How to Plant a Lawn

Plant a healthy lawn as the centerpiece of your landscape and reap more rewards than beauty alone. You'll enjoy cleaner air and cooler temperatures around the house.

Things You'll Need

• Fertilizer Analyzer
• Fertilizers
• Garden Hoses
• Level Head Rakes
• Organic Matter
• Rototillers
• Soil Test Kit
• stolons, sod or grass seeds

Instructions

1. Choose the right type of grass for your climate (see "eHow to Choose a Lawn Grass"). Decide whether you will start with grass seed, stolons or sod.

2. Plant cool-season grasses in early spring or fall. Plant warm-season grasses in late spring to early summer.

3. Test your soil - send a sample to your local cooperative extension service or a private lab, or test it yourself with a home kit. Find out what nutrients you have and lack, what the pH is, and whether or not you need lime or sulphur. (Or just check with neighbors or a nursery that knows local conditions.)

4. Improve the soil by spreading 2 to 3 inches of organic matter, such as compost or ground bark, over the planting area. Also spread a starter fertilizer, which is usually high in potassium and phosphorous, if called for after a soil test.

5. Till the soil to incorporate the organic matter to a depth of 6 to 8 inches. Make two or three passes in alternating directions.

6. In dry-summer areas, consider an irrigation system to simplify watering. Place enough sprinklers or hoses and pipes around to irrigate, or have an in-ground system installed.

7. Smooth the planting area with a leveling rake.

8. Sow seed, plant stolons or lay sod over the planting area.

9. Keep areas moist until grass is firmly established (six to eight weeks on average).

Tips & Warnings

• Much of the equipment needed to plant a lawn can be borrowed or rented from your local nursery or garden center.

• To make tilling easier, water the area thoroughly three or four days before planting.

• Keep kids and dogs off the grass until it's at least 1 1/2 inches tall and ready for mowing. Roping off the new lawn area may help keep off intruders.

• Avoid letting your newly planted lawn dry out, or it may die. You may need to water more than once a day for at least a week or two after planting.