A few weeks ago Beth McCleod, a member of the WOIO Channel 19 weather team and client of Green Impressions, approached our owner Joe Schill about doing a segment on air about a new product being sold on the market named Canada Green.
Beth had an area of her yard that had not been landscaped and thought we could try this this seed to either support the claims or debunk the myths.
We agreed to undertake the challenge and install a new lawn from seed for her as we were curious as to whether this seed would live up to it's claims since we are always on the lookout for a better product for our clients.
The Canada Green grass seed blend advertises the following claims:
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Grass starts growing in just 5 days!
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Tolerates extreme temperatures from -40ºF to 120ºF
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Resilient to heavy foot traffic
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Crowds out weeds including crabgrass
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Resists Bugs
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Stays Green All Winter Long
First we removed all the undesireable grass and weeds from the area
Next we roto-tilled and loosened the soil to a depth of approximately 6 inches. This uncompacts the soil and allows air and water to penetrate deeply enough to allow for a strong root zone of your new grass plants.
We then added topsoil to the entire area filling in low spots and creating a smooth level surface with the proper slope to allow for water runoff. It was at this step that we also ammended the soil with compost and fertilizer to enrich it.
Prepared the soil for seeding - ensuring the surface was level and all the ammended properties were mixed thoroughly
Applied the seed at the recommended rate
(We even put it down at an extra heavy rate due to knowing it was a poor quality seed with low germination rates)
We then applied a layer of Penn Mulch (a recycled paper pellet type mulch) to retain moisture and left Beth with lawn after care instructions noting to especially take the time to water twice a day to ensure the seeds germinate properly. Straw could also be utilized during this step but we wanted to rule out any weed seed that can carry over from the straw for our test purposes.
The growth results of our test plot for this "As Seen On TV" product can be viewed in the video above. After both 7 and 14 days the new seed plot was checked. To date very poor growth results were realized. Which we found a little surprising even for a low quality seed.
Fact: Canada Green is a poor quality grass seed mix that contains annual rye, Kentucky bluegrass, and red fescue. Annual ryegrass is a quick germinating, cool-season, annual grass. Use of annual ryegrass in seed mixtures is discouraged because its aggressive growth prevents the establishment of the more desirable perennial turfgrasses. Home gardeners can buy good quality turfgrass seed mixes at their local garden center for about half the cost of Canada Green.
Our Recommendation: Always take time to prepare your lawn properly as we have illustrated above and ensure to purchase the best quality seed possible, and a seed that is specified for the the unique area you are trying to sow it in.
If you are interested in having your lawn repaired on professionally installed using high quality grass seed such as our contact us today for free estimate today.
