I live in Tucson, AZ. Is there any kind of grass seed that will grow all year long? I don't want a seasonal grass. Not sure though if it's possible in this hot weather to keep grass alive even with frequent waterings. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance.
Aria
Trying to grow a grass lawn and an English garden in the desert is a fool's folly. It requires huge amounts of water and has been one of the major reasons for water rationing and air pollution in that area.
My advice is to grow xerophytic and succulent plants far more suitable for your area. Contact you local botanical gardens for which plants are best for your area.
When my son relocated from the East Coast to Los Alamos, NM, he tried valiantly to grow a lawn but he gave up - plus city water had to be purchased from the Navajos, who had the water rights. Grow native plants.
Dora
And the entire climate of Arizona changes, like sand through the hour glass.
Anyway, no, there is no grass which will live all year. You do not have the water to support any other than buffalo grass, which is beautiful in a xeric landscape. No mowing, either.
Need a good, cheap, knowledge expanding present for a friend?
I second all of the above. I lived in Tempe for a while and it was miserable trying to keep grass green. Go xeriscapic! You'll be a lot happier meditating on the beauty of cacti vs brown lawn. :) Also, one thing I found objectionable about living there was that everyone's attempts to make their yards look like California and all the swiming pools really contribute big time to the humidity problem in the city. Along with the 100+ temps, that's HOT! You might want to check out Southwest Plants in Santa Fe NM for some ideas. They have a good selection of xeri plant and native grass stock. Sorry I don't have their web address handy, but you can probably find it easily by just typing their name into the search bar. Good luck Gary
High Country Gardens also has a great selection of plants that do well in that type of climate. Very reputable company.
This reminds me of Nixon cranking up the air-conditioning so he could enjoy a fire in the fireplace in summer.
1st suggestion: look into xeriscaping. 2nd suggestion: call a local golf course and see what they use. You also might inquire about their water use/bill.
enjoy a fire in the fireplace in summer.
Yeah, that Nixon was one tricky dick.
Typical Republican logic.
Of course, he did that in the Whitehouse at tax payer's expense.
Nowadays, we have people driving gas guzzling SUVs in the middle of a gasoline shortage!
I live in Phoenix and I agree with the other posts - forget about grassy lawns and go for Xeriscape. But there is really no need to get your plants by mail order. Most local garden centers now have native and exotic desert plants. Boyce Thompson Southwestern Arboretum State Park near Superior AZ and the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix each have two plant sales each year (spring and fall) with great selections with many natives. Tucson Botanical Gardens on Alvernon is smaller than the others but has a good selection of what grows well in Tucson. Web sites:
As to your original question, most lawns are either common or hybrid Bermudagrass oversown with ryegrass in the fall. There is no all-season grass suitable for a lawn but some of the more vigorous Bermuda hybrids will stay green later in the fall and green up a bit earlier in the spring. Most landscapers get their grass from Western Sod Company
See:
Olin
The irony is that Arizone was originally settled because it had enough grass to support cattle - but overgrazing quickly depleted it and it could not regenerate quickly enough on the average of 12 inches of rain a year that the state gets. Of course, we're talking about native grasses - probably bunch grass types -which most people would not think of planting in their yards.
A very dumb idea, growing grass inthe desert, better to grow something else.
Southwestern Idaho is high desert land and supposedly had grass that was between horse belly to back high until they pushed cattle and sheep through that chewed the grass down to the roots and killed them. Of course cheat grass moved in and native grasses are pretty much gone, and we have range fires every 3 or 4 years that burns most of the ground down to and sometimes beneath the perceived surface of the soil and burns the crowns of any bunch grass.
Sadly there doesn't seem to be a lot of places being reseeded to bunch grass. Some areas.. yeah, but not enough. There are going to be some fires here this year due to a wet and cool summer growing conditions.. cheat grass got pretty tall.
Janice
Tucson is a pretty unsuitable place for keeping a lawn. There are many attractive things you can do with xeriscaping.
But if you must have a lawn, here's a whole chapter from the UA Ag. Extension's "Arizona Master Gardener" on lawn grasses that grow fairly well around Tucson:
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