Grass Type Identification In The Lawn By Seed Head & Leaf Tip
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- Опубликовано: 30 май 2022
- I let different areas of my lawn grow to different lengths to show seed heads at different stages of development. This helps make it easy to identify grass types when paired with other identification methods such as inspection of leaf-tip and blade texture.
This video focuses on cool-season grass identification but also touches on Bermudagrass which is more common in southern areas of the country.
If you own a snow shovel then you probably have Perennial Rye, Tall Fescue, Kentucky Bluegrass, or Fine Fescue...or a combination of those grasses. I hope you'll be able to identify turf grasses in your lawn after watching this video.
As I noted in the video after the flush of seed heads it's good practice to fertilize the lawn to feed the turf and push new leaf growth. I am going to be applying a product from Lawn Box called Lawn Luxe to my lawn in the next week after seed heads start slowing down in emergence.
Lawn Luxe is a naturally sourced organic form of Nitrogen and Potassium (7-0-7) and will help the lawn get through the summer stress that cool-season lawns frequently struggle with.
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Best in class video on identifying cool season grasses Brian! Well timed with seed-head production…which is particularly helpful. I have a ton of seed heads right now. Perfect timing.
So glad to see that this is helpful for you and others! Thanks for the comment Ruben!
Say it again and again!!!
You are so right timing was perfect! Spouting in my TTTF/KBG and Brian explained it thoroughly.
I actually asked him a question about seed heads after watching one of his previous videos. Finally explained in such detail.
Thanks Brian!
You do a great job of explaining things in depth. I enjoy the information with out all the intros and camera "tricks".
Thank you showing how to brake different grass seed in the lawn well worth watching so cool enjoy your day.
Super glad this was worth watching Angela, thanks for the comment. Hope to see you again in other vids.
Best video on identifying Northern lawn grasses. I've been trying to figure out if I had blue grass for the last year and a half.
Love hearing that! Once you start seeing the difference with your eyes you'll start noticing it everywhere...then you'll start wondering about to undesirable grasses you see that don't follow any other the turf-grass rules. 😃
Thanks for this video Brian. I agree with other viewers, perfect timing!
I have a ton of seed heads too and this video was extremely helpful!
Thanks for always responding to my questions .
Glad it was helpful! I try to get to as many questions as I can; that's what makes this rewarding work. 😊
@@TurfMechanic May I send you some pictures to get your advice on a lawn issue?
This video was SUPER HELPFUL to me, only been doing this "lawn thing" for like a year now. I had no idea what these things were. I was hopeful it wasn't weeds......
Once again thank you Brian for sharing the knowledge!💯
I'm always trying to be helpful and timely; glad to be your guy Jigg! :D
Very informative video thanks 👍👍
Great information. Thanks
Always great info thanks again brother
Thanks as always Allen!
Another great video!
With no pre-emergents allowed in Europe, what we need to distuinguish between are Poa Pratensis (KBG), Poa Annua and Poa Supina. The Supina is becoming more popular because of it's great shade tolerance but it's very similar to Annua in color.
I'll definitely try to work some edu material into the mix on things like this. The poas! Lol I've got buffalograss and clovers on my topic list too and thinking of adding in other common lawn weeds into the mix as well. Identification is a topic that most people want to learn more about because it is hard with so many "similar things" found in lawns. Thanks for the topic request!
Thank you!!👍👍👍
Well explained and illustrated, thanks eh 🌺🌷🌸What’s the best grass to plant ?
Excellent info! I've been needing a good video like this to help identify the kbg and rye in my lawn. I was concerned the rye stalks/seed heads were potential weeds because they appear to grow in clumps.
Glad it helped Hal! Once you know the things to look for you'll start seeing them everywhere. Rye also has a shiny side and a matte side to its leaves and usually has a magenta color at the soil. There are more differences too in the connection segments of the plant but that can start going over people's heads fast and they are incredibly hard to show on my camera.
Great video! Any tips on targeting the killing of Bermuda in TTTF?
The one brand grass seed I buy has TTTF, KBG and PR all mixed together for my state.
Great video! This may be a dumb question since you said it won't matter if you drop your mower height. I cut my grass like 4 days ago at 3.5 in and I have alot of patches throughout that look stressed. I thought it was maybe due to no rain but I got up close and they are all dead seed heads. Do I have to wait them out if they are dead like that and not actively growing or can I drop my mower height to get rid of those bad areas that are making my lawn look like crap? Hope this makes sense. I was staying at a taller height since we don't have rain until next week but all hazy looking spots are driving me nuts and im not sure what to do.
I'm in Northern Utah and in early June I put in a KBG lawn using sod from a reputable, local, turn farm (Hobbs, in Franklin, ID). It's August and the lawn is doing great! However, I've got a lot of seed heads attached to a slightly lighter-colored grass that seems to like to send out sneaky blades under the KBG. I think it's poa annua but I'm not sure. Can you give me any tips for telling the two appart? Based on your video I've also come across some rye and/or fescue. I'll admit, I like sitting in the yard in the evening pulling out weeds. It's relaxing until the mosquitoes show up! Thanks for a great video.
Lots of seed heads for what might be Bermuda, I'm not sure. They have thin sprouts with 3 branches. I have so much clover, creeping charlie and either crab or dallisgrass (or ... ?) it's hard to know for sure what my lawn is supposed to be. I have seen the stolons you showed with the red sections in them, so that seems to be Bermuda.
I also have seed heads that at first glance appear to be rye (singular shoots) but looking closer they have the purplish KBG fluff up top. No Christmas tree. These are not clean "stalks," but seem to come out of a blade wrapper. Maybe it's a weed?
I'm in upper TN and it's NO effort to keep the lawn green in summer. Grows fast fast fast in the heat! And I do not water the lawn. I did one application late spring of "weed 'n feed" which seemed to help knock down the explosive weed forest but overall it was too late: I need a pre-emergent earlier in the year.
Every once in a while I get a small brown patch that doesn't last. My assumption is that's from grub worms the moles have not yet taken care of ... I have serious challenges with moles.
I mowed higher all summer and that helped the appearance. But I have serious thatch and have begun mowing lower now in Sept, as the grass growth has begun to let up a little --- highs of only 80 vs 90 makes a huge difference --- and cutting low reveals brownness, too. And I'm bagging again. I will probably scalp the lawn and dethatch first week of October, before growth has stopped, and do whatever Fall stuff I'm supposed to do for Winter maintenance. We don't really get cold weather until Nov, and even then only somewhat. Hopefully I'll be in good shape for pre-emergent chems before growth happens next year. This is all new to me.
i like more tall fescue. looks gree even in summer when it's hot and dry
that's one of it's best traits, deep roots and you don't have to mow as often because it's usually cut so tall - perfect for a lot of different types of yards and people.
I’m in north Georgia with tall fescue seems to hold up well here
Do you have a lot of neighbors that run Bahia? I always think of Bahia for that area and I have no experience with that grass type. It requires the humidity and heat that I can't get here. I wonder if the tttf you grow has a lot of disease pressure there. That's getting pretty south and humid down there.
The Pennington Sun and Shade mix that I threw down has tall fescue, perennial rye, Kentucky bluegrass, and fine fescue. Indiana btw
Makes sense to be in a sun shade mix to have it all. Whatever works out based on microclimate in your yard will thrive, whatever doesn't will fade out. Overseed with that for a few years and your whole lawn will look good if you are ok with a mixed stand. I'm fine with a mixed stand but others aren't so it's totally up to you.
My yard is a GCI Cool Blue. Three turf type tall fescues and a midnights Blue Grass.in So. Md Translation zone.
Can we spread coffee grounds on the grass after mowing all the seed heads down? As a fertilizer I assumed, I saved the grounds from the winter. My grass must have been about 1 ft tall w seed heads and I just mowed it to line 3
why is it rare to mix TTTF with either KBG or Rye? back when I was researching what grass I should over seed my lawn with (I'm in Northern DE) I came across that TTTF and KBG was a good mix, should I have not mixed KBG and TTTF?
How can you tell bent grass from fine fescue?
the worst part of lawn going to seed is the stem turn brown makes the lawm look like crap looks like its not getting enough water.60 pct of my lawn is brown.im the only one on my block that has this issue.is there a way to not get so much of it.
great info, thanks for sharing. About a year ago you had videos about liquid dethat and talked about how you had some extreme thatch issues in your yard. Do you still have some thatch issues or have you been able to remedy it over time? im dealing with something similar, around 1.5" of thatch build up after laying sod on ground that was too compacted a few years ago.
I do but it's not as terrible, im hoping to squeeze in a thatch update video this month into the mix, probably redo my older comparison video of electric dethatchers vs thatch rakes and I'll throw in comparison of liquid thatch removal products as well. I'm identifying new opportunities to shrink thatch also which I'll touch on in that video but it has to do with adding new thin soil layers on your lawn as if you were leveling but not actually adding as much. In the mean time you could see my diy liquid thatch removal vid for added context published in early August 2021.
@@TurfMechanic my plan this year is to topdress with a thin layer of compost on a small area of the lawn and see if increasing the organics and microbial activity in the lawn will help break down the thatch layers.
100 degrees outside middle of August and I have poa and other assorted seed heads popping up everywhere somehow... no clue
Is there any benefit for grass to go to seed in a yard?
Each one teach one!!! I’m so proud of myself for identifying your godly gift before your manifestation 😂 🤣😅 punches the notification button👊🏾👊🏾👊🏾 happy Memorial Day
I'm in Willow Springs MO fyi.
So at 4:41 that's bluegrass? I am pulling that out in my garden beds trying to find out what it is
I'm not sure where you live, but mixing TTTF with KBG and PR is very common here in Indianapolis. Most mixes for turf expecting foot traffic have some combination of those three around here.
Well I did kind of regret saying that in such strong terms, I should have said mixing those types is less common and not rare compared to the kbg/pr mix. Kbg and tttf do get mixed for sure and yes, sun/shade blends will put small amounts of all of the main types in the bag so that the strongest can survive in all locations of a lawn. Thanks for pointing this out to less experienced viewers who probably wouldn't have caught that. 👊 also, im on Klamath Falls Oregon 😀
That is the mix in my lawn
Thanks for your videos, I've got in my lawn what I call "Viney crap", now I know it's Bermuda grass I hate it ,how do I get rid of it to put Kentucky blue in.
LOL! You and many other people will battle common bermuda for a long time. It's a tough one to get rid of. Best way is probably an excavator LOL. You could take the nuclear option though and hit it with glyphostae or glufosinate and then reseed...but chances are good some of the bermuda will still come back; it's underground system is very robust. Even Allyn Hane is constantly showing common bermuda in his yard so it may be something you just have to control occasionally and learn to live with. If anyone has good ideas please chime in in the comments!
Hi Brian, very informative video! I have a TTTF/KBG mix lawn. I live in east Tennessee and haven't seen any seed heads in my lawn. I cut twice/week. What could explain this? Thanks!
In some cases the seed heads could come out in signs of stress. For me and others we sometimes feel like we transition from winter to summer in a matter of weeks and this can push them out. For you both types may be humming along without feeling stress. Welcome it because some years that may not be the case. In the same yard some sections may be under nourished, for me this is near my dog kennel as I start going up the hill. The kbg has spread into areas I don't fertilize much.
@@TurfMechanic Thanks for the prompt reply! I was actually hoping to see seed heads so I could get a feel for how well my KBG is spreading. :-)
This is great info on identifying grass types! Do you have any books you'd recommend as a reference guide?
Thanks a lot Matt! I don't have a book on grass type identification but MSU has a pdf publication on grass identification that I look at from time to time especially when I head out into my field yard to inspect native grasses. Check it out here: archive.lib.msu.edu/tic/monos/proturfguideidgrass197x.pdf
Thank you so much! Exactly what I was hoping for! I'll add that to my summer reading!
TTTF makes up my lawn.
I'm seeding TTTF mixed with Creeping Red fine fescue right now in a project lawn. I'm looking forward to having more hand on experience with it this year aside from my test pots.
Hi Brian, how can we tell the difference between KBG and Poa Annua? They look very similar to me.
KGB is much darker when healthy, but since that's not reliable I turn to seeds. Annua has seeds all year round and if you look close, the seed head branches to three sides, one side is empty.
So the seeds heads we mow and leave on the ground will not germinate into new grass?
It depends on the variety, etc. Test by planting in a pot.
Just curious as to what state you are located in? I live in Idaho and your surroundings look very similar to mine.
We have similar climates, I'm in Klamath Falls, OR - kind of southeast Oregon at fairly high elevation 4200 ft
Snow shovel, ✌️
🥶
Question: admittingly I'm completely ignorant...I know weed seeds are bad (crab grass especially)...I couldn't tell from the video but, is grass seeds bad or good? It seems wasteful to cut them with grass seed being so expensive.
Is there a way promote more grass seed? Can you leave more time between cuttings to allow for more grass seed production in your lawn? Is there anything else you would suggest to capitalize on the opportunity for the lawn to be more productive with it's own seeds?
Thanks for sharing this video!
Despite my neighbors opinions, I let my grass seed in the spring. Personally I like the look of it, and it lets me see what species is growing where, so I can plan transplants if I need to later in the season. I let them grow until they look like they are mature and then I mulch the grass. I've been trying to harvest but haven't found that sweet spot yet.
The seeds produced by most modern generational cultivars of turf grasses are not considered viable with their natural successful germination percentages being in the single digits.
For every 100 seeds your lawn produces, your lucky to get just one of them to successfully produce vegetation again.
Got any poa annua or poa trivialis?
I don't think I do. I look for it periodically but never find any. I have other rhizomatic field grasses that invade quite a but but those are a different beast.
Is it possible to use this natural seeding to overseed your lawn?
Only if you know your grass variety is not sterile- many seed companies make seed that grows sterile grass. It will still seed but won't actually grow new grass from the seed.
@@TurfMechanic fuckers 😅
Plant some in a pot to test. This is how I found out a bag of seed had gone bad.
Did you just call me weird? Lol. it’s cool I understand.
Lol!
Why is it rare too see Turf type tall Fescue mixed with Perennial Rye Grass?
I shouldn't have said rare, always the problem of not scripting my material, it's not rare at all, it's just less common of a mixed stand than kbg/pr. Kbg/pr has similar leaf textures and moisture inputs and they look similar from eye level. Both can be mowed at similar shorter heights. Both rye and tttf are bunch types so to maintain a stand you have to overseed both types instead of just one. Rye needs more frequent water usually than fescue so irrigation patterns for rye compete with irrigation for fescue which needs it less often. Anyway, it's not rare, that was a mistake of a word choice but there's a reason that avid lawncare people choose monostands or other predominant mixes over tttf/pr. Hope that's clearer than mud 😅
great video sharpen those mower blades i saw some damage to grass blades😂😂😂
Those blades looked perfect, what are you talking about, lol 😂 I'm thinking about mowing with a reel on a higher setting for the next couple months, that should take care of any damage going into summer.
Oh mine is mixed … not by choice tho
That is not true about TTTF being the lone cultivar in lawns. Maybe bow the transition line, but not above. They add KGB to TTTF as a netting grass due to the clumping growth pattern and to darken the contrast.
You are completely right, that was something I should have not said in the video and something I've already addressed in the comments. Should have said it is less common but not rare. My bad, that's the risk of not scripting what I say when I film. Hope you don't hold that against me in the future Sean. ✌️🤞
Not a big deal. It seems to be more down south where people are pure Fescue. Even up north! But they are creating more warm weather tolerant Bluegrasses. The netting with bluegrass is huge though to fill in open areas.
I'm sorry if your getting seed heads in your lawn your either not mowing often enough or those grass types are annual grasses.
I appreciate your comment but I can't stress this enough...you are completely wrong on both points. Absolutely noone that I trust would agree to either of those points. Not trying to be mean but I'm just trying to be overtly forward in my opinion because I belive it wholeheartedly. No matter how much you mow perennial grasses seed heads can and will emerge regardless of height of cut and mowing frequency and they'll come out in greater concentration in higher levels of stress. For me I've given my lawn a lot less water this year that in years prior so seeding is expected and not a surprise...but it's also not something to be be concerned about either.
@@TurfMechanic ok but I would agree with you it's great way to identify the grass types through seed head types. But most of the seed heads I notice are from weeds and not from my desire grass types. I Mow below 2 inches for most of the year except for summer.
Some of those seed heads look like poa annua
She said darn it how many times do I have to say hiiiii 😂😅😂😅😂
BERMUDA SEED HEADS= CHICKEN FEET
lol, yes, great way to describe them!