# Pre-Germination Overseed of ***



## Boston85 (Jul 21, 2019)

I am going to be overseeding KBG into a very thin lawn with many dead spots. I have gradually been mowing lower the past 2 weeks and plan to take it down to about 2 inches before an Aeration. My target seed down date is August 11. I have PGR which I was going to use on August 6. Since I am overseeding with KBG, I wanted to try pre-germinating it to try and get a head start on germination since it can take so long. I figure that by doing that, combined with the PRG it should give the KBG a great shot at germinating well into the existing lawn. My Aeration will be one on August 10, with seed down the next day.

Any special tips for the pre-germination stage with KBG. It seems relatively straightforward from reading about it, but wonder if I am missing anything.

August 6 - apply PGR to lawn at .6 oz/1000. Also begin pre-germination process. I am using SS5000 from super seed store. I have a 25 lbs bag and will place about 8 lbs in 3 separate burlap sacks that will be placed in water. I am going to change the water every 12 hours.
August 9 - Mow very low for lawn to about 2 inches or less if I can with my push mower. 
August 10 - Aerate lawn in 2 directions since the soil is so compact
August 11 - final change of the pre-germinating seed. Pour seed on some peat moss to help dry it out enough that I can use my rotary spreader. Spread seed with that but hand spread the very dead areas. Plan is for an overseed rate of 2 lbs per 1k. I will then roll the lawn so that the seed/soil contact is good. After rolled, apply a thin (1/4 inch) layer of peat on top of the really thin areas and begin to water 3x a day for a month.


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## bf7 (May 11, 2020)

I tried priming KBG seed before and it was extremely difficult to get it all dry at the end. Make sure you have a good plan for that. You will probably need a very big surface to spread it out and a lot of sunlight. If you don't get it dry, spreading in the yard will not be fun.

That being said, any seed that is planted successfully does germinate quickly.


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## Green (Dec 24, 2017)

I did this once for a non-irrigated situation, but it was a total pain. It got the job done, allowing the seed to germinate in teh appropriate window, but it was a pain to put down on the soil. Basically I grabbed chunks of damp seed and tried to fling them out, but they stuck to my hands. I really needed a better way. I'm not sure if you can let it dry out or not.

Btw, peat moss does not come out of a standard rotary spreader well at all. Been there, tried that. Openings are just too small.


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## uts (Jul 8, 2019)

I tried pregernination for 7 days and at the end still didn't see the seed swell up significantly or any other changes. I had germination at day 8. This was in a controlled pot.

For spreading ability, I would look towards milo than peat moss. Yes peat moss will dry it up so I would put a few pounds of seed in a 5 gallon container add some peat moss,
(As low as can be possible) mix it around/shake it around and see how dry it gets. Mix that with milorganite for spreading...

I dried with peat moss and it was okay but I wasn't spreading it with a rotary spreader either..


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## Boston85 (Jul 21, 2019)

uts said:


> I tried pregernination for 7 days and at the end still didn't see the seed swell up significantly or any other changes. I had germination at day 8. This was in a controlled pot.
> 
> For spreading ability, I would look towards milo than peat moss. Yes peat moss will dry it up so I would put a few pounds of seed in a 5 gallon container add some peat moss,
> (As low as can be possible) mix it around/shake it around and see how dry it gets. Mix that with milorganite for spreading...
> ...


Yes I should have been more clear. That is how I plan to dry the seed. On the last day when I take it out of the water. I will mix about 10 lbs at a time with peat moss to get it dry Then I was going to add it to my spreader. I will look into using Milo as well at that time.


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## davegravy (Jul 25, 2019)

As an alternative, what about mixing the seed with dry sand and putting that in a spreader?


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## jcs43920 (Jun 3, 2019)

I tried pre germinating KBG. It seemed to work pretty well I just think it might be hard to get it to where you can spread it evenly in a spreader. I did like 3 lbs and just spread it by hand, mainly into bare spots. Some of the seed would stick together. It was kind of tough to work with but I did get germination from Midnight and Bewitched at 4-5 days.


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## Babaganoosh (Apr 21, 2019)

The seed superstore kbg germinates pretty quickly. I personally would not go thru that trouble, especially if you are going to be using a pgr. I'd cut as low as you dare to go and then spread and roll it in or use a slice seeder. Then a roller. That combined with you existing grass should resist any wash outs. I'd hold off on any starter fertilizer until the new kbg stalls. That's when it really starts rooting.

I've had a pretty harsh storm after slice seeding and almost all of the seed stuck around

Just my 2 cents.


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## uts (Jul 8, 2019)

davegravy said:


> As an alternative, what about mixing the seed with dry sand and putting that in a spreader?


It should flow but unsure how well and how your spreader would react with it.

Milorganite actually has that as feature on their website that's why I recommended it.


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## davegravy (Jul 25, 2019)

uts said:


> davegravy said:
> 
> 
> > As an alternative, what about mixing the seed with dry sand and putting that in a spreader?
> ...


Next time I have some sand I'll try it. We Canadians can't easily get Milo :crying:


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## bf7 (May 11, 2020)

Babaganoosh said:


> The seed superstore kbg germinates pretty quickly. I personally would not go thru that trouble, especially if you are going to be using a pgr. I'd cut as low as you dare to go and then spread and roll it in or use a slice seeder. Then a roller. That combined with you existing grass should resist any wash outs. I'd hold off on any starter fertilizer until the new kbg stalls. That's when it really starts rooting.
> 
> I've had a pretty harsh storm after slice seeding and almost all of the seed stuck around
> 
> Just my 2 cents.


When you had success slice seeding, was that bare dirt or overseeding?


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## Babaganoosh (Apr 21, 2019)

bf7 said:


> Babaganoosh said:
> 
> 
> > The seed superstore kbg germinates pretty quickly. I personally would not go thru that trouble, especially if you are going to be using a pgr. I'd cut as low as you dare to go and then spread and roll it in or use a slice seeder. Then a roller. That combined with you existing grass should resist any wash outs. I'd hold off on any starter fertilizer until the new kbg stalls. That's when it really starts rooting.
> ...


Both. There's actually a small area that is bare dirt where you can see the corn row look from slice seeding. To me it's absolute proof that it helps prevent wash out. Everything around it washed away but where it physically sliced in it germinated and made it. I'll try to remember to grab a pic


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## Boston85 (Jul 21, 2019)

Babaganoosh said:


> The seed superstore kbg germinates pretty quickly. I personally would not go thru that trouble, especially if you are going to be using a pgr. I'd cut as low as you dare to go and then spread and roll it in or use a slice seeder. Then a roller. That combined with you existing grass should resist any wash outs. I'd hold off on any starter fertilizer until the new kbg stalls. That's when it really starts rooting.
> 
> I've had a pretty harsh storm after slice seeding and almost all of the seed stuck around
> 
> Just my 2 cents.


Didn't realize that was meant to germinate quickly. Considering I have never pre-germinated seed before, maybe I should hold off considering how expensive the seed was. Instead i am going to apply PGR on the 6th and then mow low on the 9th before aeration on the 10th and seeing on the 11th.

Is there any reason to mow low before the PGR? I know the bottle says you can mow before hand, but for best practices should I apply it when the grass is slightly taller and then mow low a few days later?


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## Babaganoosh (Apr 21, 2019)

I'd probably apply the pgr first and then mow low a few days later after the plant takes up the active ingredients, but I'm not familiar with pgrs.


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## bf7 (May 11, 2020)

Babaganoosh said:


> bf7 said:
> 
> 
> > Babaganoosh said:
> ...


Thanks. I am definitely renting a slit seeder for my reno. Not using the hopper but just want to rough up the soil / prep the seed bed. Did you use the slit seeder before dropping seed, after dropping seed, or both? Sorry for all the questions. Glad that it worked for you.


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## Babaganoosh (Apr 21, 2019)

I don't use the hopper either. I'll divide the seed into 3 equal parts. I'll put 1/3 of the seed in my spreader and then go over it with the slicer. Then I'll put the second portion in the spreader and then go over that at 45 degrees to the first run. Then the third part and do the opposite 45 degree angle. This prevents a cornrow look. Then I'll go over it all with the roller. Then spray tenacity. Then peat moss on areas that are bare dirt. Then water it all in.

If you are feeling really froggy you can keep a few cups of seed to the side for hand spreading on really bad areas. I also have a drop spreader and I go along all the edges and walkways with that too. Overkill? Maybe. But it's not all that hard and it worked great.


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## davegravy (Jul 25, 2019)

Babaganoosh said:


> I don't use the hopper either. I'll divide the seed into 3 equal parts. I'll put 1/3 of the seed in my spreader and then go over it with the slicer. Then I'll put the second portion in the spreader and then go over that at 45 degrees to the first run. Then the third part and do the opposite 45 degree angle. This prevents a cornrow look. Then I'll go over it all with the roller. Then spray tenacity. Then peat moss on areas that are bare dirt. Then water it all in.
> 
> If you are feeling really froggy you can keep a few cups of seed to the side for hand spreading on really bad areas. I also have a drop spreader and I go along all the edges and walkways with that too. Overkill? Maybe. But it's not all that hard and it worked great.


Hmm I was told to do slicing THEN spreading (raking it so the seed falls in the grooves). I assumed this was because the slicing action can damage the seed. It makes sense that you want to push the seed in. Not sure which way to go.... I'm using the Sun Joe scarifier not a slit seeder per se, not sure if that's a factor.


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## Babaganoosh (Apr 21, 2019)

It's not always hitting the seed, there's a lot of turbulence and dirt being thrown around under the deck. It's almost like a horizontal blender. At the rear the dirt is falling onto the seed and there's usually a rubber flap to press it all down and smooth it out. The seed and dirt gets thrown into the slices. 3 directions and then a roller to get perfect seed and soil contact. You can rent the roller for around 10 bucks


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## davegravy (Jul 25, 2019)

Babaganoosh said:


> It's not always hitting the seed, there's a lot of turbulence and dirt being thrown around under the deck. It's almost like a horizontal blender. At the rear the dirt is falling onto the seed and there's usually a rubber flap to press it all down and smooth it out. The seed and dirt gets thrown into the slices. 3 directions and then a roller to get perfect seed and soil contact. You can rent the roller for around 10 bucks


Interesting. When I tried the sun joe it made pretty clean "slits" from what I recall, not much dirt thrown around... maybe the soil was too wet and/or compacted?

I'm doing seed down tomorrow... I'll try both methods on small areas and see what seems to work best (seed first scarify second or vice versa)


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## Babaganoosh (Apr 21, 2019)

davegravy said:


> Babaganoosh said:
> 
> 
> > It's not always hitting the seed, there's a lot of turbulence and dirt being thrown around under the deck. It's almost like a horizontal blender. At the rear the dirt is falling onto the seed and there's usually a rubber flap to press it all down and smooth it out. The seed and dirt gets thrown into the slices. 3 directions and then a roller to get perfect seed and soil contact. You can rent the roller for around 10 bucks
> ...


I haven't used a sun Joe dethatcher. I have a blue bird slot seeder. That thing throws dirt everywhere. It's powerful.

Slit seeding works best when the soil is dry. You aren't supposed to do it when the soil is wet. You want the dirt tossed around in order to cover the seed.


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