Getting Your Lawn Ready for Seeding

A little preparation before we arrive helps us do a better job and gives your new grass the best possible start.

Mow a Little Shorter

Mow your lawn to about 2–2.5 inches before we arrive.

This is especially important for verticutting. If we are only aerating and overseeding, shorter is helpful but not required. Don’t scalp the lawn.

Bag or Break Up Heavy Clippings

Bag clippings if possible. No bagger? Mow twice to break them up and rake any heavy piles.

Too many clippings can keep seed from reaching the soil.

Mark Your Sprinkler Heads

If you have an irrigation system, please mark your sprinkler heads before we arrive if possible.

If you can’t, we can locate and mark them. Just make sure we have access to your controller, Hydrawise system, or valve boxes so we can run the zones.

Mark Private Lines and Dog Fences

Classic Lawns will request a Missouri 811 utility locate, but 811 does not mark private lines.

Please mark any invisible dog fences, landscape lighting, private water or electrical lines, or other shallow buried wires before we arrive.

We’ll do our best to avoid them, but we cannot be responsible for damage to unmarked private lines.

Water Before We Arrive

This is the most important step.

Water deeply during the 2–3 days before your service so the soil is moist several inches deep.

Try the screwdriver test: it should push into the soil about 2–3 inches fairly easily.

We want moist soil — not bone dry and not muddy or saturated.

On Seeding Day

Please have gates unlocked and the lawn clear enough for our equipment to work.

Light rain usually isn’t a problem, but heavy rain or saturated soil may require us to adjust the schedule.