Choosing Grass

Choose the best grass for your lawn.

Most lawn grasses are known either as cool-season (for the northern and mountain regions of the U.S., Zones 3 through 6) or warm-season (for the southern half to third, Zones 7 through 10). Talk to your Cooperative Extension Service or local nursery and garden center about the best grass or combination of grasses for your lawn.

Cool-Season Grasses
Kentucky bluegrass, with its blue-green hue, is the most popular cool-season grass. It grows best in areas with mild summers and ample rainfall. Other cool-season grasses include:

• Perennial rye Most often mixed with Kentucky bluegrass. Deep green and glossy, it sprouts quickly and grows in clumps.
  
  
• Fescues Red fescue starts as a fine-textured bunch grass that develops into a solid mat. It performs well in dry soils and in sun and shade. Hard fescue is slower-growing but requires little maintenance. Both fescues are best used in mixtures with other grasses such as Kentucky bluegrass. A fine fescue such as 'Highlight Chewings' is medium green and fine-bladed. Moderately disease-resistant, it tolerates low mowing, which is fatal to most fescues.

Warm-Season Grasses
Areas with warm or hot summer nights require grasses that are drought- and heat-tolerant.

• Bermuda This popular type is a strong creeping and spreading grass, but it sometimes tends to develop thatchy spots. It is durable and pest-resistant, but it is meant only for sunny locations. In shade, Bermuda grass becomes thin and leggy.
  
  
• Zoysia This grass is slow to become established. It requires 3 to 4 years in most areas, and weeds can take over before it makes a lawn. Deep-rooted and drought-tolerant, it becomes dormant during cold weather and tends to stay brown longer than other grasses.
  
  
• St. Augustine This grass has a very coarse texture and is heat-tolerant. It spreads rapidly and can creep into nearby lawns and flower beds.
  
  
• Turf-type tall fescues These are slow to establish themselves but are especially tolerant of wear and drought.

From Householder's Survival Manual

 

• • Landscaping
• • Gardening
• • Lawn Care
• • Shopping Guides

• Ingredients of a Healthy Lawn
• The five steps to a strong, lush lawn.
• 
• How to Use a Spreader
• Apply fertilizer and spread grass seed with drop and broadcast spreaders.
• 
• Common Lawn Problems
• Fix any lawn problem with our helpful hints.
• 
• Revive Tired Grass and a Thinning Lawn
• How to use an aerator and power rake to get an old lawn ready for seeding.
• 
• Seasonal Lawn Care
• A beautiful yard requires season-specific care.
• 
• Helpful Lawn Accessories
• Besides the lawn mower, these tools will help keep your lawn looking beautiful.
• 
• Sharpening Mower Blades, Axes and Shovels
• A bench grinder, file and cone-shaped blade balancer are the key tools for creating a sharp edge and well-balanced blade. Plus, how to file and hone an axe using a sharpening stone, and even how to sharpen a shovel.
• 

• Be Inspired
• 10 Celebrities Who Give Back
• 7 Amazing Stories, $700,000 to Charity
• Virginia Cervasio: Making It Matter
• PLUS:
• Quiz: What's Your Celebrity Cause IQ?