While some grasses do better in direct sunlight or complete shade, Chewings Fine Fescue can thrive in all sunlight conditions. This is a shade-tolerant grass, meaning it does well in shaded conditions. However, this type of grass also does well planted in direct sunlight even in the heat of the summer.
While fine fescues tolerate low fertility, they have very poor color under low fertility conditions. This tendency is even more pronounced when the turf ages. A mature fine fescue lawn under low nitrogen will look brown most of the year.
Fine fescues are a good choice for shady areas and and can grow well at higher elevations (up to 7,000 feet). They are a group of similar-looking species that are often used in traditional turf grass settings. Fine fescues will not grow well under evergreen trees like spruces and pines.
Note: These last two fescues are called “creeping” because they have rhizomes (underground stems) that help the grass to spread and recover. Note that these rhizomes will not spread to the same degree as other grasses with rhizomes, such as Kentucky bluegrass and aggressive warm-season grasses.
Between the cells in fescue grows an endophyte, a fungus living symbiotically inside the grass. The endophyte is what makes the fescue robust against drought and overgrazing, but it's also what makes it toxic.
It is also relatively low-maintenance, requiring only occasional mowing and watering. Once established, tall fescue sod forms an extensive root system, so even broadleaf weeds shouldn't be too much of a problem. Finally, it can be mowed as low as two inches, making it easy to keep your lawn looking neat and tidy.
In order to maintain a healthy fescue lawn year round, it's important to aerate and seed once per year, and now is the time. Because fescue is a cool season grass, September and October are perfect months to core aerate and overseed your lawn.
Tall Fescue is one of the grass types that can compete with Bermuda grass and potentially choke it out in certain conditions. However, it requires proper management and maintenance to suppress Bermuda grass effectively.
Tall fescue has broader leaves and better drought and heat tolerance, while fine fescue has more needle-like leaves and does better in shade. You can mix tall fescue and fine fescue in your lawn to get the best of both grass types!
In general, a fescue lawn will need about an inch of water every 7-10 days, whether from rain or irrigation. Try to water deeply and infrequently. For example, apply an inch of water on a single day rather than . 25 inches a day for four days.
As cool-season grasses, tall fescues establish best during late summer to early fall when cool weather supports vigorous growth. Early spring offers the second best planting time for tall fescue seed. Tall fescue germinates best when soil temperatures near 60 to 65 degrees Fahrenheit.
Fine fescues can tolerate a wide range of mowing heights, but for home lawns and similar properties, it is best to maintain at a 2.5- to 4.0-inch mowing height. Adjust mowing frequency as growth rate changes through the growing season and return the grass clippings to the turf.
A fertilizer containing nitrogen, but without phosphorus, will help fine fescue establishment. An example of what you might see on the fertilizer label would be 32-0-4, which corresponds to the percentages of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. Note the "0" means no phosphorus is in this formulation.
The most common inhabitants are usually crickets, beetles, grasshoppers, millipedes, and worms. Some of these insects feed on the grass blades, some feed on grass roots, and some feed on each other. Usually, Fescue will grow faster than the average insect can eat and you don't have to worry.
Varieties: *Warwick Hard Fescue is one of the most popular and widely used varieties, and is known for its ability to survive in extreme drought conditions or in very shady conditions.
We find that fine fescues maintained at 3 inches only need to be mowed 1 to 3 times in the month of July. Fertilizing. Fertilizing should be conducted two times during the growing season. Each application should provide 1 lb of nitrogen per 1000ft2.
Use a blend of "turf type" tall fescue cultivars at 6 pounds of seed per 1,000 square feet. Hard (fine) fescue and Kentucky bluegrass seed can be added to the tall fescue seed at the rate of 1 to 2 lb of each species per 1,000 square feet.
Hard fescue — Festuca longifolia
This species is good as a non-mowed turf for slopes, median strips, and nonused areas of parks.
No, it isn't hard to grow. Fine fescue is a great, low-maintenance grass that survives with little nitrogen fertilizer and minimal water and can even be left naturalized (i.e., no mowing).
To keep a fescue lawn at its best, adding more seed is common. If you want to have a green lawn longer into the fall and earlier in the spring, you should seed this fall. Fescue is a cool season grass that stays green and active into early December and recovers from the winter in early March.
Both Bermuda and Fescue grasses are popular due to their ability to withstand wear and tear. So, you don't have to worry about the kids ruining your lawn! Bermuda grass is known to be slightly more durable than Fescue, though and can repair itself when damaged by pets or kids. Maintenance.
To aid in the lawn's recovery and appearance, turf experts recommend that every year in the fall, fescue lawns need to be core aerated, fertilized and overseeded in order to have a beautiful plush yard in the spring.
Fine fescue should be mowed every 7 to 14 days during the summer months or less often when the lawn is drought-stressed or slowly growing. During periods of drought stress, mowing should be delayed to prevent traffic associated damage. Set your mower at 3.0 inches or higher during the summer to help reduce stress.
Quality grass seed labels include guidance on optimal seeding rates to maximize your results. Don't overdo or cut corners. Too much grass seed causes undue competition for resources such as light, water and nutrients, and grass seedlings struggle as a result. Too little seed leaves lawns thin or bare.