- 4 steps to harvest grass seed<\/a>
- What you need<\/a><\/li>
- Step 1: Choose your harvesting location\u00a0<\/a><\/li>
- Step 2: Stop mowing<\/a><\/li>
- Step 3: Collect seeds\u00a0<\/a><\/li>
- Step 4: Store your seeds\u00a0<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li>
- When to harvest seed<\/a>
- When to harvest cool-season grass seed<\/a><\/li>
- When to harvest warm-season grass seed<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li>
- Why harvest seed instead of buying it?\u00a0<\/a><\/li>
- FAQ about how to harvest grass seed<\/a><\/li>
- Celebrate the harvest<\/a><\/li><\/ul> \t\t\t<\/div> \t\t<\/div><\/div>
4 steps to harvest grass seed<\/span><\/h2>
What you need<\/span><\/h3>
- Existing lawn grass<\/li>
- Your own hands<\/li>
- Gloves<\/li>
- A cloth or plastic bag to collect seeds<\/li>
- Sieve to filter seeds<\/li>
- Scissors or grass shears to cut seed heads<\/a> (optional)<\/li>
- Handheld brush harvester to collect seeds (optional)<\/li>
- Strong, airtight container for long-term storage<\/li><\/ol>
Step 1: Choose your harvesting location <\/span><\/h3>
The best place to harvest seed is an area of your lawn that gets partial to full sun where grass grows well. Your perfect spot shouldn\u2019t be full of sneaky weeds: You don\u2019t want to end up spreading a lovely layer of weed seed all across your lawn. <\/p>
How do you decide your harvest area\u2019s size? It depends on how large your lawn is and how much of it requires overseeding. For a full overseeding, you\u2019ll need about 2 to 4 pounds<\/a> of seed per 1,000 square feet of lawn. <\/p>
Step 2: Stop mowing<\/span><\/h3>
To allow your seed heads to fully mature, stop mowing the area where you\u2019ll be collecting seeds. Continue watering<\/a> and wait about 20 to 30 days after your grass has flowered to begin harvesting. Generally, you\u2019ll want to stop mowing in the middle to the end of summer. <\/p>
How to tell when your seeds are ready for harvest: <\/strong><\/p>
Test your grass by cutting a few seed heads in different areas of your lawn. Check the color of the seeds: If they are green, they\u2019re not ready. If they\u2019re tan, orange, or golden, take it one step further: Squeeze the seeds.<\/p>
If a seed feels soft and squishy (like a tiny piece of dough), then it needs a bit more time. If medium to hard pressure from your thumbnail is needed to dent the seed, then it\u2019s firm and ready for harvesting.<\/p>
Another easy test? Hit the seed head roughly with your palm. If the seed top shatters<\/a> (the seeds pop out of the seed head), those seeds are ready for harvest. You\u2019ll want 75 percent<\/a> of seeds to be mature before you begin harvesting.<\/p>
Pro Tip:<\/strong> Seed heads ripen from the top down, so when checking the color, look at the whole flower head and not just the seeds at the top of it. <\/p>
Step 3: Collect seeds <\/span><\/h3>
There are three ways to harvest seeds in the backyard. You can collect seeds with: <\/p>
- Your gloved hands<\/li>
- Grass shears or scissors<\/li>
- A handheld brush harvester <\/li><\/ul>
The best option for you depends on how large your area is, how much time you\u2019ve got, and how much you\u2019re willing to sweat. <\/p>
To collect seeds with your hands: <\/strong><\/p>
This is the simplest, most laborious method that\u2019ll make you feel like you\u2019re in Little House on the Prairie<\/em>. <\/p>
- Put on gloves to protect your fingers from tiny turf burns.<\/li>
- Hold the base of the inflorescence (the flowering portion of your grass that extends from the stem) with one hand. <\/li>
- Using your other hand, slide your thumb and index finger upward to the top of the plant, gently squeezing as you go.<\/li>
- Seeds will accumulate at the top of your fingers. Collect the seeds and deposit them into your seed bag.<\/li>
- Move to the next plant and repeat the process. <\/li>
- After collecting seeds, mow your lawn on a high lawn mower setting following the one-third rule<\/a>: Cut only one-third of your grass\u2019s total height during any given mow to prevent lawn damage.<\/li><\/ul>
To harvest seeds with scissors or grass shears:<\/strong> <\/p>
Instead of squeezing each plant individually to release seeds, you can cut your grass and deposit it directly into your seed bag. This still requires a lot of crouching or kneeling, but it\u2019s less fingerwork.<\/p>
- Cut grass stems just below the bottom of the seed heads.<\/li>
- Place cuttings into your grass bag. Loose seeds will fall to the bottom of the bag, and the rest will remain in the seed heads as they dry and then fall to the bottom of the bag.<\/li>
- Let seeds dry. Keep your seed bag in a cool, dry place away from pests. <\/li>
- Shake it up! Shake the bag occasionally to prevent grass spikes from sticking to each other.<\/li>
- After six to eight weeks, vigorously shake the seed bag one final time. Then, pour seeds out into a new container, using a sieve to separate them from the excess plant matter. <\/li>
- Store until the next growing season. <\/li><\/ul>
Pro Tip:<\/strong> To embrace the \u201creduce, reuse, recycle\u201d theme, compost<\/a> the dry excess plant material.<\/p>
To harvest seeds with a handheld brush harvester: <\/strong><\/p>
A handheld brush harvester is quite an investment, but it\u2019ll do almost all the work for you. If you\u2019re planning to harvest your grass every year, or if manual harvesting is tough on your back, a handheld brush harvester is the way to go. <\/p>
- Walk with your brush harvester across your lawn, cutting your grass right below its seed heads. <\/li>
- Depending on the variety of harvester you buy, it may be helpful to rotate your body side to side to maximize the number of seed heads you collect.<\/li>
- Pour the contents of your harvester through a sieve to strain out organic matter like leaves and twigs.<\/li>
- Refilter the contents if necessary to minimize excess plant material. Then, store your seeds.<\/li><\/ul>
Step 4: Store your seeds <\/span><\/h3>
Once you\u2019ve filtered your seeds from the other organic matter, store them in an airtight container in a cool, dry place to prevent fungus and pests. Rodents love grass seed, so remember to store your seeds in a squirrel-proof container. It\u2019s a good idea to store bags of seed in a galvanized metal trash bin or tightly sealed glass jars. <\/p>
The storage area should not be prone to temperature fluctuations or humidity: High levels of moisture are mold\u2019s best friend, and moldy seeds won\u2019t germinate.<\/p>
If you have a thermometer and a hygrometer (used to measure relative humidity), use this handy rule: The sum<\/a> of the relative humidity and temperature should never be above 100. So if your area has 50 percent relative humidity, it should always stay 50 degrees Fahrenheit or cooler. <\/p>
Under the right conditions, your seeds will be set to germinate when you plant them next season. <\/p>
When to harvest seed<\/span><\/h2>
Harvest your seed 20 to 30 days after your grass has bloomed, but before it releases its seeds. It\u2019s important that you only harvest once seeds have fully matured<\/a>. If you harvest green, moist seeds, they won\u2019t germinate. Likewise, if you harvest too late, seeds will have already fallen to the ground. <\/p>
The perfect time to harvest your seed depends on where you live and what grass variety you have. <\/p>
When to harvest cool-season grass seed<\/span><\/h3>
![\"illustration](\"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/rsz_grass_zones.png\")
<\/figure><\/div> Cool-season grasses<\/a><\/strong> (grown in the top half of the U.S.) tend to bloom in late spring or early summer, so you\u2019ll want to harvest them in mid-July to late August<\/strong>.<\/p>
- When to harvest warm-season grass seed<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li>
- Step 1: Choose your harvesting location\u00a0<\/a><\/li>
- What you need<\/a><\/li>