There’s a right time for everything. And taking a stroll on your newly seeded grass may not be the best idea, regardless of how tempting it is.
You want to be able to grow evenly beautiful and thick grass. Walking on this too soon after it had just started growing from the seeds may be the reason why your lawn doesn’t turn out as beautiful as you want it to be.
To get the best results out of your newly planted grass, you need to consider how to handle and care for your grass. With these tips, you will get great results for growing grass seed.
How Long After Planting Grass Seeds Can You Walk on It?
It’s best not to walk on your newly planted grass until you have had the chance to mow your lawn at least 3-5 times. It can take roughly 3 months for your lawn to grow enough to mow several times and walk on it. Here are a few rules to follow:
- Grass seeds take about 8 weeks to reach 3-4 inches in height. This is a general rule of thumb. It will depend on the amount of water and sun the seeds receive. It also depends on soil conditions.
- Once your grass is ½ -1 inch higher than you want it to be, you can mow it for the first time. Be very careful, though, as the roots have not taken hold yet. Your grass is still very fragile.
- At this point, you’ll want to mow your grass 3-5 times. This amounts to roughly once per week. Do this before walking on it.
What you don’t want to happen is your weight affecting and stunting any of the grass roots from growing. The longer the grass blades grow, the stronger the roots become.
By giving your grass a good 3-5 mowing sessions, you are letting the roots grow as strong as possible. Keep both yourself, and anyone else, off of your newly seeded grass for as long as possible.
This method will help your grass grow as evenly and as thick as possible. Leaving your grass to grow for a long time will give it the chance to grow as strong as possible.
When to Mow Newly Seeded Grass
It is better to mow your lawn after 60 days of planting your seeds. Or, make it a point that your grass has grown more than 3.5 inches before you mow it.
Remember, it takes up to 30 days for your seeds to grow into grass. And even after 30 days, it still needs time for the roots to get stronger. Be patient with the growth of your grass. Don’t rush the process. The longer you wait, the better the end result looks.
Understand Proper Mowing Techniques
Did you know that mowing your lawn can help your grass grow? For as long as you are using the right mowing blades and techniques, you will be able to help along healthy growth of your grass.
Use Gentle Lawn Mower Movements
When you’re mowing your grass for the first time, you need to be careful with sudden turns and abrupt movements. Anything with a quick and heavy motion can damage the grass blades and roots. Take things as slowly as possible.
Cut the Grass Only When it’s Dry
Grass blades are more flexible when they are wet and moist. And they have a tendency to stick to the blade when they are coated with water. This can be the perfect recipe for a disaster. Your grass blades could find themselves being pulled by the blade and getting damaged.
Sharpen Your Blade
There is nothing more damaging to a newly seeded lawn than a blunt blade. It destroys both the grass blades and the roots. It can ruin the consistency of your grass’ growth.
Why Grass Height is Important
Monitoring the height of the grass blades is really important because of one factor; the roots. The longer your grass blades grow, the stronger your grass roots become.
The reason for this is that for as long as the grass grows, the roots are constantly adapting to support the weight and nutrition/water consumption of the grass.This results in the grass roots growing stronger and longer as the grass blades grows taller.
If you want strong roots for a healthier lawn, you have to give your grass space and time to grow up to 4 inches in height. The height of your grass blades doesn’t have to be monitored. But it is a good way of knowing how healthy (or unhealthy) your grass is.
Helpful Tips to Make Your Grass Grow Faster
Grass can grow faster if you’re doing everything you can to help it. If you’re planting for a specific deadline, or you simply want to help your newly seeded grass to grow faster, follow these helpful tips for instant results.
- Water your lawn when necessary
Every time your soil becomes a lighter color, or you can feel that it’s dryer, you need to start watering. Your grass needs constant moisture. It shouldn’t be soaked.
- Aerate your soil
Your soil and roots need space to grow and function. You should pierce holes in your soil, around 3 inches deep. This helps the roots of the grass absorb more water and nutrients.
- Use organic fertilizers
Natural organic fertilizers work best on grass. Spread this evenly on your lawn. Preferably, use a spreading tool. Water the blades so that any fertilizer on the grass blades with be washed into the soil.
- Re-use your grass clippings
Grass clippings are known to decay at a fast rate. This makes them perfect tools to help you speed up the grass growing process.
After cutting your grass, collect the grass clippings and spread them evenly around your lawn. Or, add them to your DIY compost bin.
- Avoid walking on it
For as long as you can, you should avoid walking on newly seeded grass. If you must walk on it, take light, slow, and soft steps to avoid damaging the grass blades and roots.
Follow these tips to help your grass grow at a faster rate. If possible, keep an eye on your grass’ growth on a daily basis. Monitoring your grass will help you understand what it needs to grow long and strong.
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Conclusion
You should give your newly seeded grass, enough time to grow stronger roots. This means avoiding walking on it for as long as possible.
Make it a point that you are following the proper mowing techniques to guarantee you do not damage the plant through mowing.
Try your very best to help your lawn grow faster. This will result to beautiful and evenly thick grass, all year long.
