I planted cool season grass seed in North Sunset zone 18 (So Cal) six days ago. Put Kellogs topper on it and watered it several times a day to keep it moist. Thus far there is no show of new grass plants. The first few days were cool but now the last two it has been warm and even 94 degrees today. When should this grass make an appearance or have I just lost it?
With light watering twice a day. Just give it a few more. You'll see. :-)
Grass can take up to 21 day to sprout depending on the grass varity you are using. Don't let the seed dry out too much and keep the birds out of it and you'll have lawn in no time. Good luck.....
What's the soil temp, and what are the species involved? Ky bluegrass, for instance, takes about a month to sprout well, unless you've primed the seed.
Kay
Its Scotts Turf Builder Sun and Shade.
34% Boreal creeping red fescue 23% Continental perennial ryegrass 20% Omega 3 perennial ryegrass 20% Kenblue kentucky bluegrass10 -14 days minimum time
5-10 days minimum time 10-21 days minimum time
Cool season grasses generally prefer to germinate at night temps of about
10-15oC, 20oC during the day. When you get up to about 25oC, Ky Bluegrass tends to enter a secondary dormancy or take a much longer time to germinate.Don't forget... once seed has started to germinate, you can't let it dry out.
Kay
>Thanks for this Kay. There is now (at 8 days ) beginning to show green from viewing close. Didn't know of that "secondary dormancy". Hope it doesn't take until next Autumn. I would not have gone down this path if it were not for my lawn being taken over by Kikuyu grass. I used glyphosphate last Autumn and angain in ealy May when it was growing again strong. If that doesn't stop it I am probably beaten.
Were it not for a homeowner's associati> >> > >> > I planted cool season grass seed in North Sunset zone 18 (So Cal) six > > days
Cool season grasses tend to do best when planted in the fall. You might want to grab another sack of seed and toss it in the vegetable drawer of the refrigerator, so you can overseed in the fall. It's really tough to find cool season seed in the fall, and most of what's out there has been improperly stored.
You'll want to keep an eye out for kikiyu, and possibly do some spot treatments. I'd suggest a wiped application... wad of paper towel soaked in glyphosate, you wearing gloves.
Remember canopy closure is one of the best methods of weed control, so try to thicken things up as much as possible as soon as possible.
Of course, I'm ornery enough I might have planted sorghum or such and mowed it off at about 4". Hey, it's a grass, it's mown.... >;-)
Kay, who's glad she lives out in the country, even if the neighbors haven't quite finished dealing with the three abandoned trucks that appeared when they burnt down their himalayan blackberry...
Have seen mentions recently of Buffalo grass and that has my interest. Basically I'm growing stuff where nothing was meant to grow outside of Winter, and that drought resistant. Just insanity.
The Buffalo grass is supposed to require less watering and mowing both but again the homeowner's association might look askance at it.
Unless they're pretty good botanists, I doubt they'd know... >;-)
Seriously, that's a far better choice for southern California than cool season grasses (unless you're on top of Mt. Baldy, with a limitless free water supply. )
Call around to the local arboretums and botanical gardens. Chances are you'll find a test plot of buffalo grass to look at. I've not seen it grown in S. Cal, but I bet it would do just fine.
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