Rye/Bermuda/Fescue
Posted: November 4th, 2019, 1:24 pm
So I typically lurk in the Cool season forum but gonna give my post a shot here...
I have a roughly 60/40 (Fescue/Bermuda) lawn with no irrigation so I've been struggling getting the fescue to thrive over the years thus I've been letting things take its course so to speak. At this point I mow regularly, but fertilize, and weed prevent a little less so. I almost never water. I'm not shooting for the best lawn in the 'hood and have been able to keep it above average for my troubles.
Typically every fall I would overseed fescue and hand/sprinkler water as I could but never really got much new germination that stuck. This year I threw a bit of caution to the wind and decided to overseed with annual rye. I considered perennial but with our summers I'm pretty confident it wouldn't last much longer than annual so I went with the much cheaper option. I had very little faith I'd have much success since I wouldn't be watering much.
Long story short, about 3 weeks later, my lawn looks better than it ever has. The rye color is a little lighter green than the fescue and a little darker than the existing Bermuda but the overall look is surprisingly nice.
I guess my question is what to expect next spring and the best way to handle the new grass? My understanding is that cultural practices for rye are similar to fescue. Its a shame this type of grass can't handle heat because I would be thrilled to have my lawn look like this most of the year.
I also would appreciate any comment/advice from anyone else over-seeding (mostly) Bermuda with rye. I read a couple posts here panning the concept due to grass competition issues during the spring/summer transition.
Thanks in advance.
I have a roughly 60/40 (Fescue/Bermuda) lawn with no irrigation so I've been struggling getting the fescue to thrive over the years thus I've been letting things take its course so to speak. At this point I mow regularly, but fertilize, and weed prevent a little less so. I almost never water. I'm not shooting for the best lawn in the 'hood and have been able to keep it above average for my troubles.
Typically every fall I would overseed fescue and hand/sprinkler water as I could but never really got much new germination that stuck. This year I threw a bit of caution to the wind and decided to overseed with annual rye. I considered perennial but with our summers I'm pretty confident it wouldn't last much longer than annual so I went with the much cheaper option. I had very little faith I'd have much success since I wouldn't be watering much.
Long story short, about 3 weeks later, my lawn looks better than it ever has. The rye color is a little lighter green than the fescue and a little darker than the existing Bermuda but the overall look is surprisingly nice.
I guess my question is what to expect next spring and the best way to handle the new grass? My understanding is that cultural practices for rye are similar to fescue. Its a shame this type of grass can't handle heat because I would be thrilled to have my lawn look like this most of the year.
I also would appreciate any comment/advice from anyone else over-seeding (mostly) Bermuda with rye. I read a couple posts here panning the concept due to grass competition issues during the spring/summer transition.
Thanks in advance.