The ideal Lawn Seed Blends
Contrary to single-variety lawn seed, lawn seed combinations allow you to reap the benefits of several grass species and varieties. By combining many species, seed blends may be tailored to a certain place’s climate, use and lighting. Blends will also be more likely to defy disorders than single-species lawns, because of their genetic diversity. The best lawn seed mixtures, therefore, contain grasses with various characteristics.
Species for Mediterranean Climates
A Mediterranean climate demands grasses which grow well in warm and arid conditions, such as Bermuda grass and buffalo grass. Both these grasses tolerate drought well but do not tolerate shade. Zoysiagrass is a warm-season grass that tolerates shade well. Fescues also tolerate shade, even though they prefer cooler climates. Since Mediterranean climates may have cool winter temperatures, the very best lawn seed mixtures will often contain some cool-season grass seed, like Kentucky bluegrass, perennial ryegrass or red fescue. Including a cool-season grass ensures that at least a few of the lawn will stay green if temperatures fall.
Mixes for Partial Shade
By deciding on a mixture of sun loving and shade tolerate seeds, you can make sure that some of the seed mixture will grow in each individual portion of a lawn which has both shady and sunny areas. A mixture of Bermuda grass and zoysiagrass will grow in both shady and sunny locations. Buffalo grass will work in place of Bermuda grass, however, it tolerates less wear. To improve the mix’s trendy weather tolerance, add on a cool-season variety that prefers sunlight, as well as one which tolerates shade. Red fescue tolerates shade, and perennial ryegrass does well in sunlight. You can mix these four seed types in identical proportions or include more of the sun-loving grass seed to get an area with lighter shade. If the lawn gets thin in shady locations, overseed with a shade-loving grass variety to allow it to fill in. If it will become thin as the warm-season grass dies out during a trendy winter, then overseed with a cool-season grass in the fall.
Blends for Uniform Appearance
Should you prefer a uniform lawn texture, then consider blending different cultivars of the identical grass species. A same-species blend provides the lawn better disease resistance than one cultivar, while maintaining a uniform texture. A blend of hybrid Bermuda grasses will endure high traffic and the warm temperatures in a Mediterranean climate and drought, though it won’t do well in shade. A blend of fine fescues will tolerate shade better and have a very nice texture, but the growth will slow in hot summer weather.
Adjustments to Standard Mixes
The best lawn seed mixtures are tailored to your individual lawn area. A standard turf seed mixture includes Kentucky bluegrass and perennial ryegrass with at least 15 percent by weight perennial ryegrass. If the area receives a lot of traffic, include about half perennial ryegrass to improve the lawn’s durability. This kind of mixture will increase well year-round and bear light shade. But it will require supplementary irrigation during dry weather. To make the mixture more drought bear, add a few Bermuda grass. To improve a lawn’s shade tolerance, then add some nice fescue to a standard Kentucky bluegrass and perennial ryegrass mixture.