How to Overseed With Annual Rye Grass

You can get rid of brown, sparse grass during the winter and have a lush, green lawn all winter. Annual rye grass is a cool-season grass that is used to overseed existing lawns that have a warm-season grass. Rye grass provides your lawn with a thick green carpet of grass and dies in the spring when the warm-season grass comes out of winter dormancy. Rye grass grows quickly and with a regular maintenance schedule, your lawn will be the envy of the block.

Measuring tape
Lawnmower
Rake
Drop spreader
Stiff broom
Hose
Organic fertilizer

Instructions

- 1
  Measure the lawn and calculate the square footage of the yard. Use 5 to 10 pounds of annual rye grass seed per 1,000 square feet.
- 2
  Set the mowing height on the lawnmower to the lowest setting and mow the grass. Rake the lawn and dispose of the grass clippings.
- 3
  Adjust the spread rate on the drop spreader according to the directions on the bag, then fill it with half of the rye grass seed.
- 4
  Spread the seed starting along one edge of the lawn. Overlap the wheel marks on each pass for even distribution of rye grass seed.
- 5
  Fill the drop spreader with the remaining seed and spread at right angles to the first pass with the drop spreader.
- 6
  Sweep the grass with a stiff broom to knock the rye grass seeds onto the soil below the existing grass.
- 7
  Spread organic fertilizer evenly over the entire lawn.
- 8
  Water the grass well after overseeding and fertilizing, then water three times a day until you mow the grass for the first time.

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