There are some plants that are simply too much work to spread by hand. Grass seeds, mustards and other small seeds can be planted much faster if you could combine the planting and water process while sending everything across the field. Take a look at how hydroseeding can do just that, and what you need to do to make sure your hydroseeded plants can last through the seasons.

How Does Hydroseeding Work?

The hydroseeding process involves mixing together water, liquid fertilizer and the seeds into a solution or slurry. Some mixtures including a weighted additives such as polyacrylamide as a tackifying agent to keep the seeds in place and resistant against wind movement. The tackifying agent isn't necessary if your planting plan is quick and in areas without high wind risks.

Fertilizer used in hydroseeding isn't your standard mixture compost or manure. Liquid fertilizer is dissolved and barely distinguishable from water's texture in order to move through the hydroseeding system. Do not attempt to mix your own powders or solids into the hydroseeding system without consulting a hydroseeding professional, as it may clog or damage the system.

The mixture is then sprayed across your desired field. Rather than planting in rows or beds, you're covering an entire area with a blanketing spray of seeds. For some plants, this may lead to a "survival of the fittest" method of growth where larger plants simply dwarf smaller plants and dominate with better sunlight absorption, but grasses are often planted in this way with little concern due to their tenacity and ability to go dormant until they have a chance.

Tending To Hydroseeded Vegetation

For basic lawns, simply spray and move on with your life. Many grasses are tenacious to the point that only major disasters or trying to get rid of the grass on purpose will ruin your work. More sensitive, high-maintenance grasses such as bermuda grass or zoysia grass will need regular fertilizing and water draining rather than just watering to keep everything stable.

Rapeseed and mustard plants will need a bit more manual labor. If you want to quickly plant hydroseeded crops due to their high count and low cost, you'll still need to walk through the fields at least on a weekly basis to pull the runts from the ground. Smaller plants may be losing the battle of sunlight, but they're still taking a bit of root space and ground nutrients from larger plants.

If you'd like to leave all plants in place, you'll need to review the spread of your hydroseeding to get most of your seeds a bit further than normal, or at least more spaced out that grasses. Speak with a hydroseeding professional to get the right settings for your plant hydroseeding.

To learn more about hydroseeding, contact a company like Bark Blowers & Hydroseeding Inc.