Plant a Native Grass Seed Lawn

A grass lawn can involve much work and maintenance a property owner. The best way to care for your lawn is to go green. I know you’re saying that the lawn is already green. But you can go more green by planting a lawn that is more environmentally friendly. A lawn that needs less fertilization, water, and sometimes mowing will save you labor, money and time. Going green means going organic, native, and organic. Yes, native grass seed is the way to go. Planting native grass seed in your lawn you will be installing grass that is natural to your environment instead of the regularly planted foreign grasses like Kentucky bluegrass or Bermuda grass in the US, to name a couple. Most turfgrass seed sold on the market is foreign grass but you can now find native grass seed, to plant as turfgrass, more often than in the past.

The reason why native grass works best is because it naturally grows in its native environment. Wherever you live, search for native grasses of the area where you intend to plant a lawn. Such a grass naturally resists disease and pests of the area. Native grass is also good for the environment because it requires less if any supplemental watering. The roots of such grasses usually run deep, which allows them to tolerate mild droughts and prevent soil erosion. The reason why is that it naturally thrives off the water pattern of its native climate. Planting grass that is native to your area or the area where it will be planted should ensure that you will only need to use the very minimum fertilizer. When you do use fertilizer apply an organic one, to keep with the going green ideal. Using less water, fertilizer, and disease as well as pest control measures is good for the environment. Check the mowing requirements for the native grass that you are considering to plant and you may very well find that its recommended mowing frequency is much less than most common foreign turfgrasses sold in centers and stores. Just take note that while installing or planting a native grass lawn it may cost more than a traditional one but the minimal maintenance requirements will save you in the long run. Also if the native grass that you select to plant is a bunch-growing type you will have to plant the grass closer than normal or in more than one application at different times for thick coverage. Below is a partial list of native grasses for lawns in various countries.

US including Hawaii

• Warm-Season/Full Sun/Southern US
• Blue Grama (Bouteloua gracilis)
• Sideoats Grama (Bouteloua curtipendula)
• Switch Grass (Panicum virgatum)
• Buffalo Grass (Buchloe dactyloides)
• Indian Grass (Sorghastrum nutans)
• Seashore Paspalum (Paspalum vaginatum)
• Sand Bluestem (Andropogon hallii)
• Cool-Season/Sunny-part shade/Northern US
• Red Fescue (Festuca rubra)
• Western Wheatgrass (Agropyron smithii)
• Many Sedges (Carex)

Canada

Mexico

• Buffalo Grass (Buchloe dactyloides)

Central America

• Bahiagrass: (Paspalum Notatum)
• Common Carpetgrass (Axonopus fissifolius)
• Narrowleaf Carpetgrass (Axonopus affinis)

South America

• Bahiagrass: (Paspalum Notatum)

Europe

• Warm-Season/Full Sun                                                                                                                                        
• Cool-Season/Sunny-part shade
  Annual Bluegrass (Poa annua)
  Canada Bluegrass (Poa compressa)
  Kentucky Bluegrass (Poa pratensis)
  Annual Ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum L.)
  Perennial Ryegrass (Lolium perenne) for grass mixes only
  Blue Fescue (Festuca glauca)
  Creeping Bentgrass (Agrostis stolonifer)
  Tall Fescue (Festuca arundinacea)

Australia

• Cool-Season
• Curly windmill grass (Enteropogon acicularis)
• Spear grass (Austostipa spp.)
• Wallaby grass (Austrodanthonia spp.)
• Weeping grass (Microlaena stipoides)
• Warm-Season
  Bermuda Grass (Cynodon dactylon)
  Common wheat grass (Elymus scaber)
  Kangaroo Grass (Themeda triandra syn. T.australis)
  Redgrass (Bothriochloa macra)
  Windmill grass (Chloris truncata)

Africa

• Bermuda Grass (Cynodon dactylon)
• Kentucky Bluegrass (Poa pratensis)
• Perennial Ryegrass (Lolium perenne) for grass mixes only

Asia

• Bermuda Grass (Cynodon dactylon)
• Centipede Grass (Eremochloa ophiuroides)
• Kentucky Bluegrass (Poa pratensis)
• Perennial Ryegrass (Lolium perenne) for grass mixes only
• Colonial Bentgrass (Agrostis tenuis)
• Zoysia Grass (Zoysia japonica)

Japan

• Zoysia Grass (Zoysia japonica)

Others

• Seashore Dropseed (Sporobolus virginicus)

• http://www.baileyseed.com/infonativegrasses.asp
  
• http://www.sgaonline.org.au/info_native_lawns.html
• http://www.lawngrasses.com/
  
• http://www.turffiles.ncsu.edu/
• http://plants.usda.gov/
  
• http://www.agassizseed.com/forage_native.html