is crap, but my sprinkler is averaging around 0.50 inch per 3 hour watering, which covers about 1,400 square feet. I plan on doing this twice a week throughout the summer and hoping for the best. I will adjust for rain as well. Important thing, I think, is simply not to let the baby grass go dormant.

I'm a new homeowner and never cared for a lawn in my life. I prefer to let the grass go dormant, but since I seeded in the spring, bad idea. Live and learn. Leave seeding for the fall, then by the next summer the grass is mature enough to live through dormancy. Just trying to avoid losing all my nice new spring grass and having to reseed it all again in the fall.

 

[g-man]

:thumbup:

 

[CPA Nerd]

Hey guys. OP here. It has been scorching hot here the last couple days. It rained 0.6 inches on Tuesday and I watered yesterday another 0.5 inch over about 2.5 hours in the heat of the day, unfortunately, as that was the only time I could.

My question is does yesterday's watering "count" or did I likely lose most to evaporation? Should I water again this morning?

 

[g-man]

Yes it counts. From an evaporation perspective, the time of watering (1pm) does not matter. The water gets absorbed into the soil and stays there.

Also, for a new lawn in the summer, error in the side of applying water more frequently. Keep your eyes open for that gray looking grass.

 

[CPA Nerd]

Thank you. I'm already seeing many of the new grass blades are brown. Did I kill it already?