How Much Grass Seed Do I Need to Overseed? (Essential Information)

How Much Grass Seed Do I Need to Overseed

Want a lawn full of grasses? A simple solution to that, try overseeding! Try it this fall, and trust me, you won’t be disappointed! Today you are going to read the complete How Much Grass Seed Do I Need to Overseed? (Essential Information)

So, if you want to reseed or overseed your lawn, and if you have already selected which grass you’re going to use, then the best thing you can do is to follow the instructions given on the back of the seed bag. However, if you haven’t decided yet, then I’d recommend you to do that first.

Some Facts Regarding Overseeding Amount…

There are different sorts of grasses for both the cold season and the warm season. However, if you want to overseed the lawn, no matter what seed you take, you’ll need at least 1~5 pounds of seed per 1000 square feet lawn.

Though I gave that estimation based on the average. But know that the cooler season grasses will need comparatively a lot more than the warm season grass. Other than that, there are some pretty obvious differences in how you should apply them in your yard. You’ll need to apply some seeds, such as the coated ones, at a heavier rate.

In the case of new lawns, overseeding is a bit tough! You’ll need much more seeds than the amount you’ll need for older lawns. How much more, you ask? Well, to be precise, it’s almost double the number of seeds you’ll need for older lawns. On top of that, if you use a basic drop spreader, you can get the same result with a lesser than normal seed amount because then you wouldn’t need to worry about wastage.

Grasses You can Use for Overseeding

There are a lot of grass options you might find around you. However, you should choose depending on the region and whether you’re having in your environment. Let me give you a few cases to consider.

Suppose, you’re living in the northern region that is very infamous for its winter. In this situation, you can go for the grasses such as Perennial Ryegrass, Fescues, or Kentucky Bluegrass. However, if you’re from the southern region where the temperature is high and the environment is tropical and humid, you should go for Bermudagrass, Bahia, Zoysia, St. Augustine, or Centipede.

Amount of Grass Seeds to Use for Overseeding

It is very important to know how much grass seed you might need to populate your lawn with grasses. However, over-seeding, in this case, is very important! I daresay, the most important factor in fact. Because no matter how skilled you are at watering the lawn, if you don’t overseed, there’s a huge possibility of getting uneven grass coverage.

Depending on the climate condition, the temperature, and the type of grass, you should choose the dosage. However, let me give you a rough estimation for that. For every 1000 square feet of lawn, you should sow at least 2 to 3 pounds of seed. But if you want to overseed this amount should be around 5 pounds. However, don’t sow more than that except for a few exceptions!

Different Grass Seeds and Their Overseeding Amount

Different grasses have different dosage amounts for overseeding. In this section, I’ll be discussing some common grass types that you might want to use on your lawn. All of these calculations are based on how many pounds of seeds you’d need for every thousand square feet of land.

Perennial Ryegrass

Perennial Ryegrass, as I already told you, is grass that grows well in winter. So, in comparison to the grasses that grow in summer, you will need these grass seeds more. Result? Per 1000 square feet, 5-6 pounds in any older lawn. However, if it’s a new lawn, you might need to use 9 to 10 pounds per thousand square feet.

Kentucky Bluegrass

Kentucky bluegrass is a very prime summer-type grass in the tropical region. This grows very fast and well in the spring season. So, you don’t need many seeds to overseed this grass. About 1-2 pounds in every 1000 square feet in any mature lawn. But in a comparative new lawn, sow about 2 to 3 pounds instead.

Fescue

These are the grasses that grow taller pretty fast. To overseed your lawn, if it’s older, then you should consider sowing 4 to 5 pounds of Fescue grass seeds. On the contrary, if you have a new lawn, you might want to sow about 8 to 10 pounds of seeds on your lawn.

Bahia

To oversee Bahia grass, you’d need it to be the same amount that you used for tall Fescue on older lawns. However, there’s a slight difference in the new lawn overseeding dosage. To overseed in your new lawn, you might need to use about 7 to 10 pounds of seeds for every thousand square feet of land.

Bermuda Grass

Bermuda Grass is the grass with the second-highest seed efficiency. Because this grass needs only about 0.75~1.25 pounds of seed to overseed about 1000 square feet of land. But when it comes to a new lawn, this number should be double, right? Well, yes, and then again no. confused? Frankly, it takes only 1.5 to 2.5 pounds of seed on 1000 square feet of new lawn.

Centipede

This grass takes the position for the least amount of seed needed for overseeding. With only 0.5 pounds, 1000 square feet of land will be full of centipede grass. And if you have a new lawn, then this amount doubles to 1 pound for the same amount of land.

Zoysia

Zoysia is the most popular grass you might find in the market. They are very popular because of their unique weed-killing capability. Now, they’re also relatively very efficient with a high growth rate. You’d need only 1 pound of seeds to populate an entire 1000 square feet of lawn which become 2 pounds in case of new lawns. Also, You can visit Best Riding Lawn Mower for Hills in 2022 you need.

How Much Grass Seed Do I Need

Pro-Tips:

  1. If you intend to plant St. Augustine grass, you might want to install sods or plugs in your lawn.
  2. Make sure to check if the seeds you’re buying are coated or not. Coated grass seeds have a different way of planting, growing, nurturing, and harboring the grasses than that of uncoated seeds.

Final Words

Different sorts of grass will need a different amount of seeds for overseeding, as you can already see. It also varies on the fact whether you’re planting them on a new or an old lawn. Though I talked about a general idea, taking 1000 square feet of land as an ideal standard, you can also estimate this calculation using different calculating formulas as well.

I wrote this article for you in case you get too confused reading the instructions at the back of the packet. If you’re still confused, I’d recommend you read this article from the start again.

Lastly, if you can actually follow the instructions, within a few weeks, you’ll have an overpopulated lawn full of grass in no time!