When your lawn project calls for quick color and fast establishment, count on Pennington Annual Ryegrass. Yes, even during the winter, cool-season grasses … As the temperatures warm up, and we find ourselves spending more time at home, it becomes highly important to keep our lawns in top-notch condition. In terms of maintenance, you should mow ryegrass to its recommended mowing height of 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 inches, which makes the grass look dense, and look and perform its best. For areas with cool winter season, selecting perennial species is a wise decision, as other lawn grass types hardly tolerate winter. Even though the seed of wild ryegrass may be weak in its developmental stages, the grass is very rhizomatous and maintains stands for many years once established. Maintaining a dense, vigorous turf is the first step in effective weed control. The best-known use for annual ryegrass is in overseeding lawns, specifically, in overseeding lawns that are composed of warm-season grasses in the South. Post-emergently, you can spot treat with Glyphosate. From there, you can pursue other landscape ideas to enhance your yard and to considerably improve curb appeal. All content copyright © 2019 Pennington Seed, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This guide will help identify the different ryegrass types to help you determine what would be best for your current yard type. While you are tilling the soil, be sure to mix in some rich organic material. Gulf Annual Ryegrass is a versatile species used for cover cropping, lawn, pasture, and forage. Q: How many pounds of ryegrass make an acre? NuSprint … at the latest. Whether you need temporary support for a permanent northern lawn or temporary winter color in southern lawns, this annual grass is an ideal choice. Part of the Poaceae family, ryegrass is a cool weather, fast-growing grass that offers great versatility in that it can be used as a lawn grass, livestock forage to over-seed lawns in the winter or for erosion management, owing to its extensive root system. Ryegrass also makes an excellent option for pasture use, given that it is highly digestible, and favored by animals such as cattle, horses, and deer. Undesirable Lawns It establishes rapidly, has a long growing season, is rich in nutrient content, and can even be grazed, and used for hay or silage. Perennial ryegrass is regarded as one of the toughest, and most traffic tolerant turf covers that can be grown. Answer: The best time to fertilize over-seeded ryegrass is roughly around October 15 or October 20th at the latest. Perennial ryegrass is a permanent lawn choice in cooler … A healthy lawn reduces the need for pesticides to control weeds and other unwanted vegetation. Annual ryegrass is cheaper than perennial one. Rake, harrow lightly or aerate the bare spots to prepare the seedbed. Wild ryegrass is regarded as a cool-season perennial and looks like a mix between salt grass and Bermuda grass. Purchase the seed type according to your plan. Just like many cover crops, annual ryegrass works great at building soil, sequestering nitrogen, boosting an organic matter, and improving inflation. Whether annual or perennial, winter rye grass is grown extensively for ground cover, erosion control and weed suppression during the winter and spring. On a brighter note, annual ryegrass adapts easily to many soils and climates and boasts fast germination and outstanding growth rates. This will allow the new seed to make contact with the soil. If using annual ryegrass sow 10 pounds of seed per 1,000 square feet. Prepare the soil by tilling to a depth of 4–6 inches. For starters, ryegrass is not a new type of grass in this space, but in fact, was used earlier for over 300 years as animal forage. Sow the seed and gently rake to cover. However, the common trait between all the types of ryegrass is they are suitable for growing in cool and damp climates but do not grow well in hot and dry places. Fertilize and lime if needed. Ryegrass, annual or perennial, is a vital grass for soil stabilization during the winter. Ryegrass performs best with well-drained loam soil but can also grow well on poor or rocky soils if the right conditions are met. We do not specifically market to children under 13. All trademarks are either the property of Central Garden & Pet Company, its subsidiaries, divisions, affiliated and/or related companies or the property of their respective owners. When overseeding your existing lawn with Oregon-grown Annual Ryegrass it takes surprisingly little water for seed germination and maintenance of your lawn … This should give the lawn a green cover without causing transition problems in the spring due to a thick stand of ryegrass. Soil pH in a range of 5.5 to 7.5 typically supports the best perennial ryegrass growth. Also see: Grass Types That Perform Well In Shade. It can be store-bought topsoil or even compost you may have laying around or even just dead leaves you can find around most yards. Sow the grass seed by evenly spreading according to the recommended seeding rates. It has a pleasant, pale green color and happens … Ryegrass will tolerate clay and hard-packed soils as well but it is best to treat the clay firs with some organic material that will help with the growth. It requires frequent irrigation to maintain its rich color during periods of low rainfall and heat, and during southern winters. 3. Cultural and … Annual ryegrass (Festuca perennis), also referred to as Italian ryegrass, is a bunch-type grass that can be used as a nurse crop for quick cover or for winter overseeding of bermudagrass on … Perhaps the most important benefit that annual ryegrass provides for your Texas lawn is an ultimate forcefield of protection. Q: Should I plant annual or perennial ryegrass? When overseeding into an established lawn, apply 5 pounds of ryegrass per 1000 square feet. Currently, about 98% of all the seed sold today was grown and harvested in the state of Oregon. The leaves of ryegrass especially on the back of the blade tend to be shinier than the front, and the tips of the leaves are tapered. Ryegrass is available in two common species – annual ryegrass and perennial ryegrass, where both offer their unique set of advantages, and disadvantages. 2. Planting annual ryegrass as a cover crop allows the dense roots to catch excess nitrogen and help break up hard soils… Many people make the grave mistake of simply stuffing fertilizer into their lawns in an effort to make it as green as possible, and to mask the soil’s imperfections, but that’s just not going to cut it! Remove clippings and rake, harrow lightly or aerate the soil where there is existing lawn. Cool-season grasses such as bluegrasses, ryegrasses, and fescues tend to yield vigorous growth and prevail in the northern regions of the United States with cool spring, and fall seasons. Simply scalp back the annual ryegrass with the mower in May or early June (whenever the nighttime … It also makes a great nurse grass until the other grasses are established. As such, there are several key differences between annual and perennial ryegrasses. If the area is barren, and overseeding is used to reduce soil erosion, then apply 10 pounds of ryegrass seed per 1,000 square feet. 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