How to Grow Grass

To plant grass seed, you’ll need to prepare your soil, spread the seed evenly, and keep it moist. Let’s learn more about the specifics of how to grow grass so you can grow a lush lawn DIY.

Growing grass can be daunting, especially if you’re a homeowner growing a new lawn from scratch. This how-to guide aims to help make planting grass seed easy.

How to grow grass in 8 easy steps

Growing grass and planting grass seed may seem like simple tasks, but achieving a thriving, carpet-like lawn requires attention to detail and a well-executed strategy that includes a few simple steps.

Tools and materials

To grow grass effectively, you’ll need the following tools and materials:

• Garden rake or leveling rake
• Soil testing kit (DIY or from a lab)
• Soil amendments (depends on the soil test results)
• Grass seed
• Core aerator (optional)
• Dethatching rake or dethatching machine (optional)
• Shovel (optional)
• Soil tiller (optional)
• Lawn roller
• Mulch (straw or peat moss)
• Hose with a mist attachment or lawn sprinklers

Step 1: Remove debris and weeds

The first step to growing grass seeds is to clear your lawn of debris and weeds. 

Get rid of large stones, sticks, dead leaves, pet waste, and other debris to give yourself a clean space to work with. You’ll also want to remove any lawn furniture you have. A cluttered lawn will make it more difficult for your new grass to germinate.

Pro tip: Plant your grass seeds after your seasonal yard cleanup. If you don’t have the time, consider hiring a professional to clean your yard for you.

Homeowners also should kill any weeds in their grass. They’ll compete with the grass seedlings, which will need all the resources they can get to grow into a healthy lawn. There are many ways to get rid of weeds, including non-toxic and DIY methods. Here are some of them:

• Hand-pulling
• Post-emergent herbicides
• Homemade weed killers
• Solarization
• Boiling water
• Weed-eating
• Torching

Additionally, you might need to remove existing grass. Not all homeowners will need to gut their lawn completely; you can absolutely plant grass seed to fix an existing thinning or patchy lawn by overseeding. This is only necessary if you want to start over and grow a completely new lawn.

There are many ways to get rid of grass:

• Non-selective herbicide
• Sod cutter
• Rototiller
• Solarization
• Sheet mulching

If you’re overseeding, you may want to consider dethatching your lawn to remove the excess organic material in between the grass and the soil. That material is the thatch layer, and it’s normally harmless. It’s only bad if it’s more than ½-inch thick; at that point, it can prevent water from getting to the grass roots.

Once you’re done clearing your lawn, it’s time to prepare your soil.

Step 2: Test your soil and amend if necessary

Next, you’ll want to make sure your soil is in the perfect condition to support grass seed germination. 

First, you’ll want to check the soil conditions by performing a soil test – either a DIY home soil test kit or one from a lab. Both types of test kits have their advantages. A home kit is more convenient, but a professional lab kit will give you more information.

Here are some things you want to focus on when reading a soil test report:

• Soil pH. Your soil pH level will tell you if you have overly alkaline or acidic soil. Turfgrasses prefer a more balanced pH level, with some tolerating slightly acidic conditions.
• Nutrient levels. All plants (including turf) need nutrients to survive. You mainly want to focus on the macronutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, or N-P-K), but micronutrients are also important to healthy growth.
• Texture or soil type. Soil can have different textures that can affect how much water it can hold, how well it drains, and how well nutrients and oxygen can reach plant roots. You can learn more about this in our article about different types of soil.

If your soil is lacking in any of these qualities, don’t worry. Soil amendments can help improve your soil to better support turfgrass and other plants. Let’s look at some soil problems and the soil amendments that can remedy them.

Too high or too low soil pH levels

The perfect soil pH for growing grass is 6 to 7.5, and anything outside of that range can be damaging to your lawn.

The Northeast, the Pacific Northwest, and the South have soils that tend to be acidic. If you have acidic soil, you have soil that has too low of a pH level. You can raise your soil pH by applying lime or wood ash to your soil. Lime is more reliable, but wood ash is natural and could be a free option if you have a fireplace.

Note: Be careful using wood ash. When used with nitrogen fertilizers, the University of New Hampshire Extension notes that it produces ammonia gas, which is toxic.

Meanwhile, soils in the Western U.S., the Midwest, and the Southwest tend to be more alkaline. Alkaline soils have high pH levels, so you’ll need to lower your soil pH with elemental sulfur, aluminum sulfate, or sphagnum peat moss.

To learn more about changing soil pH, you can read more in our how-to guide here: “How to Change Your Soil pH”.

Bad soil texture

Your soil can be made up of sand, clay, and silt, and an imbalance of these components can spell disaster for your lawn. Here is a table of soil amendments to fix these soils:

Sandy soil	Clay soil	Silty soil
● Compost ● Aged manure ● Worm castings (vermicomposting) ● Coconut coir ● Peat mossVermiculite	● Compost ● Straw ● Finely shredded bark ● Peat mossComposted wood chips ● Pea gravel ● Perlite ● Finely shredded rubber ● Gypsum	● Compost ● Aged manure ● Composted wood chips ● Pea gravel ● Finely shredded rubber ● Gypsum

Sandy soils can’t hold water or nutrients very well. Your soil quickly dries out and your grass will be starved of nutrients. The southern half of the East Coast and the Nebraska Sandhills have sandy soil.

Clay soils hold water a little too well and get waterlogged very easily. This dense soil is also more prone to getting compacted, which can prevent water, nutrients, and oxygen from getting to your plants. The Midwest and Texas have a fair bit of clay soil.

Silty soils are slippery and prone to soil erosion. Your nutritious topsoil might be carried away if your soil is mostly silt. The Midwest also has silt in its soils, even more than clay.

A balanced mix of these three soils gives you loam soil, which is the “perfect” soil. You get all of the benefits of sandy, clay, and silty soil without the downsides.

There are two other types of soil: chalky and peat soil. However, they’re not very common.

• Chalk soil drains too well much like sandy soil, but it tends to have a very high pH level. It’s difficult to amend as organic material (that many soil amendments are made of) quickly decompose in chalk soil.
• Peat soil is similar to clay soil in that it holds onto water and nutrients for a long time. So, it often drains poorly. It’s also highly acidic and doesn’t have too many nutrients of its own.

Lack of nutrients

The main way to fix nutrient-deficient soil is by applying fertilizer to your soil. We’ll cover that later in this article.

Step 3: Break up the soil

For the best results, soil should be broken up so that it’s more airy. You don’t want to plant grass on hard dirt without addressing the problem first. 

Pro tip: If your soil is especially hard, try soaking it with water for two to three days before breaking it up.

If you’re starting a new lawn, then you can dig up the top few inches of soil with a rototiller, shovel, rake, or garden fork. The rototiller is better for larger lawns but can be expensive to rent. The other tools are inexpensive but time-consuming and labor-intensive.

Planting grass on an established lawn is more tricky. It’s better to aerate your lawn in this instance so you don’t uproot your grass (which will force you to start over). We recommend using a core aerator over a spike aerator, even a manual core aerator will do. Spike aeration will solve your issues in the short term, but won’t help in the long run.

Step 4: Regrade and level the soil

We’re not done with prepping the soil just yet. We recommend regrading your lawn so it has a slight slope – about 1% to 2% – going away from your home and other structures. This prevents water from rain and irrigation from pooling on your lawn (or worse, running off toward your house).

We recommend professional land grading as too steep of a slope can be disastrous to your lawn, causing too much runoff and starving your lawn of water. It’s not impossible to grow grass on a slope but it’s certainly more difficult.

If you have severe drainage problems and/or you get a lot of rain that your yard can’t handle, you may need to install drainage solutions like a French drain or a dry well. You may not have to grade your lawn if you don’t have drainage issues. 

But before you grade your lawn, you’ll need to address any unevenness.

You want your lawn to be smooth and even, devoid of depressions and hills. Aside from looking ugly, an uneven lawn can lead to uneven growth, mower damage, erosion, and tripping. It also can lower your curb appeal and property value.

Mild to moderate unevenness isn’t difficult to fix; you could even level your lawn yourself with topsoil. Run the back of a push broom, garden rake, or leveling rake to evenly distribute the soil and smooth the surface. You can also use a lawn roller to do this.

Extreme unevenness should be addressed by a professional.

Step 5: Add nutrients to the soil

It’s not a bad idea to add nutrients to your lawn, especially if your soil test report mentions nutrient deficiencies. The only time when it may not be good is if you’ve fertilized your lawn very recently.

You can add starter fertilizer or compost just before sowing your grass seeds. Fertilizing new grass with starter fertilizer is better as it’s specially formulated to have the right ratio of N-P-K that new seedings need. 

Compost is an eco-friendly alternative that also conditions the soil, but it releases nutrients more slowly. On the plus side, you’re less likely to overfertilize your lawn if you use compost.

Note: You also can fertilize your lawn just after seeding it.

Step 6: Spread grass seed evenly

Now we can finally move on to actually sowing the seeds. When spreading grass seed, you want to spread them evenly. The best way to do this is by using a lawn spreader.

A lawn spreader is a multipurpose lawn care tool that can be used to spread granular fertilizer, weed control products, and even seeds. There are three types of spreaders:

• Rotary spreader (broadcast spreader). This spreader is best for yards 2,000 square feet or larger. It looks like a small wheelbarrow, and you push it to distribute the seeds evenly. The spinning plate in the tool will disperse seeds about 3 to 5 feet away.
• Drop spreader. This spreader is great if you have a smaller yard. While it is also push-powered, it drops seeds straight down onto the ground.
• Hand-held spreader. We don’t recommend using a hand-held spreader for this project. They’re really good for tiny or tight areas, but most seeding projects are larger in scale.

Now that you have your spreader ready, it’s time to load it with seed. Read your seed packet to find out the application rate (seeding rate) and adjust your spreader accordingly. 

We’re ready to seed the lawn now. 

We recommend doing bi-directional seeding, where you sow half of the grass seed in one direction (e.g., north to south) and the remaining half perpendicular to the first direction (e.g., east to west). This ensures even coverage.

To avoid gaps or uneven coverage, we also recommend overlapping your passes slightly when spreading your grass seed.

Step 7: Cover the seeds

After spreading the seed, lightly rake the soil’s surface with a garden rake to ensure good seed-to-soil contact. You also can pass a light lawn roller – the Michigan State University Extension recommends 50 to 75 pounds – over your yard after raking. This helps the seeds settle into the soil.

For added protection against hungry seed-loving animals and drying out, you may also opt to lay a very thin layer of mulch over your soil. While straw is traditionally used, the Michigan State University Extension also says you can use other types of mulch; just remove heavier mulches once the grass has sprouted.

Note: Only use clean wheat, oat, or barley straw. It will cost more, but it will lessen the chance of stray weed seeds getting into your new lawn.

You don’t want to apply too much mulch. About 50% of the lawn should be visible underneath the mulch.

Step 8: Water the seeds

Finally, give your seeds a good soak with your sprinklers. A hose with a sprinkler or mist attachment also will work. You don’t want forceful and direct jets of water as your seeds will be washed away or redistributed.

Water your lawn so that the top 4 to 6 inches of soil is wet, but not waterlogged. Your grass seeds need water to germinate.

What grass seed is best for my lawn?

The best grass seed for your lawn really depends on what you want out of your yard. However, it’s important to take your location and local climate into consideration:

• If you live in the southern one-third of the country and Hawaii, you should plant warm-season grasses that can handle the hot summers.
• If you live in the northern one-third of the country and Alaska, you will find more success planting cool-season grasses that can handle freezing winters.
• If you live in the middle third (the Transition Zone), you can plant either type of grass. However, consider cool-season grasses with better heat tolerance or warm-season grasses with good cold resistance.

Some other factors to consider are:

• How much sunlight your lawn gets
• How much foot traffic to expect on your lawn
• How you want your lawn to look
• What type of soil you have
• How salty your area is (mainly for coastal areas)

Bermudagrass, for example, is a great grass for a high-traffic area out in the sun. It has excellent wear resistance and bounces back quickly from damage, but it does poorly in shaded areas. Usually, the seed packet will tell you what environment your chosen seeds grow best in.

If you’re overseeding your lawn, you probably want to stick to the same type of grass as your existing lawn. Otherwise, the overseeded patches can look very different from the rest of your lawn.

You also can buy grass seed mixes or seed blends. Seed blends contain two or more varieties of the same grass type, while seed mixes contain two or more different types of grass. Often, blends and mixes offer better qualities (like cold or drought tolerance) than pure seed packets.

How to calculate how much grass seed you need to buy

Before you plant grass seed, you’ll need to buy it. But how many bags of grass seed do you need?

There is a simple formula you can use to figure out how much grass seed to buy:

Lawn size x Coverage rate / 1,000 sq ft. = Amount of seeds to buy in lbs.

So, you’ll need to find out the values for lawn size and coverage rate.

Lawn size is simple enough. You just need the total area of the section you want to seed in square feet. To make this easier for yourself, you can divide your lawn into simple shapes, get their area values, and then add them together. Here are some area formulas for basic shapes:

• Rectangle = length x width
• Square = side x side
• Circle = π x radius x radius
• Triangle = ½ x base x height

Coverage rate (also called seeding rate) can be a bit trickier. It’s the amount of grass seed (by weight) you should use in a set area — usually 1,000 square feet. Typically, the label on the bag will tell you what the coverage rate is; if it’s not listed there, you can check the seed manufacturer’s site.

If it’s not available online, you can base it on the grass species you’re planting. Grass seeds aren’t all the same size, so a pound of seed can have as little as ~200,000 seeds to as much as 8,000,000 or more. Usually, bigger seeds have a higher coverage rate than smaller seeds.

Here are the seeding rates of common warm-season turfgrasses according to the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Extension:

Grass type	Coverage rate (lbs per 1,000 sq. ft.)
Bahiagrass	7 – 10
Common bermudagrass	2 – 4
Carpetgrass	2
Centipedegrass	0.25

Note: Zoysia and St. Augustinegrass are not in this table. Zoysiagrass is hard to grow from seed, and many experts recommend planting plugs. St. Augustine is only sold as plugs, sprigs, or sod.

Here are the seeding rates of common cool-season turfgrasses according to the University of Massachusetts Amherst Center for Agriculture, Food and the Environment (CAFE):

Grass type	Coverage rate (lbs per 1,000 sq. ft.)
Bentgrasses	0.5 – 1
Kentucky bluegrass	1 – 2
Fine fescues	4 – 6
Tall fescue	7 – 9
Perennial ryegrass	7 – 9

Keep in mind that these coverage rates are for seeding a new lawn. Cut the coverage rate in half if you are overseeding an existing lawn. If you are overseeding, you need less grass seed.

Here’s a visual example of the formula in action:

Can I plant more grass seed than necessary? It’s not a good idea to plant excess grass seeds. You’ll overcrowd your lawn, so each seedling will have to compete with other grass seedlings. This can affect their growth.

“These [seedlings] will be slow to develop into mature and robust adult plants which are more tolerant of environmental stresses such as heat, drought, cold, and wear,” says the UMass Amherst CAFE.

However, you don’t want to plant too little grass either. You’ll end up with a thin and sparse lawn, which weeds and pests love.

When is the right time to plant grass seed?

Don’t expect to see great results if you seed your lawn at the wrong time of year.

The right time to plant grass seed depends on the type of grass you’re growing. Luckily, you just have to know if you are growing cool-season or warm-season grass.

Cool-season grass should be planted in late summer, early fall, or spring. Aim for soil temperatures of 50 to 60 Fahrenheit (around 60 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit in air temperatures) as cool-season seeds sprout best in that range.

Warm-season grass should be seeded in late spring or early summer when the soil temperature hovers around 65 to 75 degrees (about 80 degrees Fahrenheit in air temperature). Warm-season grass seeds germinate best in this temperature range.

Pro tip: Use a soil thermometer to get the most accurate soil temperature readings. Air temperatures and soil temperatures rarely line up.

How to maintain new grass

Your new grass is quite sensitive and needs a lot of attention as it establishes itself. Here are the main things you need to keep in mind when taking care of new grass:

• Water frequently
• Mow only after the grass is 3 to 4 inches tall
• Avoid weed control products
• Avoid foot traffic

Water new grass frequently

Grass seedlings don’t have the deep root systems that established lawns do, so they can’t dig deep to find water. It’s very easy for new grass to dry out, which is very harmful to the proper development of the roots. Remember: a healthy root system means healthy grass. So, you want to water your new grass in short but frequent sessions.

The watering frequency depends on several factors, including your climate, grass type, soil type, and recent weather conditions. Here are some general guidelines for watering your new grass seed:

• Weeks 1 and 2: During the germination process, it is essential to keep the soil moist. Start with short watering sessions, typically 10 to 15 minutes, two to three times per day to prevent surface drying. 
• Weeks 3 and 4: As your grass seedlings grow, extend your watering duration. Aim for 20 to 30 minutes per session, two times per day, to ensure the water penetrates deeper into the soil. This promotes deeper root development.
• Weeks 5 through 8: By now, your grass is more established. Continue watering for 20 to 30 minutes per session, but adjust based on weather. Aim to water every other day. 
• Weeks 9+: As your lawn matures, transition to a typical watering schedule. Most grass cultivars need 1 inch of water per week. Aim for three 20-minute watering sessions weekly, depending on the weather. 

As your grass grows, you want to water less often but more deeply. The Iowa State University Extension says you can water your new lawn once a week after it’s been mowed two or three times.

Mow when your grass is tall enough

New grass seedlings won’t be able to handle mowing. Don’t mow your lawn until it reaches 3 to 4 inches tall, which is the height most grasses need to be mowed. This height is tall enough to bring your lawn down to its recommended height without taking off more than one-third of its blade length.

It’s very important to follow this One-Third Rule because cutting off more than one-third of your turf’s total height stresses it out.

Also, make sure to keep your mower blades sharp, and to mow your lawn only when it’s dry. You can learn more about proper mowing in this article: “Lawn Mowing Tips and Tricks”.

Avoid using weed control products

Ideally, you should have dealt with weeds before seeding your lawn. However, sometimes weeds just pop up unannounced.

Don’t use weed control products on your new grass, at least until it grows strong roots. The University of Georgia Extension suggests using post-emergent herbicides after you have mowed three to four times. They also recommend using just half of the recommended dose and then repeating the treatment a week later.

A better weed control option for new lawns is hand-pulling. Pull up weeds you see sprout before your lawn can handle herbicides.

Don’t step on the grass

Avoid stepping on your newly planted grass until it’s established (mature). Even grasses with good wear resistance won’t recover very well if they’re stepped on as seedlings.

How long does it take for grass to establish? The University of California Agriculture & Natural Resources says that seeded lawns can take up to two months to establish. Some grasses take longer to establish than others.

FAQs about how to grow grass

How long does grass seed take to grow?

Grass seed germination takes between five to 30 days, depending on the type of grass, weather conditions, and soil quality. Germination rates for popular grass cultivars include:

Grass Type	Germination Rate
Bahiagrass	7 – 21 days
Bermudagrass	10 – 30 days
Centipedegrass	14 – 21 days
Fine Fescue	7 – 14 days
Kentucky Bluegrass	14 – 30 days
Perennial Ryegrass	5 – 10 days
Tall Fescue	10 – 14 days
Zoysiagrass	14 – 21 days

How do I grow grass fast?

If you want to grow grass from seed as fast as possible, you can opt for hydroseeding. The process of hydroseeding involves spraying a slurry of grass seed, dye, mulch, water, and fertilizer on your lawn. The extra moisture helps the grass seeds germinate faster.

How else can I get a lawn?

You have the following options for growing a new lawn without seeding your lawn:

• Installing sod
• Planting grass plugs

If you want an instant lawn that’s also very low-maintenance, you also can install artificial turf. It’s not real grass, but it’s a decent grass alternative especially if you don’t have a lot of time to spend on lawn maintenance.

If you still want a living lawn that’s also quite low-maintenance, why not check out some no-mow grass alternatives like clover, kurapia, moss, or groundcover plants?

Hire a lawn care professional to seed your lawn

Growing a great lawn begins with planting grass seeds and ends with proper soil preparation, watering, and care to nurture your lawn into a thriving and resilient landscape. If the steps seem daunting or you do not have the free time, let Lawn Love connect you with a local lawn care professional to take care of the seeding and maintenance.

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