How To Protect New Grass Seed From Heavy Rain

Planting grass seed is all about timing. Ideally, wait to plant grass seed when there is not likely to be any heavy rain or drought in the near future. But, having said that, the weather can be tough to predict. And heavy storms are bound to pop up, even when hurricane season is far away. In this event, the best protection for new grass seed is a straw erosion blanket. These degradable straw mats can protect even sloped lawns from the heaviest rain.

Step 1

Calculate the total square footage of your yard before you head to the store. You may not have another chance to run to the store before the storm hits. Erosion blankets generally come in 4-foot by 56-foot rolls, and you will need roughly 50 lawn staples per roll of erosion blanket purchased.

Step 2

Cover the lawn from border to border with erosion blanket strips. The strips are easy to cut with scissors and can easily be tailored to fit your lawn. Place neighboring strips as close together as possible, but do not overlap them.

Step 3

Secure the edges of the erosion blanket strips with the lawn staples. Insert two lawn staples (on either side of the erosion blanket strips) every 2 feet or so by pushing them into the soil with your hand (hammer stubborn lawn staples in with a rubber mallet).

Step 4

Water the seed bed as usual. Wait 45 days for the straw erosion blanket to biodegrade on its own. Then remove the lawn staples once your grass is established well enough to handle foot traffic.