Cool season grass identification
While the most southern areas of Australia can grow cool season grasses throughout the whole year quite easily without the effects of our summers, as we move north and the summers intensify it becomes increasingly difficult to maintain cool season grasses.
A good part of Australia is transitional and can grow various varieties of both warm and cool season grasses quite well.
It is important to know your grass identification, as the maintenance and lawn care products you require vary greatly. Incorrect selection can result in irreversible damage.
Kentucky Bluegrass
Kentucky Bluegrass (Poa pratensis) also referred to as KBG, is a cool-season grass known for its deep green colour, fine texture, and strong recovery from wear. While it’s a staple in North America, Kentucky Bluegrass is gaining popularity in cooler regions of Australia — especially in Victoria, Tasmania, and elevated inland areas with milder summers. Kentucky Bluegrass thrives in areas with: Cool winters and mild summers, Consistent irrigation (it prefers moisture), and well-drained soils. In Australia, it's best suited to…
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Perennial Ryegrass
Perennial ryegrass is a cool season lawn variety. It has shade tolerance with a dark, glossy, rich green colour. Although perennial ryegrass is often used on its own without any problem, it is usually used as a companion grass and often used in combination with a warm season grass and other seed blends. As the weather turns, perennial ryegrass will have high water requirements from spring and continuing through the summer, and will not tolerate either the heat or lack…
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Fescue and Varieties
Fescue is a hardy, all year round cool season grass, making it ideal for the cooler regions of Australia. It can withstand frosts and some short, warm and dry periods. It is commonly a coarser, long-growing grass that can be cut short enough to make a lawn. Related closely to rye grass, fescue is a particularly low-maintenance grass with not much mowing and fertilising required. It has some drought-resistance due to the deep root system of the plant, which can…
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Bent Grass
Bent grass is a cool season lawn type which is probably one of the most beautiful lawns, with a lovely deep rich green colour, a fine leaf and forms a dense, lush mat of carpet-like sod. However, bent grass is not best suited for home lawns. It has a very shallow, dense root mat, really only suited for cold climates where it comes from. It does not tolerate warm weather because of shallow root mat, needs plenty of water and…
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