Hydroseeding

Hydroseeding being carried out at the Isle of Grain, Kent, UK

A commercial hydroseeder

Hydroseeding (or hydraulic mulch seeding, hydro-mulching, hydraseeding) is a planting process which utilizes a slurry of seed and mulch. The slurry is transported in a tank, either truck- or trailer-mounted and sprayed over prepared ground in a uniform layer. Helicopters may be used in cases where larger areas must be covered. Aircraft application may also be used on burned wilderness areas after a fire, and in such uses may contain only soil stabilizer to avoid introducing non-native plant species. Hydroseeding is an alternative to the traditional process of broadcasting or sowing dry seed. It promotes quick germination and inhibits soil erosion.

The mulch in the hydroseed mixture helps maintain the moisture level of the seed and seedlings. The slurry often has other ingredients including fertilizer, tackifying agents, green dye and other additives.

Advantages of hydroseeding

Hydroseeding is used to seed grass on commercial sites (highways/motorways etc.), golf courses, lawns and areas too large, inaccessible or unsuitable for conventional methods. Starting a lawn by hydroseeding is considerably cheaper than laying sod/turf and quicker than using seed. It is also used to spread mixtures of wildflower and tree/shrub seeds or turf grasses for erosion control. The process is called sprigging (or hydro-sprigging) when the slurry contains stolons or rhizomes instead of seed.

History of hydroseeding

The first commercial hydroseeder was invented in United States in the early 1950s in order to efficiently shoot seed and fertilizer over broad areas. The process is now used throughout the world, arriving in the United Kingdom in the 1960s.

See also

• Broadcast seeding
• Erosion control

References

• WatchYourDirt.com - An Erosion and Sediment Control Video Resource
• California Department of Transportation (CalTrans). Sacramento, CA. "Construction Site Best Management Practices (BMP) Manual." Section 3, BMP No. SS-4. March 2003.