How to Care For Your Hydro Mulch Lawn

What is hydraulic seeding & mulching?

It is a process whereby seed, water, fertilizer, and a wood fiber mulch (Hydro Mulch) are mixed together and applied over the ground. In one application, the ground is seeded, fertilized and mulched. The green mat that covers your lawn is Hydro Mulch – a virgin wood fiber that performs these functions:

1. Water Retention
   Because Hydro Mulch fibers can retain up to 10 times their weight in water, seeds are kept moist. The result is a quicker and thicker grass stand.
2. Soil Retention
   Hydro Mulch fibers help prevent wind and water erosion.
3. Protection
   Hydro Mulch fibers protect young seeds from the scorching sun and maintain soil temperature.

As your lawn grows and becomes established, the mulch fibers will gradually decompose and add nourishment to the soil. Because Hydro Mulch fibers are a processed mulch, foreign seeds and other waste material are not introduced into your new lawn. Since you do not have to remove the fibers, the messy clean up operation and loose blowing debris that result from other mulches is eliminated.

The first 14 days are important

The establishment of your new Hydro Mulch lawn is easy: The seed, fertilizer, and mulch are in place. All you have to do is water it.

Keep the lawn moist at all times, preferably by frequent light sprinklings. However, if this is not possible, soak your lawn for 30 minutes, or until runoff is detected.

This watering process should be repeated twice a day (early morning and evening), every day for the first week and every other day after that until the first cutting. Don’t let the lawn dry out. If the germinating seedlings dry out, they will die.

Watering your lawn

Watering is most effective if done during the evening or early morning hours when sunlight cannot cause excessive evaporation.

After your lawn becomes established, it requires approximately one inch of water per week. The soil should be soaked through when watered. Water should penetrate at least 6″ into the soil to insure deep rooting.

Fertilizing your lawn

A commercial fertilizer was most likely applied with your lawn seed and Hydro Mulch fibers. This initial application of fertilizer should provide the nutrients to give the young grass seedlings a healthy start.

An additional application of fertilizer should be considered after two to three months of growth. Consult your landscaper or your nurseryman for more specific advice concerning the type and frequency that fertilizer should be applied.

Mowing your lawn

A new lawn should be mowed as soon as the grass blades are 2″ to 3″ high. Delaying the first cutting may allow long grass blades to bend over, causing a shabby appearance.

Subsequent mowing should be done often and lawn mower blades should always be kept sharp to prevent bruised and torn grass, which develop unsightly brown spots.

The cutting heights for lawns vary according to grass species. Creeping or spreading grasses, such as Bermuda, perform and appear best when mowed 1/2 inch to 1 inch high.

However, when these grasses are mowed short, frequent fertilizing is needed. Fescues and Bluegrasses should be mowed considerably higher at heights of 2 inches or more. Consult your applicator concerning the type of grass and the proper cutting height for your area.

Weed control

Weeds will appear in your new lawn. They come from seeds which have lain dormant in the ground or which have been carried in by winds or birds.

These weeds can best be controlled by growing good healthy grass. Grass which is properly watered, mowed and well fertilized provides too much competition for weed plants to gain any stronghold. Should your lawn ever become damaged or have bare spots, reseed immediately to prevent competitive weed growth from becoming established.

If weeds do appear, consult your local nurseryman for the proper methods and chemicals to control weeds before they have gained a stronghold in your lawn.

Pest control

Pest control generally requires chemical treatment. Your local nursery or garden center has a variety of compounds for use on new lawns.

If a severe problem exists or the pests are unknown, it is best to contact your lawn care professional.

Lawn Diseases

There are many factors that may influence the existence of disease in the lawn. Geographic region, grass variety, moisture and soil type are several.

Contact your lawn professional for information on controlling various lawn diseases.

Maintaining Shaded Areas

Shaded areas require some additional effort to assure healthy turf. Turf in these areas generally suffers in three ways:

1. Tree root systems tend to rob nutrients from the grass blades
2. Lack of sunlight caused by the shading effect of trees
3. Fallen leaves create a matted condition, which prevents the turf from adequate exposure to sunlight and air

Thoroughly fertilizing trees and heavily fertilizing the turf can provide adequate nutrients for turf.

Leaves should be raked early in the spring while the tree branches are still bare to allow the maximum amount of sunlight to reach this grass, which is generally shaded throughout the remainder of the growing season.