BEST GRASS SEED: Top 6 Grass Seeds (2023 Buying Guide) (2023)

FAQs

BEST GRASS SEED: Top 6 Grass Seeds (2023 Buying Guide)? ›

The turf-type fescue family is the best grass seed for variation. Members include fine fescue, creeping fescue, hard fescue and tall fescue grasses (such as Kentucky 31 tall fescue). Due to the variety, tolerance of certain conditions varies.

The turf-type fescue family is the best grass seed for variation. Members include fine fescue, creeping fescue, hard fescue and tall fescue grasses (such as Kentucky 31 tall fescue). Due to the variety, tolerance of certain conditions varies.

What type of seeds grow the fastest? Bermuda grass is the fastest-growing warm season grass, germinating in as little as 10 days. Ryegrass, which grows in cool climates, also germinates that quickly.

Tall fescue and fine fescue are cool-season grasses, but Pennington says this grass can be grown anywhere in the United States. This seed can be used to fill bare spots in your lawn or to seed a new lawn. It also tolerates foot traffic well and is resistant to disease.

Zoysia is ideal because it actually grows differently. It sends out runners or "stolons," expanding sideways more than it grows tall. This is why it is so dense and effective at choking out most summer weeds and replacing existing grass.

{ Perfect Amount of Seed } Choosing a 50 LB bag of seed allows you the option to use a little for spot seed or over seed your entire lawn! Each bag covers up to 10,000 square feet!

Best fast-growing grass seed for semi-shade

For a sunny lawn with some trees, go for a mix of 40-60% Kentucky bluegrass, 30-40 % fine fescues, and 10-20% perennial ryegrass. 'The Kentucky bluegrass and ryegrass will predominate in the sunny areas, and the fine fescues do well in the shade,' explains Peter.

The best month to put grass seed down depends on the type of grass you have. The best time to plant grass seed for cool-season grasses is in early fall or around September. For warm-season grasses, late spring or early summer is the optimal time.

Overseeding can help you get back to the thick, lush, green lawn you've always wanted. By spreading grass seed over your existing lawn, you can thicken up the thin areas, and your lawn will start to look terrific again. (This is different from reseeding, which is when you start over and plant a completely new lawn.)

Keeping your new grass seed consistently damp until it germinates is the most important success factor of all. The seed won't sprout without moisture, and if you water enough to break the seed coating but then let the seeds and seedling grass plants dry out, the young plants will die.

What is the toughest grass to grow? ›

The "toughest" grasses (considering only that characteristic) are the sports-turf grasses like common Bermuda, hybrid Bermuda or zoysia. These grasses have a trailing growth habit and handle heavy foot traffic better than cool-season grasses (like fescues).

Perennial ryegrass is used for the very toughest applications, premiership football pitches, showgrounds, racetracks etc. Over recent years, new varieties of amenity perennial ryegrass have been cultivated to produce finer leaves in order to produce attractive, lush green lawns.

Many of our clients often ask us the question, “Should I plant grass seed or kill the weeds first?” The answer is rather simple. The weeds should be killed first. Any weeds and poor looking grass around the lawn should be killed before any seeds are planted.

Tenacity herbicide is an industry favorite for killing weeds in your lawn without killing your grass. Optimized for cool-season turf, Tenacity can be used as a pre and post-emergent herbicide control for over 46 broadleaf weed and grass species.

Kill weeds and any remaining poor-looking grass with a non-selective herbicide about 2 weeks before you want to seed your lawn.

One 40 lb. bag covers up to 16,000 sq. ft.

One 20 lb. bag covers up to 8,000 sq. ft.

The best overall fertilizer for grass is the Dr. Earth Super Natural Organic Fertilizer, because it includes the three main macronutrients your soil needs: nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium.

Does it matter if you mix grass seed? ›

If you mix turfgrass varieties, you may end up with a lawn that is less than ideal. This is because each type of turfgrass has different requirements in terms of sunlight, water, and nutrients. Thus, when you mix different types of turfgrass, it can be difficult to provide the ideal conditions for all of them.

The important part, when you buy grass seed for your yard, is that the old motto holds true – “you get what you pay for.” Higher quality seed will have better quality varieties, will be more free of weed seeds, and more free of “other crop” seeds.

The best time to water grass seed is in the morning and evening. These are the coolest parts of the day, which allows water to absorb into the ground instead of evaporating.

A few days before planting your new grass seed, water the entire area about 6-8 inches deep each day. Once you've spread the seed, promptly spend about 5-10 minutes watering the top two inches of soil. The seeded area will need to stay moist so the grass seed doesn't dry out and die.

Remove large rocks and debris, fill in low spots, and if your soil is compacted, work it over with a tiller. Your goal is to break the soil down to pea- or marble-sized particles, which will serve as a welcome mat for the grass seed.

Don't overdo or cut corners. Too much grass seed causes undue competition for resources such as light, water and nutrients, and grass seedlings struggle as a result. Too little seed leaves lawns thin or bare.

Once you finish spreading the seed, use a rake to lightly work it into the soil at a depth of about 1/4 inch. Don't bury the seeds any deeper; grass seed needs adequate light to germinate quickly. After raking, pass over the area with a roller, which helps ensure the good seed-to-soil contact your new seed needs.

Seeding to Revive Dead Grass

Seeding a dead lawn is effective but is also the slowest option. You will need to prepare the soil by removing the dead grass and then enriching the soil ahead of laying down new seeds. After the seeds are planted, you will need to fertilize and nurture your grass until it reaches maturity.

If you stop watering, either your seed won't germinate or your precious new grass will die.

What is the purpose of putting straw over grass seed? ›

Straw is a traditional aid that is often recommended to go on top of a newly seeded bed, mainly to help hold in moisture.

Do you long for a lush grass that stays green all year? Fall is the perfect time to establish a beautiful new tall fescue lawn. This popular grass variety adapts well to diverse environments, including damp or shady areas and colder climates.

Perennial Ryegrass

Perennial ryegrass is the most durable variety of grass, so it is the most popular grass for golf courses in northern climates.

Kentucky Bluegrass

It has a deep greenish and sometimes a bluish color and has a coarse, dry texture when touched. Kentucky Bluegrass has an intense root system below the soil. For this reason, it is classified as being an extremely thick and durable grass.

1. Zoysia Grass. Zoysia is best the lowest-maintenance grass due to its ability to grow in various conditions, thanks to its deep root system. It is one of the most drought-tolerant grass species and requires far less water than other types of grass.

RTF [ rhizomatous tall fescue] is an advanced turf-type tall fescue that produces rhizomes. Rhizomes are small underground lateral shoots that allow a plant to spread laterally. This enables the turf area to self repair itself.

Kentucky bluegrass is the most popular grass used for lawn in the United States, and for good reason.

One of the most effective ways to get your grass to grow fast is to fertilize right after you plant. For use on all grass types, reach for Scotts® Turf Builder® Starter® Food for New Grass, which helps grass grow up to 70 percent thicker and 35 percent more quickly (vs. unfed).

How do you grow grass on top of weeds? ›

Once the weeds are dead, use a weeding tool to pull them out by the root, making sure to remove the entire root system. After removing weeds throughout the lawn, seed in bare patches and overseed the entire lawn. Then water to help the new seed germinate.

Make at least 3 applications of seed, each a week or so apart. More applications are fine, too. Applying a large amount of seed to the lawn gives the competitive advantage to the perennial ryegrass over the weed seeds which are already lurking in the soil. Don't apply crabgrass preventer.

Vinegar. Acetic acid is the active ingredient that makes vinegar a weed killer. White vinegar contains about 5% acetic acid. This level of acetic acid burns the tops off weeds but is less likely to kill anything with well-established roots.

Zoysia is ideal because it actually grows differently. It sends out runners or "stolons," expanding sideways more than it grows tall. This is why it is so dense and effective at choking out most summer weeds and replacing existing grass.

Aerating your lawn allows vital nutrients, water, sunlight and oxygen to sink in and reach the root system of your lawn. This will promote a healthy and deep root system, giving you a lush green lawn that is better equipped to defend against the intrusion of unwanted weeds and grasses.

If weedy patches and bare spots make up less than half your lawn, overseeding is an excellent option for you. It is certainly easier and more cost-effective than digging up your entire yard and laying down all new sod, which can be an expensive and painstaking process.

While Kentucky bluegrass stands up to the North's coldest winters, extreme heat and sunshine can scorch or kill its leaves. Tall fescue is more tolerant of hot weather, making it best suited for transitional climate zones and cool-season regions with milder winters.

The answer to the initial question of “can I mix turfgrass varieties?” is “yes”. You can mix turfgrass varieties as long as they are of the same species. But perhaps the better question is “should I?” If you mix turfgrass varieties, you may end up with a lawn that is less than ideal.

Seeding bare spots in lawn areas is a simple task that can be completed in just a few hours. It can take several weeks for new seed to turn into green grass, but the wait is definitely worth it. Before you seed the area, get down and dirty by pulling weeds and removing any dead grass from the area.

Allowing the dead grass to build up also weakens the grass around it and will cause even more of it to die. So removing it is important. Especially if you are planting grass and have more than a half inch of dead grass anywhere in your lawn it needs to be removed before the new seed is planted.

Do you put grass seed down before or after fertilizer? ›

Do I apply the fertilizer before seeding or after? Apply the fertilizer before seeding. When is the best time to plant a new lawn? Spring and fall are the best times to plant a new lawn.

Mixing hybrid bluegrass with tall fescue may increase the quality of the turf stand when compared with individual monocultures of these species. Seeding mixtures of different species increase the genetic variability of a turfgrass stand (Donald, 1963).

Hard (fine) fescue and Kentucky bluegrass seed can be added to the tall fescue seed at the rate of 1 to 2 lb of each species per 1,000 square feet. In the absence of a soil test recommendation, apply a starter-type (high phosphorous) fertilizer. Keep the seedbed moist with light watering several times per day.

Do not put top soil over grass seed, but you can add a thin layer of organic matter to help the seed to germinate. 'Never put topsoil over newly planted grass seed,' says Yamaguchi. 'This won't provide healthy growing conditions – it will actually prevent the seedlings from sprouting by essentially suffocating them.

You'll know if you seeded too heavy when the grass grows in very thick patches. These patches look great initially but are eventually thinned out by turf disease.