Hydroseeding in Novi, MI

Hydroseeding in Novi often means working near water, even on lots that do not look like lakefront. Walled Lake, the largest lake in the city, is the headwaters of the Middle Branch of the Rouge River, and most of Novi drains to the Rouge. The north and west sides drain to the Huron River instead. Wherever you are, the runoff from a bare yard ends up in one of those two rivers.

Small lakes with a history

Several of Novi's smaller lakes were dug as gravel pits or built as stormwater retention areas. Homes around those ponds tend to have backyards that slope straight to the water. We keep a silt fence or a fiber roll along the bottom of the slope while the new grass fills in, and on the steeper banks we use an erosion control blanket rather than mulch alone.

A city that kept growing

Novi grew from 55,224 people in 2010 to 66,243 in 2020, a 20 percent jump, and the mid-century farmland that once surrounded it has mostly been built over. Newer subdivisions mean builder-graded lots where topsoil was stripped and only partly returned. We test how much is there, add more where the subsoil shows, and fine grade before seeding so the lawn is not fighting compacted fill for years.

Oakland County erosion rules

Oakland County's program covers communities without their own soil erosion office and requires a permit for earth changes over one acre or for projects over 225 square feet within 500 feet of a lake, stream, wetland or drain. For homeowners, the county asks that silt fence stay up until grass is established and sets final stabilization at 90 percent cover about one inch tall. Ask the city which office handles your lot; either way, we plan seeding to hit that cover target.

What we see most in Novi

• New-construction lawns on builder grade
• Pond-edge slopes that need blankets
• Hydroseeding after drainage or utility work
• Overseeding thin lawns in older sections near Twelve Mile

Get a free estimate or call (313) 546-6862.