How to Water Grass Seeds

Overview

Gardeners who tackle the project of seeding a lawn have an extensive job ahead of them. Not only must you adequately prepare the soil prior to seeding, but then you must spend approximately the next month watering your grass seeds diligently. Keeping the soil around the germinating grass seeds consistently moist is critical or you will not have a high percentage of grass seeds that germinate and grow.

Step 1

Spread the straw mulch evenly over the entire seeded area. The mulch will help protect the grass seeds from drying out.

Step 2

Water the grass seeds very early in the morning (even before sunrise) every day. Stand on the edge of the seeded area and direct the spray of the garden hose over the seeded area. The goal of watering the germinating grass seeds is to moisten the soil and the mulch evenly without watering so much that you create puddles. Try to apply an equal amount of water to all of the seeded areas and stop before puddles form.

Step 3

Assess the grass seeds in the middle of the day on days that are exceedingly hot, because you may have to water the seeds lightly in the middle of the day to keep them from drying out. Although this is not an optimal time to water (because of evaporation), you may have to apply water at this time if the soil is too dry.

Step 4

Repeat the watering process again in the late afternoon. Watering in the late afternoon will be less efficient because more of the water will evaporate due to heat and sun; however, you must keep the soil moist at all times. Watering only in the morning will not keep the soil moist throughout the entire day.

Step 5

Continue to water the grass seeds two or three times per day until all of the grass seeds germinate. When you see a thick carpet of new grass sprouting over the entire seeding area, you can assume that the majority of the grass seeds have sprouted. Cut your watering back to once per day at this point. Continue watering once per day until the grass grows to approximately 3 inches in height.