No-mow strategy is a way to have a lawn and still conserve water. Today’s column offers three sources of grasses than can be used as sustainable grasses.
Buffalograss is drought tolerant, and even when grass blades are crispy dry, when given a splash of rain, the grass recovers. There is still time to sow seed of buffalograss so that root systems establish before winter. Buffalograss propagates from seed and vegetatively from stolons (above ground stems or runners) when blades are allowed to grow longer. It makes a delicate turf when not mowed and left to grow to its natural form. The fine-textured, soft grayish-green blades sway gently in the wind with waves rippling with slight breezes. The disadvantages of buffalograss are that it does not grow well in shade, and it does not withstand high traffic.
Seed germination is optimal in warm soil. Therefore, the earliest month to establish buffalograss from seed is July, but seed can be planted in August when soil temperatures are warm, which favor rapid germination. A Texas source for buffalograss is Frontier Hybrids, Abernathy, Texas, frontierhybrids.com, (806) 298-2595.
Fescue has a reputation for a water-guzzling cool season grass, but there are drought tolerant types. Two sources that market grass fescue seed as a grass suited for sustainable, low maintenance lawns are Prairie Nursery at prairienursery.com, (800) 476-9453 and DLF Pickseed at dlfpickseed.com, (800) 445-2251.
The No-Mow lawn seed mix developed by Prairie Nursery is a blend of creeping fescues that intermingle with bunch-forming fescue types. The result of both types interplanted is a dense sod that is described as able to withstand moderate traffic while inhibiting weed growth. Fescues are deep-rooted, which can reduce surface water loss, enhancing drought resistance. Prairie Nursery’s blend of cool-season fescues grow when temperatures are cooler in spring and fall months. Annual rye can be added to some blends, providing a grass that establishes rapidly in erosion-prone sites.
The Prairie Nursery fescue blend could be combined with Tall Fescue marketed by DLF Pickseed.
Tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea) is a drought, heat, and wear tolerant species with a large, deep root system that is able to absorb water in dry periods. Tall fescue has a coarse leaf texture that can stay green in dry summer periods while tolerating high temperatures. Tall fescue establishes quickly, but not quite as fast as perennial ryegrass.
Ellen Peffley Harp, a retired professor of horticulture at Texas Tech University, writes about gardening for several Texas newspapers.
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