# Stopping Watering After Overseed?



## mopeybernese (Aug 30, 2021)

I started my annual overseed (TTTF) on Aug 28th and have kept a steady schedule of watering twice daily. Now we have a family vacation and the lawn will go 4-5 days without watering while we are gone. It will be 12 days after seeding when we leave and 7 days after I first noticed germination. Are my seedlings going to be able to withstand the time away from regular watering?

A few data points...We are in SE Pennsylvania and the temps while gone look like they will be in the mid-to-high 70s with one day at a high of 81. No significant rain in the forecast. Lawn is a mix of both full sun and shade. We have no irrigation and sprinklers on a timer are not possible. So far the grass looks great.

I knew the reality of not watering heading into overseed season, and given my fears about an early leaf-fall, I decided to roll the dice and seed early rather than wait until mid-Sept to get started. What should I reasonably expect for my new seedlings? Thx all.


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## M32075 (May 9, 2019)

Roll the dice you have no other option but cancel the vacation and that's a bad option. Give it a good watering before you go and enjoy the trip deal with it when you get home. I'm thinking it will be fine


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## Jeff_MI84 (Sep 28, 2020)

Do you have an irrigation system or a sprinkler with a timer? Perhaps a trusted neighbor?


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## mopeybernese (Aug 30, 2021)

Negative on either, good buddy. What's my damage look like?



Jeff_MI84 said:


> Do you have an irrigation system or a sprinkler with a timer? Perhaps a trusted neighbor?


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## mopeybernese (Aug 30, 2021)

It's my brother's wedding, so maybe he'll forgive me if I bail for a good cause. Lol.



M32075 said:


> Roll the dice you have no other option but cancel the vacation and that's a bad option. Give it a good watering before you go and enjoy the trip deal with it when you get home. I'm thinking it will be fine


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## Lawn Noob (Jul 26, 2020)

Put out impact sprinklers on a four zone orbitz timer hooked up to your hose bib. Have them come on one zone at a time. 15k may be tough, but you should be able to at least cover your high visibility areas anyhow.


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## Coolseason7b (Aug 14, 2021)

Just curious - why is a timer not an option? They are pretty inexpensive and would work perfectly for what you need to get accomplished.


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## mopeybernese (Aug 30, 2021)

Good question. I have a 7 month old and my wife stopped working to focus on childcare, so money is tight. Combination of cost, and effort. I can't put more into this lawn without having a conversation I don't want to have.



Coolseason7b said:


> Just curious - why is a timer not an option? They are pretty inexpensive and would work perfectly for what you need to get accomplished.


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## Tsmith (Aug 11, 2017)

New seedlings need daily water to survive or they will dry out and once that happens they're done so unfortunately if you cant find someone to water your lawn every day your options appear to be spend money on a timer which are not that expensive or let the money and time you've already spent on your overseed go to waste.

I'm actually surprised you're getting away with only watering twice daily as normally in order to stay moist the seedbed needs to be watered 4-5 times daily.


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## Jeff_MI84 (Sep 28, 2020)

@mopeybernese that stinks. As others have stated above, new need can dry out in no time, with higher temperatures and windy days. I have made that mistake myself. I hope you can figure something out.


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## turfnsurf (Apr 29, 2020)

Tsmith said:


> I'm actually surprised you're getting away with only watering twice daily as normally in order to stay moist the seedbed needs to be watered 4-5 times daily.


Is this axiomatically true? Or does the accuracy of this depend on run time? Better yet....how long do you find that new seedlings need water for? Trying to better understand your balance of time vs amount of water.


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## Tsmith (Aug 11, 2017)

turfnsurf said:


> Tsmith said:
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> > I'm actually surprised you're getting away with only watering twice daily as normally in order to stay moist the seedbed needs to be watered 4-5 times daily.
> ...


The seed should remain moist but not soaked and since the seeds are on the soil the best way to do that is to water more often for shorter durations so something like 4-5 times per day for 5/10/15 mins depending on setup and conditions.

This should continue through germination and then start reducing once you start cutting.


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## turfnsurf (Apr 29, 2020)

Tsmith said:


> turfnsurf said:
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> > Tsmith said:
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I've been seeing growth, but I've got an interesting situation. I've got thin areas and some flat out bare spots. I've been watering my zones around 40-45 minutes every other day.

It seems like the overall run time that I am doing matches yours for a given day. I just wonder if the amount of water should be less like you're doing (instead of the longer run times I am doing) and if I should be doing everyday instead of every other day.


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## M32075 (May 9, 2019)

mopeybernese said:


> Good question. I have a 7 month old and my wife stopped working to focus on childcare, so money is tight. Combination of cost, and effort. I can't put more into this lawn without having a conversation I don't want to have.
> 
> 
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> ...


I remember those days you both are making a great choice kids need there mom's more than we need our toy's. Trust me the payoff is in the end and we'll worth the sacrifice.


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## macattack (Nov 2, 2020)

I am in this same situation. Overseeded on Sep 1st. Leaving town on the 11th for 2 weeks. I tore up the lawn pretty good with the power rake too. Just now starting to green back up. I'll have to look at the programmable timers. Think i can get my older kids to water it for me maybe once a day if it doesn't rain, at least the front lawn. I am more worried about the current grass recovering than the new seed. I can always fill in the bare spots when I get back. I have not seen the new sprouts yet.


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## Tsmith (Aug 11, 2017)

turfnsurf said:


> Tsmith said:
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> > turfnsurf said:
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You should be watering everyday otherwise you risk the seed drying out and breaking the watering up throughout the day rather than all at once would be better for continuous moisture rather than all at once which could also cause puddling that you want to avoid.


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## jimmythegreek (Aug 7, 2020)

Remember this is all best outcome scenario for new seed. Cant tell you how many tines I've shown seed with minimal prep, and no irrigation and had plenty of germination. It matters more.on a new install, overseeds are more forgiving


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## Fraust (Apr 4, 2021)

turfnsurf said:


> I've been seeing growth, but I've got an interesting situation. I've got thin areas and some flat out bare spots. I've been watering my zones around 40-45 minutes every other day.
> 
> It seems like the overall run time that I am doing matches yours for a given day. I just wonder if the amount of water should be less like you're doing (instead of the longer run times I am doing) and if I should be doing everyday instead of every other day.


It's not just about a total amount of water. It's about continuously keeping the seed and top inch or so of soil moist. You need to water it more frequently for a much shorter duration each time.


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## mopeybernese (Aug 30, 2021)

I don't really post much online, so I was excited to see this thread take-off. Thanks everyone.

Your answers to my question have ranged from; "you're F-ed" to "you should be OK". Either way, I've made my bed and now I have to lie in it. Please pray for rain for me.

If people are interested, let me know and I can send an update when I return from vacation. TY.


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## Fraust (Apr 4, 2021)

I'm sure we'd all be interested in an update. Post when you get back. And good luck! &#129310;&#129310;


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## Harts (May 14, 2018)

Life happens and there isn't always a perfect solution. If things don't work out, there's always next year. That's the great thing about lawn care.


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## gregonfire (Sep 18, 2017)

mopeybernese said:


> Good question. I have a 7 month old and my wife stopped working to focus on childcare, so money is tight. Combination of cost, and effort. I can't put more into this lawn without having a conversation I don't want to have.


I have 3 orbit hose timers that support 4 zones you can borrow. I'm located across the river in West Deptford. If you come to me you can borrow them as long as you need. Shoot me a PM if you're interested.


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## mopeybernese (Aug 30, 2021)

Just seeing this now but that is mighty nice of you. I won't be needing your setup, and plan to post update pics shortly. Thanks again for the very kind offer internet stranger.



gregonfire said:


> mopeybernese said:
> 
> 
> > Good question. I have a 7 month old and my wife stopped working to focus on childcare, so money is tight. Combination of cost, and effort. I can't put more into this lawn without having a conversation I don't want to have.
> ...


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## Slkching28 (Sep 5, 2021)

It should be fine since the temperature isn't that high. Just water them as soon as u r back.

I am in the DC area and seeded TTTF with no care on a test spot (sloped bare ground) with full sun around mid sept last year. There were even few days where the temp was mid to high 80s. While it took a long time to get 2" for first mow, they did somehow survive through the winter whereas the other area had to be mowed twice or 3 times already.

Germination rate going to drop, but it won't be like a complete waste. Lets be honest, people who have a full time job can't really be out for 4-6 weeks to water the lawn to give them that perfect condition.


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