You can use at least half a dozen types of lawn grass, but the most popular is the workhorse variety named turf-type tall fescue.
Tall fescue is especially valuable in regions where a temperate climate shifts to hot, humid summers. Tall fescues prefer cooler summers, but breeders have worked to create new varieties that cope better with drought, various soil types and diseases associated with summer mugginess, especially brown patch disease.
Newer varieties also have finer blades, making for a more attractive lawn.
For these reasons, it pays to find tall fescue blends with these superior regional varieties. Turf scientists at the University of Maryland and Virginia Tech have compiled a recommended list based on long-standing trials at three locations in the two states.
Use a blend with at least two recommended varieties, and preferably three or four. The list consists of 62 varieties and can be found in a publication titled "Recommended Turfgrass Cultivars for Certified Sod Production and Seed Mixtures in Maryland."
The type and variety of seed is given on every seed label. You are more likely to find regionally recommended varieties in independent garden centers than in mass merchandisers. The seed is bound to cost more, but it is a false economy to buy lesser seed, especially considering the work involved in preparing the new lawn and the life you want out of it.
In the past 10 years, said Michael Goatley, a turf-grass expert at Virginia Tech, "the improvements that have come in terms of genetics are quite drastic."
Here are some other popular grass varieties.
- Kentucky bluegrass
This is a handsome medium-textured grass, but it needs skillful maintenance - and chemicals - to flourish in hot, humid regions. Despite its name, it is more often found in cooler northern states. It is a component in sod mixes, because it knits the turf together.
- Perennial ryegrass
Perennial ryegrass is another type unsuited to hotter climes and is used as a nurse grass for other varieties, because it germinates quickly. In Virginia, it is not considered a permanent grass at elevations below 2,000 feet, and in Maryland, it is not a recommended turf variety, because of its susceptibility to various diseases.
- Fine fescue
Fine fescue varieties tolerate shadier areas better than other grasses but are prone to browning during the summer and cannot take as much foot traffic as tall fescues.
- Zoysia grass
Zoysia grass is expensive to install, because the standard method is with sprigs or plugs, spaced to grow together in a couple of years. It is an attractive turf for hot climates, and it can be mowed low for that groomed look. It requires less fertilizer than cool-season grasses and is thus kinder to the environment. Its major flaw is that it turns a straw brown at the end of the growing season and stays dormant until the following spring.
Feature Image: Unsplash
This originally appeared on The Washington Post | Author: Adrian Higgins
