Picking the correct type of Grass for your climate

Many factors go into the selection of a type of grass for a particular lawn.

One of the overriding factors is your local climate. The so-called “warm-season” grasses are ideal for the southernmost states in the U.S., whereas “cool-season” grasses predominate in the North and in Canada. In between, for the Eastern U.S., lies the so-called “transition zone,” comprised of zones 6-7. This is a problematic area for growing grass: too hot for some grasses, too cold for others.

Common cool-season grasses include:

• Bentgrasses
• Bluegrasses
• Fescues
• Ryegrasses

Among the common warm-season grasses are:

• Bermudagrass
• Buffalograss
• Zoysiagrass
• Centipedegrass
• Bahiagrass
• St. Augustinegrass

Note, too, that lawns are not always composed of just one type of grass, but rather of a mixture, to take advantage of the strengths of each type.