The least expensive way to grow a new lawn and transform your yard into a lush lawn is to use grass seed. Knowing a little bit about the different types of lawn seed will go a long way to helping you prepare for seeding your new lawn.
The first thing you will need to determine is which type of grass will perform the best in your local climate. Generally speaking lawn seed is split into two separate categories depending on your climate – these are warm-season and cool-season grasses.
Cool-season grasses, have their largest growing season in the fall and spring, and depending on your area even during winter. They have a preference for temperature ranges in the low to middle 70’s. Cool season grasses perform best in the northern half of the United States where the temperature ranges are perfect for them. These varieties remain green throughout the winter and are the first to green up in the spring time.
Cool Season Lawn Seed
The best time to plant cool-season lawn seed is during the late summer and early fall time. You can also plant in the spring, but that is not ideal for these grass seeds. Popular cool season lawn seeds include fescues, rye grass, Kentucky blue grass, and bent grass. Certain strains of zoysia grass have also been developed specifically for cooler climates but are not well tolerated too far north.
Warm Season Lawn Seed
Warm-season grasses are those that do well in the hotter climates of the south. They tend to green up later in the spring, but will remain green throughout the brutal heat of summer. Warm-season lawn grasses will tend to turn dormant during cold weather and become brown during the winter. While this may seem like a nuisance, remember that you will have a beautiful green grass lawn in the middle of the summer hen other lawns are wilting and dying.
Warm-season lawn seed is best planted in late spring. The highest growth season for warm season grasses is summer time. By the time their best growing season rolls around, your grass seed should have germinated well and be in the process of establising itself. Popular warm-season grasses include Bermuda, buffalo, carpet grass, St. Augustine, zoysia, and bahia grass.
Lawn seed is generally sold by the pound and how much you need will depend upon the type of grass seed that you are planting. This is because the size and weight of different varieties of grass seeds varies widely from one species to another. This size and weight difference is especially important to consider when purchasing lawn seed mixtures. Consider a 50/50 mixture of two grass seeds – your lawn will not necessarily result in being half of each type as one seed may be significantly larger than the other. In this case, there will be quite a bit less of the larger seed in the grass mixture than you would initially think from the ratio alone.When you are looking for the best lawn seed mixture for your area, it is always best to consult with a local agricultural extension. They maintain wonderful lists of seeds and varieties that perform well in your specific environment and can make excellent recommendations. Once you’ve determined the appropriate grass seed or seed mixture for your area, read carefully the labels and guaranteed analysis of any packages you are purchasing. If you are planning on buying lawn seed on the internet, be sure to get this information beforehand. If the ingredients and analysis are not what you are looking for, keep shopping around.
Beware of any miracle products online that do not list the specific lawn grass seed ingredients and ratios – they are generally sold at a high price and in most cases consist of what is in actually a very inexpensive lawn grass variety. The most common one used in this type of “scam” is simple rye grass. If you like rye grass lawn seed, it will be much friendlier on your pocket book to purchase a product from a reputable company that guarantees this is what it is. Purchase all of your lawn seed from a reputable nursery or landscaping supply company and you won’t be disappointed in the results.
photo credit: somegeekintn
