But of course there are remedies. Targeted precautions can protect lawn seed from birds. But even if the first birds have taken to the lawn seed, there are a few useful tips.
7 helpful measures to protect lawn seeds from birds
Scarecrow: not for nothing used by farmers back then
Even though bird scarers have been used for centuries, they are still effective today. A wide variety of designs help: from imitated humans to plastic ravens and chimes.
Sometimes, however, it can happen that the Birds get used to the bird deterrent and slowly get back to the lawn seed. In that case other measures must serve.
Covering the seed area
These protect the lawn seed from birds, but at the same time offer the possibility that enough light reaches the lawn seed enough light to reach the lawn seed. We recommend to use garden fleece.
It is simply laid out over the lawn seed and fixed to the edges with pegs. Optimally, underlaid stones at the edges provide a small distance between soil and fleece. The advantages of the fleece: It creates a Microclimate, which accelerates germination. In addition, you can easily water the lawn without removing the protector.
Use the lawn mat for sowing
The lawn mat is known to very few people. It is a Biodegradable cellulose mat with incorporated lawn seed. The mat is simply rolled out on the ground surface, covered with some soil and watered.
The integrated fertilizer is carefully dosed and ensures healthy initial growth. The best thing, however, in our case: The Lawn seeds are not accessible to birds. Only when the lawn begins to germinate, the lawn mat dissolves underground.
You do not have to worry about additional protection from birds.
Use sod to establish the lawn
Turf is a professionally grown lawn, which is removed and shipped rolled up. Once at home, you only have to lay the healthy growing lawn. Since the grasses have already germinated, there is no need to worry about damage from birds.
The sod is usually denser and absolutely weed-free. The dense growth also makes it difficult for unwanted plants to penetrate.
However, sod also requires good preparation. Learn more about the installation of sod here>
Cover lawn seeds with a thin layer of soil
Turf belongs to the light germination and must not be buried under any circumstances. However, covering with a thin layer of soil is not problematic. The birds are blocked from seeing the lawn seeds, so there are fewer losses.
Also light rolling of the lawn seeds with the help of a lawn roller helps not only against bird damage, but also against removal by the wind.
Feeding birds: distraction before sowing the lawn
An admittedly unusual idea is to simply feed the birds themselves. The idea behind this is to cover the To direct the focus of the birds to a more easily accessible feed. Whether this trick really works or not, everyone must ultimately decide for themselves.
However, we like the idea of doing something good for the birds of our nature anyway. And in combination with other measures it will certainly contribute a small part for a dense lawn.
Use more seed
As a rule, we advise against sowing more lawn seed than prescribed. More than about 25 g/m² can make the grasses compete too much among themselves for nutrients, water and light.
However, if you have the experience that a large part of the seed disappears anyway, you can use the Increase the seed rate confidently to 30 g/m².
Smaller reseeded areas are often worse affected
It is often experienced that reseeded areas are more intensively targeted by birds. On the small area gaps are usually more noticeable. The animals have a lot of feed on the smallest area. Often they therefore return quickly.
Therefore, we recommend covering especially smaller gaps in the lawn after seeding.
What can you do if birds have eaten first lawn seeds?
If birds have already eaten from the lawn seed, you reseed with the same lawn seed mixture. If the lawn has already partially germinated, one should If possible, do not walk on the surface. Subsequently, you can cover the lawn with stretched garden fleece.
If the young grasses are already longer, it makes sense to resort to a reseeding mixture. Grasses are designed for fast and stable growth. How to shorten the time to germination. The advantage: birds have a shorter time window until the lawn takes root again.
Our recommendation is Turbo reseeding from Wolf Garten to use. The grasses germinate up to 30% faster, so that the birds have almost no chance to give the lawn gaps.
Are there consequences when birds eat the lawn seed?
Whether large gaps appear in the lawn depends on the situation. While some have no problem with birds, for others the lawn looks disastrous after reseeding. Certainly also season is responsible for the extent of the consequences.
In the fall, most report damage to the lawn. The reason could be that grasses take longer to germinate and are slower to take root. Another reason, however, is the increased foraging of birds.
The following consequences result from the damage caused by the birds:
Gaps in the lawn
In order to obtain a lawn without gaps, it is necessary to reseed in this case. Re-seeding is usually more expensive.
Financial consequences
Larger areas of lawn can go into the money. After all, high-quality lawn seed also costs its reasonable price. But also the reseeding through gaps is noticeable.
In case of bad dimensions: New installation
Rarely, it happens that the lawn is not salvageable at all. On the other hand, if you have used low-quality lawn seeds and at the same time have a bird problem, you will not be able to avoid replanting the lawn. All the work necessary to replant must be repeated.
Conclusion: Caution is better than indulgence
Better to think when sowing directly to protect the lawn seed also from birds. Even if the extent of some is less serious than others, prevention is better than cure.