Seeding a well-prepared soil surface is just the start to a successful lawn -- you must water and mulch the germinating seeds for uniform seedling growth. To retain the soil's moisture, basic straw is often used as a main mulch choice, but it tends to contain weed seeds that compete with struggling grass for rapid establishment. A number of different mulch alternatives are available as long as they are spread correctly across the soil.
Sawdust is an inexpensive mulch choice for your grass seed. As you spread this fine mulch, verify that there are no clumps that lay on the seeds. A thin 1/4 inch layer is sufficient to protect the seeds from dryness. Laying sawdust any thicker causes a mat effect -- the dust particles combine to form a barrier to evaporation and drainage. However, sawdust does have the drawback of leaching nitrogen from the soil. If you consistently maintain your newly seeded area with fertilizer, nutrient issues should not affect the new grass seedlings. (See Reference 1, 2)
Commonly used as a soil amendment, peat moss can also serve as a mulch. This organic material must be hand-loosened from its typical, dense state. If you apply the peat moss to the grass seeds in a thick, fibrous layer, any water you apply to the ground is immediately soaked up by the mulch. By loosening the peat moss into an airy layout across the seeds, water easily moves in between the fibers to the soil below.
Another versatile soil amendment acting as a mulch is compost. Using a thin 1/4-inch layer across your seeds, compost prevents dryness and increases soil fertility as it mixes with the ground below the seeds. As a result, your seeds have a boost of natural nutrients compared to fertilizing alone. Before you apply compost, shake the granules through a fine screen. Clumped compost suffocates seeds if applied without screening. As air passes through the fine compost layer, seeds have moisture, sunlight, nutrients and oxygen for rapid germination.
Improper Mulching Techniques
Aside from hindering seed and seedling growth, thickly applied mulch encourages fungi growth, like mushrooms. As fungi grow, a thick mycelium forms that further suffocates your struggling grass seeds. In general, about half of your seeded area should be visible while the other half only shows mulch. If too much mulch or seed is visible at one time, your mulching technique needs to be altered for healthy turf establishment.
- Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images