How to Seed a Lawn

If you’ve spent the summer lamenting your tattered yard or wishing that your patch of dirt were a blanket of soft blades, you can stop. It won’t get any better, at least not this year. But next spring could be a whole other story if you seed this fall - the perfect time to start a new lawn. In cold-weather climates, fall’s cooler temperatures prevent the seeds from drying out, but there’s still enough sun and rain to help them germinate before going into hibernation for the winter, without the competition of crabgrass and other weeds that die off this time of year. And the best part is that the whole process is a cinch. “Seeding is the easiest thing for a homeowner to do,” says This Old House landscape contractor Roger Cook. “It just takes a little soil preparation, the right mix of seed, and lots of watering."