We have a pretty large lawn and in the past few years we have had fungus and or bug damage that has left numerous spots bare of grass. I know going forward that fungicide and bug/grub control; products will be a mandatory application every year. My question is if there is a tool that can scarify the bad areas so that i can drop seed into the bad areas without making a giant mess of everything. I have a ratchet rake and was thinking about using that. Or maybe use a slice seeder.. Which would be quite a bit more work. The area is about 2/3 acre
lawn scratching
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Runner
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I use a Ferguson Yard Maker for overseeding every year.
Not as good as a slit-seeder, but cheaper and works if you do it right.
Not as good as a slit-seeder, but cheaper and works if you do it right.
TMGT
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Slit seeders are very effective if done properly. I use my 4ft slit seeder to dethatch and then use my Aerovator with seedbox to overseed due to our hard ground. I'm doing about 2acres.
I have used the slit seeder with its seedbox to overseed in the past and had great results also, just dont set your blades too deep, about 1/4-1/2" for tall fescue.
I had our lawn aerated ..problem is that the plug holes are so far apart, it dosent really allow the seed to go anywhere but the hole.
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Certified lawn nut here, and @Runner has the right idea. A plug aerator would be even better than his spike aerator, but also not cheap in any size that large, and I've not seen one that integrates a drop seeder like his Yard Maker.
Basic rules of thumb on seed germination rates, of course it varies with species and other factors:
- Broadcast only: 10%
- Aerate the broadcast: 25%
- Slit seeding: 50%
Good seed is expensive, so make your choices on how much time and money you want to spend on the application.
And the reason a plug aerator is better than a spike aerator is that it pulls and throws plugs, which will look like a billion little dog turds, on your lawn. These crumble and fall apart, generating loose soil that will naturally back-fill the holes along with the seed. This increases germination, moisture penetration and retention, etc.
Basic rules of thumb on seed germination rates, of course it varies with species and other factors:
- Broadcast only: 10%
- Aerate the broadcast: 25%
- Slit seeding: 50%
Good seed is expensive, so make your choices on how much time and money you want to spend on the application.
And the reason a plug aerator is better than a spike aerator is that it pulls and throws plugs, which will look like a billion little dog turds, on your lawn. These crumble and fall apart, generating loose soil that will naturally back-fill the holes along with the seed. This increases germination, moisture penetration and retention, etc.
Runner
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100% agree. I never use the Yard Maker (or anything else) to aerate the lawn, only for seed application. I believe that spike aerators probably compress the soil more than they aerate, whereas the core aerators actually do loosen the soil.
I mentioned that it only works if you "do it right". That means you can't just make one pass like you might with a slit seeder. To get decent results with the Yard Maker, first, the soil needs to be damp. If it's dry, you can't get any penetration (even with the drum filled with water).
Second, even though the seed holes do line up with some of the spikes, just one pass won't get enough seed into the soil. I make at least three passes on each section of yard. First pass is going forward, with the seeder gate open and dropping seed, some of which is being pushed into the soil by the spikes. Second, I shut the seeder gate and reverse over the same area as the first pass (to spike up more holes and to push more seed down into the soil). Then, I make another pass going forward (sometimes dropping seed, sometimes not, depending on how "bare" the area is).
Finally, I make one more pass going forward with the seed gate closed. As mentioned, not the most convenient or best way to do it, but it is cheap and it works fairly well. Depending on the area of yard I'm working on, I'd say maybe a 30 to 40 percent germination rate. If I could irrigate the yard, I feel the germination rate would improve somewhat. Also, some areas are just crappy soil (with lots of rocks underneath), so if they were amended, would probably get better germination.
I am using K31 Fescue.
