Hello, I purchased your 25lb bag of Tall Fescue/Bluegrass mix and I’m thinking of pregerminating as your video details. I also have a 45lb bag of Elite Tall Fescue that I’ll be using as well. Hope you and your family is doing well. SKOL Vikings fan from Maryland. Thank you
I’m a landscaper. I like to pregerminate seed before sowing because clients are always amazed at how fast and full my reseeding works. I’ve had a few people comment on how they can’t get grass to grow like me. Makes you look good. I’m not even a grass guy, more horticulture, but it’s a crowd pleaser for sure
@@vincolem It works but, if you get reliable rain, you will be OK with standard seeding, using a very mild fertilizer. Of course, if you get too much rain, seed can wash away, especially if the seed isn't covered with soil. This is especially true of there are lumps in the yard. That's the advantage. This basically has the seeds rooting in 2-3 days instead of 3 or 4X as long. (My seed says 7 to 14 days to sprout, cut down to 2 to 4 days with pre-sprout.) Just be sure to water lightly at least 2 times daily if rain doesn't appear.
I did a pre-germination a different way this past summer and it worked pretty well. I used some homemade compost and mixed grass seed throughout in a bucket. I kept the compost in the bucket wet until I started to see some germination. At that point I spread the compost/seed mix on some areas that I needed to be patched. It came in really nice that way.
@@LAWNLIFE Yeah, my Sun and Shade batch worked better than the shady mix. Maybe it was just a better batch of seed. It's also my understanding that the fescue in the shady mix grows out over 6 months so maybe it's still doing something. I also did an over seed on the yard almost three weeks ago so I'm hoping for some good results. I've got sprinkler timers going keeping the seed wet.
@@Allen-L-Canada Correct, it’s primarily just for patching. It worked well on the sides of my house where it’s hard to get sprinklers and timers over there. It grew in fast though, I had no grass there and now it’s nice and filled out.
I started my overseed project this year at the beginning of fall. I base all my knowledge on videos from you, princess cut, and that nerd Ryan Knorr. Your videos are what i go back to more than the others.
I’ve used this technique on many plants, besides grass. The point about higher germination rates is the key as makes it look like faster germination rates because the rate is so high. Also I just rinse until really wet the seeds everyday rinsing them rather than soak. That may be me rinsing the toxic waste product off. But this is a great video and works with nearly any seed.
Works well and worth it imo, did all the time on the golf course. Works really well with rye. Blue as you say will take longer for blue and changing the water is crucial, also works better with non treated water.
This makes great sense. I have put down seed in the past. If you can put it down in early spring, when rains are still common, and water each time it hasn't rained for 10 hours, you can get a great return w/o germinating. The thing is, this is nasty weather to work in. Plus I usually need to put down 2X as much seed. I assume this is wash away and something eating seed??? Part of pregerminating is the fertilizer added with the seed. Normal seeding says to put down a harsh fertilizer, the day of. That's somewhat OK if you wait a week or two of watering before applying seed. Putting down Milorganite (or similar) at the time of seeding can keep from burning sprouts from harsh nitrogen. When pre-sprouting, it's not necessary to tie off the bag. Stretch a paint strainer, put 3 or 4 lbs into each bucket, and apply water to cover. Every 8 to 12 hours pull the bag out and rinse the bag and bucket, refill and put it back into a dark and warm enclosure. (I used my garage and/or a carboard box outside at approx 70 degrees.) Some will float to the top but most will submerge. The floaters are still in water and maybe dead seed. I've had better luck with soaking for 2 or 3 days (depending on seed type) then just thoroughly wetting the seed every 8 to 12 hours afterwards. Some say to continue to put it into a bucket of water, others say that'll drown your seed. So long as the seed doesn't completly dry, I don't think it really matters. In theory, the bucket is mostly there to take away the poisons grass seeds produce. That's a self defense... to make sure the new starts kill off surrounding plants. Once the last debris (usually black, sometimes white) stuff doesn't show in the water, the self defense is gone and the seed will sprount and no longer needs to be immersed. I think this is one reason it is thicker... no competition from one seed to the next.
Hi, just wondering when to apply preemergent if pregerminating? Or is it not a good idea to use preemergent with this process since it will affect the baby grass?
@@samuellayson1746 Premergent most likey a very bad idea as tingy seedlings are often affected as well as germinating seed, but read the label on the product
Putting the regular seed on the ground the same day you start your pre-germination process would be a better experiment to see if pre-germination has any benefit
@brainz-brainz Very true. Part of the success is from mixing Milorganite into the sprouted mix, a very mild fertilizer that doesn't burn out seed. There's also no control over rain or over-watering, which will wash seed around. Many of us (don't know why) find seed never sprouts... maybe eaten? It simply disapears. The best result, of course, is not limiting seeding to perfect weather. Fast sprouting seed (not this process) takes 7 to 14 days, others longer. Here he's using 15 gallons of water to pre-sprout, how many gallons to water a "normal" seeding? For clients, showing "instant" results is all the difference between coming back to fix a problem (they didn't water enough) to having a thriving lawn. That's one reason many companies use sod instead of the cheaper sowed grass.
I haven't seen the video you mention; best I've seen is putting down seed at the same time as the pre-sprouted seed. Basically, in 2 weeks you have established grass vs seed that's just sprouting... plus it usually comes in thicker. ua-cam.com/video/WRKT0ZIwHhI/v-deo.html
The benefit (regardless of time) is that you can control the germination. It is much easier to keep seed wet in a bucket than it is to irrigate your whole lawn.
Great video! I'm definitely going to check out more of your stuff. Two things.. The big news here is that it's less time you have to baby a patch of dirt. You touched on it with the storm washing seed out which is absolutely true, but also if you have kids or pets, the less time you have to keep them off the grass the better!! Also the real time test would be putting the normal seed on the ground the same day you START soaking seed. That's really the time savings you're worried about when it comes to establishing turf before winter, or some other time frame!
If I was to do a mix, I would pre-germinate according to the fastest germinating grass you have in the mix. Sure the bluegrass, may not establish very fast but the other grass will and give you a base to start with.
@@LAWNLIFE ++1 to this. That's exactly what I did for my mix of tall fescue and KBG following LawnLife's steps. I pre-germinated for four days and then covered a few small bare spots with a combination of the seed and Milorganite. Just checked and after just four (4) days, I've got seedlings that are 1-2" tall! It's probably the fescue, but I'm sure the KBG will come in much more quickly as well.
This was a widely used practice in the Georgian era for grains. It's called "chitting" in the old farming books. One method used in England was to put the seed grain into cloth sacks in a small stream where the water flowed over the bags. They hand sowed their fields. You can also use "sheeting" ... just spread a frost blanket over the area after sowing the seeds, It retains moisture, doesn't get too hot, and you can remove it tio water. WARNING: Once you have started the process you can't stop it - don't let the seeds dry out. And the white seed sprouts are fragile.
NICE! keep the tips coming. I've been doing your Nitrogen blitz for past 6weeks and its definitely helping. I'm doing a mixture of SLS 6-0-0 or 16-4-8 along with DEF at 1.25gal each into a 40gal sprayer for my 2 acres of turf every 7 to 10days. We're still pretty dry but the grass is nice and dark and trying its best to fill in even with limited rainfall here in Central Wisc.
@RandyKJohnson1031 I can help with this I've dialed it down to .0475 oz def/sq ft. =.5 lb nitrogen Also .019 oz def/sq ft. =.2 lb nitrogen Edit: water amount doesn't matter as long as your getting that amount on your whole lawn, you can water it in via sprinklers afterwards
I am seeding Bermuda in May, I am going to do a test. Start pre germinating seed say May 15 and Im going to throw down some seed on May 15 as well, I want to see what happens, both will be getting wet at same time. Seeing how much TIME is saved or wasted pre germinating. You are right about pre germ seed being much faster if seeded on same day. The regular seed will have a five day head start.
I was the athletic field foreman for 8 years at a University. We use a bit different method and 50lbs of seed at a time, but it's a great method to keep turf growing week to week with back to back events and games.
Florida resident here.....I will be seeding our previous St. Augustine lawn with Argentine Bahia seed in the next week or so. So glad that I saw your video BEFORE i simply spread my $40 bag of bahia seed. Makes a lot of sense to pre soak AND add the seed to the milorganite. I'll will follow up with a another video and let you know how it turned out. Thanks again !!!
Great video! Bloomington Minnesota resident here, I pregerminated my grass seed exactly as you did two weeks ago (Milorganite has instructions on their website). My results are fantastic and I too will continue to use this method, saves, time, seed, and water! I enjoy your informational videos, thank you!
Mine perenial rye, fine fescue mix has been soaking for 3 days now, and no sprouts. Started with warm water too. Been changing water every 12 hrs and started rinsing the seed while changing water on day 2 and have been rinsing since. What the heck is wrong? Well water too. No chlorine.
@@riflebear1711I soaked for 5 days. Only a few showed spouting in the water. The soaking helped my seed germinate 2 to 3 times faster once spread on the ground and lightly covered with good black dirt. After spreading, I was seeing sprouts in less than 7 days.
Thank you for this. We had to have a sewer line fix after we already did aeration and seeding in the early fall. This past November we have a big no grass lawn in the front. I want to do this because in spring we have so much rain, birds, chipmunks n squirrels that they would eat the seed.
Just wanted to add a recommendation to this - separate your Seek per K before pre germination. The most difficult and sloppy aspect of pre germing is trying to spread it (you’ll mix it with Milo - 4 times the Milo to the seed) The last thing you want to do is take out your pre germinated seed and drain it - then have to figure out how to separate it per k.. separate it before so you don’t have to do it after! Awesome vid btw - I got 365ss and Quantum Leap KBG to germinate by the morning of day 5
I did this with Pennington sun and Shade, works amazingly. Now I want to get rid of my burmuda lawn. Is it possible to kill off the burmuda and reseed with the Pennington?
I love the community lawns segment! Great way to give back to your viewers. The biggest benefit of pregermination is the establishment, not so much the speed. In reality, it isn't much faster considering the germination phase takes a few days before you put it in the ground. However, getting in the ground and rooted really makes the difference.
Yes you are technically correct. But it does speed up the establishment by getting things started earlier. I appreciate you watching and the feedback man!
Great video! Any recommendations on what Bermuda grass seed to use for this process? I looked at hardware store but there are so many different ones and mostly with different additives (fertilizer for example). Thanks!
Your hose reel solution is so simple I'm hating the fact I never thought of it, been wanting something for a while but didn't want to mess with the siding
I like to use regular Scott’s Crabgrass preventer each year, so I don’t seed in the Spring. I wonder if this trick would would let me fill some bare spots. I don’t see why not as the crabgrass preventer is supposed to prevent germination.
Great vids as always Jesse. My background turf grad from umass in golf course management and entomology plant/soil science. Been building and managing golf courses for 22 years. Love your channel. All info is on point. Fireball and hatrick I know ppl love from ntep trials. Tshirts hats?! Keep crushing it dude. Shoutout to u and ur family.
You mentioned that the carrier you mix with your wet seed can be Milo or Huma or others, any other carriers you might suggest for someone overseeding their lawn? 4:09
My side yard is coming along nicely at week 5 or so with RK's KBG/PRG (emergence was at day 4!); it's mowable now and becoming durable - the space is sort of a damp, washout/runoff strip from the neighboring hill behind my backyard, and I'm done wasting seed on it at this point. I think the dampness in this area gave the seed a pre-germination behavior back in August. I'm going to be fall-blitzing it for the next 6 weeks rather than throwing more seed on it and hoping it will grow without all the proper prep-steps. Our NJ grass-growing season slams shut on us right after Oct 31, but this lawn does spread pretty aggressively (it did on my main front lawn) if it's mowed 2-3 times a week. Your tips have definitely helped out this past season!
I am assuming you are in Minnesota by your Welcome sign. I am in Wisconsin. I am wondering if mid October is too late to try and get a lawn going? I have a small area about 3 feet by 15 feet that has been highly neglected. Compacted soil and shaded. I have losened up the soil but I am wondering if I missed my opportunity to plant. Can I still do it now or should I wait until spring?
Do you mix grass types or is your yard all one type of grass? My yard is all Kentucky blue grass but I have been thinking of putting down rye grass when I over seed this fall.
Perennial ryegrass germinates in 3 days. Bluegrass 14 + as with Bermuda. However soil temps are critical. We do this often in the Turf Industry. Golf Course.
Does pre-germinating work with warm season grasses too? I've only ever seen people do this with cold weather grass seed. I'm about to seed my front yard with Zenith Zoysia. Is 70 degrees warm enough soil temp and should I use the pre-germination method?
How many pounds of grass seed of the ryegrass would you recommend for 1 acre? And how many bags of the fertilizer that you used and does this ryegrass last year round? I’m in Louisiana
Few other law videos on pre germination they soak for 24hrs then after that the submerge seeds enough to get wet then let water drain doing this every 12hrs. Just curious if one method is better than other. Fully submerged changing water every 12 hrs vs fully sumbmerged 24 hrs then change water every 12hrs while fully submerged all time
Good video, as a cannabis grower here in SW Michigan and also a grower of microgreens, lentil sprouts and bean sprouts for my friend's biz, all of these crops require pre-soaking of seeds, for a greater and more consistent germination, so why would grass be any different? 💚 🙏 🌱
Will this work after my lawn has pre-emergent applied? ( 2weeks) . If the Seeds start to germinate before adding to the lawn , will the pre-emergent not affect them? I didn’t plan well and was hoping not having to wait 2-3 months before reseeding trouble area.
I’d like to see the comparison where you plant the ungerminated seed the same time you start to pre germinate the other seed. If the end goal is for it to be faster, you’d have to compare it to that.
Exactly, this experiment is a fail if you’re not starting them at the same time. That’s 6 days head-start for the pre germinated Kentucky blue, so of course it will germinate quicker.
It’s not magic. All this does is keep the seed protected for the first few days before the seed begins to germinate and lay roots. This is when the seed is most susceptible to washouts or drying out. He literally says this in the video.
Do you think this will work with bermuda seed? I live less than a half mile from the greatest overseeding job of them all: Augusta National. I have a golf practice area in the back that my son and I use that is overseeded heavily with perennial rye, then starting May 1st every year I start filling in the divots with bermuda seed. It would be really great to get the bermuda to fill in faster once the warm season grass time of the year comes.
Since no one answered. These type of methods pretty much work for all seeds known to humanity. It's like how you take seeds, put em in a damp paper towel, wait couple days or so and the tap root will arrive and then plant etc. You can always take a handful of grass seed, test it yourself before applying the entire bag to your lawn. You'll see, it will work. ✌️
@@The_Berzerker_ Thank you, I appreciate your answer. I realize now how dumb my question must have seemed, but I was unsure because warm and cool season grasses have different water and temperature requirements. Some seeds rot if there's too much water, and I didn't know if Bermuda seeds would. Thanks again!
I am legit in the middle of this rn and ran into a snag... got the seed on water and at the end of day 1 my wife reminds me we're gone on day 5 (happens to be today). So I knew i couldn't water the seed for like 24 hours or more, and its going to be hot and sunny... no bueno. Needless to say I don't have a good irrigation system I can program. Luckily I think i found a workaround... the last few days I've had it in a fridge! It's only about 5 lbs of KBG so it fits in a small bucket, have it sitting on a brick draining into a larger bucket. Actually really successful, so far🤞 . My guess is this is how golf course, sports field superintendents might do it. Open your window to throw it down to 10-15 days (maybe?) as opposed to 4 or 5.
should've mentioned I did this last year and had one particular batch that I waited too long on and it was a disaster. You gotta get it out when its ready, don't slack a day or two thinking you'll be ok. But that's really the only caveat to this method, otherwise I love it.
To purchase the seed I used in this video at the cheapest price on the internet, visit: thelawnlife.com
Hello, I purchased your 25lb bag of Tall Fescue/Bluegrass mix and I’m thinking of pregerminating as your video details. I also have a 45lb bag of Elite Tall Fescue that I’ll be using as well. Hope you and your family is doing well. SKOL Vikings fan from Maryland. Thank you
I’m a landscaper. I like to pregerminate seed before sowing because clients are always amazed at how fast and full my reseeding works. I’ve had a few people comment on how they can’t get grass to grow like me. Makes you look good. I’m not even a grass guy, more horticulture, but it’s a crowd pleaser for sure
Does this method work in the spring?
@@vincolemevidently this wanker is too good to answer people 🤷♂️
@@vincolem It works but, if you get reliable rain, you will be OK with standard seeding, using a very mild fertilizer. Of course, if you get too much rain, seed can wash away, especially if the seed isn't covered with soil. This is especially true of there are lumps in the yard. That's the advantage. This basically has the seeds rooting in 2-3 days instead of 3 or 4X as long. (My seed says 7 to 14 days to sprout, cut down to 2 to 4 days with pre-sprout.) Just be sure to water lightly at least 2 times daily if rain doesn't appear.
You ate very correct
Do you prep the seed the same way as the video does or do you have some variations? Thanks
I did a pre-germination a different way this past summer and it worked pretty well. I used some homemade compost and mixed grass seed throughout in a bucket. I kept the compost in the bucket wet until I started to see some germination. At that point I spread the compost/seed mix on some areas that I needed to be patched. It came in really nice that way.
I've seen people do this also. Definitely a good alternative for patching spots. Would work great in the spring time!
@@LAWNLIFE Yeah, my Sun and Shade batch worked better than the shady mix. Maybe it was just a better batch of seed. It's also my understanding that the fescue in the shady mix grows out over 6 months so maybe it's still doing something. I also did an over seed on the yard almost three weeks ago so I'm hoping for some good results. I've got sprinkler timers going keeping the seed wet.
For whatever reason, compost produces the best germination. Maybe it has to do with offgassing?
nice to know. it wouldn't work for whole lawn overseeding, I presume, since the compost are wet.
@@Allen-L-Canada Correct, it’s primarily just for patching. It worked well on the sides of my house where it’s hard to get sprinklers and timers over there. It grew in fast though, I had no grass there and now it’s nice and filled out.
This is likely to be the Greatest Grass seed advice EVER ! Already Eligible for the Hall of Fame !! Done !!! Send It !
I started my overseed project this year at the beginning of fall. I base all my knowledge on videos from you, princess cut, and that nerd Ryan Knorr. Your videos are what i go back to more than the others.
How did the pre-germination process work for you?
Did this last year with a BG/TF mix, best results I've ever had in 5yrs of actually taking care of the lawn
Yeah I was actually blown away by the results. I didn't think there would be that much of a difference!
I’ve used this technique on many plants, besides grass. The point about higher germination rates is the key as makes it look like faster germination rates because the rate is so high. Also I just rinse until really wet the seeds everyday rinsing them rather than soak. That may be me rinsing the toxic waste product off. But this is a great video and works with nearly any seed.
Lawn of the day is epic I love that!!!
Works well and worth it imo, did all the time on the golf course. Works really well with rye. Blue as you say will take longer for blue and changing the water is crucial, also works better with non treated water.
This makes great sense. I have put down seed in the past. If you can put it down in early spring, when rains are still common, and water each time it hasn't rained for 10 hours, you can get a great return w/o germinating. The thing is, this is nasty weather to work in. Plus I usually need to put down 2X as much seed. I assume this is wash away and something eating seed??? Part of pregerminating is the fertilizer added with the seed. Normal seeding says to put down a harsh fertilizer, the day of. That's somewhat OK if you wait a week or two of watering before applying seed. Putting down Milorganite (or similar) at the time of seeding can keep from burning sprouts from harsh nitrogen. When pre-sprouting, it's not necessary to tie off the bag. Stretch a paint strainer, put 3 or 4 lbs into each bucket, and apply water to cover. Every 8 to 12 hours pull the bag out and rinse the bag and bucket, refill and put it back into a dark and warm enclosure. (I used my garage and/or a carboard box outside at approx 70 degrees.) Some will float to the top but most will submerge. The floaters are still in water and maybe dead seed. I've had better luck with soaking for 2 or 3 days (depending on seed type) then just thoroughly wetting the seed every 8 to 12 hours afterwards. Some say to continue to put it into a bucket of water, others say that'll drown your seed. So long as the seed doesn't completly dry, I don't think it really matters. In theory, the bucket is mostly there to take away the poisons grass seeds produce. That's a self defense... to make sure the new starts kill off surrounding plants. Once the last debris (usually black, sometimes white) stuff doesn't show in the water, the self defense is gone and the seed will sprount and no longer needs to be immersed. I think this is one reason it is thicker... no competition from one seed to the next.
i always do pre-germinating KBG & PRG ever since i learned about it:)!! my pregerminated Bluegrass usually start popping on day 7 too.
good video !
Good to know it's working well for others! Thanks for watching!
Hi, just wondering when to apply preemergent if pregerminating? Or is it not a good idea to use preemergent with this process since it will affect the baby grass?
@@samuellayson1746 If you are using tenacity as pre-emergent, you should apply 1 or 2 days prior to seeding (pregerminated seed).
@@samuellayson1746 Premergent most likey a very bad idea as tingy seedlings are often affected as well as germinating seed, but read the label on the product
Good video. One benefit of pre-germination is that seed loss to birds will be significantly less.
Putting the regular seed on the ground the same day you start your pre-germination process would be a better experiment to see if pre-germination has any benefit
@brainz-brainz Very true. Part of the success is from mixing Milorganite into the sprouted mix, a very mild fertilizer that doesn't burn out seed. There's also no control over rain or over-watering, which will wash seed around. Many of us (don't know why) find seed never sprouts... maybe eaten? It simply disapears. The best result, of course, is not limiting seeding to perfect weather. Fast sprouting seed (not this process) takes 7 to 14 days, others longer. Here he's using 15 gallons of water to pre-sprout, how many gallons to water a "normal" seeding? For clients, showing "instant" results is all the difference between coming back to fix a problem (they didn't water enough) to having a thriving lawn. That's one reason many companies use sod instead of the cheaper sowed grass.
Thanks for posting the link
I haven't seen the video you mention; best I've seen is putting down seed at the same time as the pre-sprouted seed. Basically, in 2 weeks you have established grass vs seed that's just sprouting... plus it usually comes in thicker. ua-cam.com/video/WRKT0ZIwHhI/v-deo.html
The benefit (regardless of time) is that you can control the germination. It is much easier to keep seed wet in a bucket than it is to irrigate your whole lawn.
Great video! I'm definitely going to check out more of your stuff. Two things..
The big news here is that it's less time you have to baby a patch of dirt. You touched on it with the storm washing seed out which is absolutely true, but also if you have kids or pets, the less time you have to keep them off the grass the better!!
Also the real time test would be putting the normal seed on the ground the same day you START soaking seed. That's really the time savings you're worried about when it comes to establishing turf before winter, or some other time frame!
If I was to do a mix, I would pre-germinate according to the fastest germinating grass you have in the mix. Sure the bluegrass, may not establish very fast but the other grass will and give you a base to start with.
@@LAWNLIFE ++1 to this. That's exactly what I did for my mix of tall fescue and KBG following LawnLife's steps. I pre-germinated for four days and then covered a few small bare spots with a combination of the seed and Milorganite. Just checked and after just four (4) days, I've got seedlings that are 1-2" tall! It's probably the fescue, but I'm sure the KBG will come in much more quickly as well.
This was a widely used practice in the Georgian era for grains. It's called "chitting" in the old farming books. One method used in England was to put the seed grain into cloth sacks in a small stream where the water flowed over the bags. They hand sowed their fields.
You can also use "sheeting" ... just spread a frost blanket over the area after sowing the seeds, It retains moisture, doesn't get too hot, and you can remove it tio water.
WARNING: Once you have started the process you can't stop it - don't let the seeds dry out. And the white seed sprouts are fragile.
I just wanted to point out the quality of this video is very well produced! As someone who has made videos on my other channel I am impressed.
So glad I found this after I seeded
NICE! keep the tips coming. I've been doing your Nitrogen blitz for past 6weeks and its definitely helping. I'm doing a mixture of SLS 6-0-0 or 16-4-8 along with DEF at 1.25gal each into a 40gal sprayer for my 2 acres of turf every 7 to 10days. We're still pretty dry but the grass is nice and dark and trying its best to fill in even with limited rainfall here in Central Wisc.
Nice! I'm glad it's working out. You can only do so much without rain.
Hi @kevingebert4316, what is the ratio for water to DEF? I only have a 3 gallon sprayer. Also, what would the square foot coverage be?
@RandyKJohnson1031 I can help with this I've dialed it down to .0475 oz def/sq ft. =.5 lb nitrogen
Also .019 oz def/sq ft. =.2 lb nitrogen
Edit: water amount doesn't matter as long as your getting that amount on your whole lawn, you can water it in via sprinklers afterwards
I am seeding Bermuda in May, I am going to do a test. Start pre germinating seed say May 15 and Im going to throw down some seed on May 15 as well, I want to see what happens, both will be getting wet at same time. Seeing how much TIME is saved or wasted pre germinating. You are right about pre germ seed being much faster if seeded on same day. The regular seed will have a five day head start.
This has helped a ton with birds eating seed.
I was the athletic field foreman for 8 years at a University. We use a bit different method and 50lbs of seed at a time, but it's a great method to keep turf growing week to week with back to back events and games.
I got to fill some patches this week but I don't know how to get it do in 7 days. Please can you help me out with this
hmm. I had no idea you pre-germinated your grass seeds. Such a good idea!
It takes 6 days of soaking and you have to change the water twice a day. My method is to sling out seed and forget about it, I get great results.
You never cease to amaze me! Great video and information! First time I have ever heard of this.
Thanks for the awesome comment Jeremy!
I'm on my way to look for my seed and try this method out. Thanks for the information.....And as a fan myself Skol,Skol,Skol...Let's Go JJ
Really awesome, going to try this.. well right now 😋
Florida resident here.....I will be seeding our previous St. Augustine lawn with Argentine Bahia seed in the next week or so. So glad that I saw your video BEFORE i simply spread my $40 bag of bahia seed. Makes a lot of sense to pre soak AND add the seed to the milorganite. I'll will follow up with a another video and let you know how it turned out. Thanks again !!!
I did it and it worked amazingly well
Great video! Bloomington Minnesota resident here, I pregerminated my grass seed exactly as you did two weeks ago (Milorganite has instructions on their website). My results are fantastic and I too will continue to use this method, saves, time, seed, and water! I enjoy your informational videos, thank you!
I did the same in eden prairie MN and I was shocked how fast I started seeing sprouts
Glad it worked out for you Randy. What was your ratio of milorganite to seed? I did it on such a small scale that I didn't figure that part out
Mine perenial rye, fine fescue mix has been soaking for 3 days now, and no sprouts. Started with warm water too. Been changing water every 12 hrs and started rinsing the seed while changing water on day 2 and have been rinsing since.
What the heck is wrong? Well water too. No chlorine.
@@riflebear1711I soaked for 5 days. Only a few showed spouting in the water. The soaking helped my seed germinate 2 to 3 times faster once spread on the ground and lightly covered with good black dirt. After spreading, I was seeing sprouts in less than 7 days.
@@riflebear1711did you end up getting sprouting?
Thank you for this. We had to have a sewer line fix after we already did aeration and seeding in the early fall. This past November we have a big no grass lawn in the front. I want to do this because in spring we have so much rain, birds, chipmunks n squirrels that they would eat the seed.
Just wanted to add a recommendation to this - separate your Seek per K before pre germination. The most difficult and sloppy aspect of pre germing is trying to spread it (you’ll mix it with Milo - 4 times the Milo to the seed)
The last thing you want to do is take out your pre germinated seed and drain it - then have to figure out how to separate it per k.. separate it before so you don’t have to do it after!
Awesome vid btw - I got 365ss and Quantum Leap KBG to germinate by the morning of day 5
This a great tip. Thanks for watching man! 365ss is an amazing blend!
@@LAWNLIFE thanks again for the advice a couple months ago yard is coming in great!
I did this with Pennington sun and Shade, works amazingly. Now I want to get rid of my burmuda lawn. Is it possible to kill off the burmuda and reseed with the Pennington?
I love the community lawns segment! Great way to give back to your viewers. The biggest benefit of pregermination is the establishment, not so much the speed. In reality, it isn't much faster considering the germination phase takes a few days before you put it in the ground. However, getting in the ground and rooted really makes the difference.
Yes you are technically correct. But it does speed up the establishment by getting things started earlier. I appreciate you watching and the feedback man!
Great video! Any recommendations on what Bermuda grass seed to use for this process? I looked at hardware store but there are so many different ones and mostly with different additives (fertilizer for example). Thanks!
This saves you a lot more on the water bill!
Do you need to apply peat moss as well?
Excellent job. Can you please advise if the seeds comes with nutrients is ok to soak ?
We did the pregerminate with Milo and Rye last fall in my bckyard and got it green all winter season aka Oct - April here in Central Texas
Thanks for this! Question,
Should I be covering the seed with something? I’ve seen people say to use hay, dirt, etc.
Great info. Can you use that technique to over seed in Sunny areas with fescue as an example?? Thank you.
Great idea to share each others lawn on Lawn of the Day. Now I have a goal for this fall. Cheers!
Your hose reel solution is so simple I'm hating the fact I never thought of it, been wanting something for a while but didn't want to mess with the siding
Interesting concept that I'm definitely going to try. I've never had bluegrass come up in less than 2 weeks.
Definitely give it a shot. It definitely will come up faster than that if you keep it moist
I do one video two years ago and now everyone is coming out with these videos.. this is a great video tho.. good work!
Thanks! What's the link to your original video?
Another homerun ⚾️! Keep ‘em coming man! 🙌🏻
Thanks for always watching Rob! I appreciate the support!
I like to use regular Scott’s Crabgrass preventer each year, so I don’t seed in the Spring. I wonder if this trick would would let me fill some bare spots. I don’t see why not as the crabgrass preventer is supposed to prevent germination.
this much content deserves a like at the very least
Great vids as always Jesse. My background turf grad from umass in golf course management and entomology plant/soil science. Been building and managing golf courses for 22 years. Love your channel. All info is on point. Fireball and hatrick I know ppl love from ntep trials. Tshirts hats?! Keep crushing it dude. Shoutout to u and ur family.
Hey man. Thanks for the great feedback! What is your email? I'd love to ask you a few questions if you're up for it.
@@LAWNLIFE
Great video I never thought of doing this but I will give it a try.
Thanks for watching Michael!
You mentioned that the carrier you mix with your wet seed can be Milo or Huma or others, any other carriers you might suggest for someone overseeding their lawn? 4:09
My side yard is coming along nicely at week 5 or so with RK's KBG/PRG (emergence was at day 4!); it's mowable now and becoming durable - the space is sort of a damp, washout/runoff strip from the neighboring hill behind my backyard, and I'm done wasting seed on it at this point. I think the dampness in this area gave the seed a pre-germination behavior back in August.
I'm going to be fall-blitzing it for the next 6 weeks rather than throwing more seed on it and hoping it will grow without all the proper prep-steps. Our NJ grass-growing season slams shut on us right after Oct 31, but this lawn does spread pretty aggressively (it did on my main front lawn) if it's mowed 2-3 times a week. Your tips have definitely helped out this past season!
If the KBG established well, a good nitrogen plan is really all you need going forward. Glad the tips are working!
That outro is gold haha
Awesome video!!!!
Great video, How long would you have to so this with Tall Fescue or turf type is still 2 days?
I'm seeing this method a lot this year I'm giving it a shot myself
Nice lawns guys
Do you recommend grass seed that does not have coating or with coating?
I am assuming you are in Minnesota by your Welcome sign. I am in Wisconsin. I am wondering if mid October is too late to try and get a lawn going? I have a small area about 3 feet by 15 feet that has been highly neglected. Compacted soil and shaded. I have losened up the soil but I am wondering if I missed my opportunity to plant. Can I still do it now or should I wait until spring?
Hi. Can I use topsoil or compost as carrier?
I can't wait to get my lawn on lawn of the day.
Do you mix grass types or is your yard all one type of grass? My yard is all Kentucky blue grass but I have been thinking of putting down rye grass when I over seed this fall.
How long should I pre-germination tall fescue turf builder.
Do you leave your buckets inside your garage or do you put them in sunlight while germinating? Thanks for the great video!
Great idea…Do you have any idea about tall Fescue on soaking time and time frame to change the water?
What would you do for Contractor mix grass.
is perenial rye a cool season grass ? I live in Massachusetts
Great Information, do you have a recommendation for a type of seed in a dense shade area?
i love your dog! Introduce him to the audience. What time of a year was this done? Could this strategy be done in the summer?
Will this work with bermuda seed?
i cant get milorginite in the UK, will regular peat free compost be a good substitute?
Hey, would you be able to recommend the best perennial and annual grass seed for full shade areas? Struggling to get grass to survive!
Perennial ryegrass germinates in 3 days. Bluegrass 14 + as with Bermuda. However soil temps are critical. We do this often in the Turf Industry. Golf Course.
Does pre-germinating work with warm season grasses too? I've only ever seen people do this with cold weather grass seed. I'm about to seed my front yard with Zenith Zoysia. Is 70 degrees warm enough soil temp and should I use the pre-germination method?
How many pounds of grass seed of the ryegrass would you recommend for 1 acre? And how many bags of the fertilizer that you used and does this ryegrass last year round? I’m in Louisiana
Few other law videos on pre germination they soak for 24hrs then after that the submerge seeds enough to get wet then let water drain doing this every 12hrs. Just curious if one method is better than other. Fully submerged changing water every 12 hrs vs fully sumbmerged 24 hrs then change water every 12hrs while fully submerged all time
Does it work when I mixed the pre-germinated seed with Sand to bring it to a spreadable state?
The biggest advantage is to reduce water requirements while waiting for germination. It's also great for patch work.
Good video, as a cannabis grower here in SW Michigan and also a grower of microgreens, lentil sprouts and bean sprouts for my friend's biz, all of these crops require pre-soaking of seeds, for a greater and more consistent germination, so why would grass be any different? 💚 🙏 🌱
Great video! Question, can you mix your germinated seed with normal soil instead before spreading? Thanks! Keep up the great work
Will this work after my lawn has pre-emergent applied? ( 2weeks) . If the Seeds start to germinate before adding to the lawn , will the pre-emergent not affect them? I didn’t plan well and was hoping not having to wait 2-3 months before reseeding trouble area.
What is a seed carrier? And where can I get some for pre germinating? Min 4:30
What were soil temps for this test?
I’d like to see the comparison where you plant the ungerminated seed the same time you start to pre germinate the other seed. If the end goal is for it to be faster, you’d have to compare it to that.
Exactly my comment as well
Exactly, this experiment is a fail if you’re not starting them at the same time. That’s 6 days head-start for the pre germinated Kentucky blue, so of course it will germinate quicker.
It’s not magic. All this does is keep the seed protected for the first few days before the seed begins to germinate and lay roots. This is when the seed is most susceptible to washouts or drying out. He literally says this in the video.
After you spread the pre germinated seed into the lawn how often to water it? Thanks
If I am just trying to fix bare spots, do I have to use something like milorganite, or can I just put it right on the bare spots?
Wonder if you could use an aquarium pump to aerate it.
Great video bud!
question, is this a plastikbag or a bag with wholes ?
What's the best portion/ratio of seed to lawn size?
Do you think this will work with bermuda seed? I live less than a half mile from the greatest overseeding job of them all: Augusta National. I have a golf practice area in the back that my son and I use that is overseeded heavily with perennial rye, then starting May 1st every year I start filling in the divots with bermuda seed. It would be really great to get the bermuda to fill in faster once the warm season grass time of the year comes.
Does the type of water you have effect the process? We live in a hard water area.
No Milorganite in Canada....anyone know what Canadians can use to mix with the wet seed before spreading?
does it work with seed's that is already coated with fertilizer like the scotts turf thicker?
Thanks bro this video is really handy
If I have mixed seeds, Blackout Elite Kentucky Bluegrass/Ryegrass, how long should I leave them in the water?
How many days do you need to pre germinate Bermuda for?
This is a great idea! Do you know if this also works well for warm season grasses such as Bermuda?
Since no one answered. These type of methods pretty much work for all seeds known to humanity. It's like how you take seeds, put em in a damp paper towel, wait couple days or so and the tap root will arrive and then plant etc.
You can always take a handful of grass seed, test it yourself before applying the entire bag to your lawn. You'll see, it will work. ✌️
@@The_Berzerker_ Thank you, I appreciate your answer. I realize now how dumb my question must have seemed, but I was unsure because warm and cool season grasses have different water and temperature requirements. Some seeds rot if there's too much water, and I didn't know if Bermuda seeds would. Thanks again!
How do you prepare the soil before spreading the pregerminated seed?
Thanks.
One added suggestion. If you keep germinating seed in a dark place, it will stay focused on root growth.
Wow that’s amazing!!! Now how would you do centipede grass?
I am legit in the middle of this rn and ran into a snag... got the seed on water and at the end of day 1 my wife reminds me we're gone on day 5 (happens to be today). So I knew i couldn't water the seed for like 24 hours or more, and its going to be hot and sunny... no bueno. Needless to say I don't have a good irrigation system I can program. Luckily I think i found a workaround... the last few days I've had it in a fridge! It's only about 5 lbs of KBG so it fits in a small bucket, have it sitting on a brick draining into a larger bucket. Actually really successful, so far🤞 . My guess is this is how golf course, sports field superintendents might do it. Open your window to throw it down to 10-15 days (maybe?) as opposed to 4 or 5.
should've mentioned I did this last year and had one particular batch that I waited too long on and it was a disaster. You gotta get it out when its ready, don't slack a day or two thinking you'll be ok. But that's really the only caveat to this method, otherwise I love it.
Let me know if that works out for you man. Very interesting work around. You have me intrigued. Haha