Growing a Green Carpet...

Another Rainy Day! Boo!! But...the rain and humidity is great for my grass seed, hopefully by the end of all this mess all my grass seeds will have sprouted and I'll be well on my way to a lovely green carpet...smile. It's so strange I'm talking about this now, because Grass...hmm has never really thrilled me. I'm more of a flower type of girl...I love beautiful flowers and their scents, or strange and different looking woodland plants.. But Grass### To Ordinary..To Mundane. Recently though I've really noticed the beauty in this simple plant. Yes! Grass is a plant..I think we tend to forget that..or at least I do. I'm thinking now of the rolling green hills of Ireland or the long ever encompassing fields surrounded by black fencing of My Old Kentucky Home...just South of here. Grass can be lovely. Below is a article on how to care for and cultivate grass and or turf. There are actually many factors that come into play when growing a lovely lawn..Sadly it looks like Indiana is in the "Gray Area" Region that does pose a problem. The article does suggest though that for Indiana Cool weather grass types work best, Fescue, Kentucky Bluegrass, and Rye.  I personally like the Scott's Seeds Easy Grow pictured above. I've had the most luck with it. I also attached a link to a great Purdue Extension Article on caring for your lawn..
A lush green yard is the envy of every neighborhood, but it can be a challenge to obtain. There is much more to green grass than simply sun and water! A beautiful green yard is often the result of using the correct fertilizer, aeration technique and type of grass seed. The time in which the grass seed was planted is also an important factor. To complicate matters further, the type of grass seed planted and when to plant it varies from state to state. However, there are a few guidelines to go by to help get your lawn green and ready for the warmer days.

Types of Grasses

In general, there are two categories of grasses, cool weather and warm weather grasses. These two categories can then be divided into types.

Cool weather grass types include Kentucky Bluegrass, Fescue and Rye.	Warm weather grass types include Bermuda, Zoysia and St. Augustine.

As you might expect, these grasses grow better in their respective climates. Cool weather grasses grow better in areas that have cooler summers and winters and warm weather grasses grow better in areas that have warmer summers and winters.

This does not mean that a cool weather grass cannot grow in a warmer climate or vice versa. However, it does mean that if you plant cool weather grass in warmer climates you will have to do extra work to maintain it. This extra work may include reseeding in the fall, especially if the summer is very hot, as the cool weather grass will likely die off.

US Grass Climates

To complicate grass selection further, the United States National Arboretum has divided the US into four different climate zones for turf grass. These four zones and a large transitional zone in the central and eastern part of the country can help make the process of selecting grass seed easier. These four zones are cool/humid, cool arid, warm/humid, and warm/arid. Unfortunately, some states are divided up into several of these zones. Even worse, California and Texas are divided into three different zones.

Cool/humid regions support cool weather grasses like Bluegrass and Fescue although in the more southern portions warmer grasses can grow. Cool/arid regions also support cool weather grasses as long as there is ample irrigation. According the National Arboretum, warmer grasses such as Buffalograss is a good choice for areas that are not irrigated since they are more drought tolerant than cool weather grasses. Similarly, Buffalograss is a popular choice for warm/arid locations because of its drought tolerant characteristics. The most commonly used warm/humid grass is Bermuda grass although the further North in the warm/humid region you live the greater the chance of winter damage to Bermuda.

Unfortunately, if you live in the transitional area of the country you can be a bit out of luck. No specific grass type is well adapted for this area. Because of this, you may have to plant both warm and cool weather grasses. If you opt for this consider planting cool weather grass seed in the early fall and then in the early spring overseed your lawn with warm weather grasses. This will give you the coverage for the seasonal changes while exploiting the best characteristics of each grass. It will require more work, but it will help you obtain that beautiful green lawn you always dreamed of.

Best Time to Plant Grass Seed in Your State

Because of the wide and varying climate zones even within states there is no set rule for an entire state. However, there are some general guidelines to follow:

• Seed cool weather grass seeds in late summer to early fall. This gives these grasses the best chance of survival. They don't have to deal with the heat of the summer and established grass will start going dormant soon which will give your growing seeds a better chance of grabbing up essential nutrients.
• Seed warm weather grass seeds in early spring and into the summer. Wait until temperatures get above 65°F during the day and then seed. This will allow the warm weather grasses to get the benefit of warm temperatures that come with summer while giving them time to become established prior to cooler weather in the fall.
• Plant in regards to the grass seed and not the area you live in. For example, if you decide to plant warm weather grass in a cooler climate then sow the seeds in the spring when temperatures have risen and not in fall.

https://www.extension.purdue.edu/new/Product%20Templates/HO-236_Sample.pdf