The Nirvana of Turf Grass

Grow! Grow!

Glimpsing the tiny sprouts of new grass in the backyard, I was strangely exhilarated. After years of growing perennials, annuals, trees, and shrubs, I had arrived at the Nirvana of Midwestern gardeners: I had grown Kentucky bluegrass.

Turf grass serves important purposes in a garden. It gives the eye a place to rest, highlighting the other ornamental plants. It serves as an open space for picnics and badminton. It provides a nice place for a hammock, especially if you have the shade of a spreading tree overhead.

I can appreciate grass if it serves those functions. I'm definitely not a fan of grass for grass's sake, however. Too many landscapes are just grass, often heavily fertilized with nitrogen and other chemicals. While they look appealing to some, those landscapes offer nothing of nutritional value to the birds and the insects that make up our ecosystem. A recent article in Farm Futures, a publication for the agriculture industry, noted that "approximately 55% of the nation's rivers and streams are in poor condition for aquatic life, an Environmental Protection Agency survey released Tuesday found, citing pressure from nitrogen or phosphorus runoff, rising bacteria levels or diminishing surrounding vegetation." 

Yikes.

Considering that fact, my husband and I strategized that our back yard would contain a central circle of grass, surrounded by beneficial shrubs and plants for wildlife. Growing grass from seed was a new gardening adventure for me, but I figured it couldn't be that hard, right? 

I knew we couldn't just throw grass seed down on the backyard's compacted soil. With help from a friend with a Kubota, we removed the remaining dead grass and old shrubs from the planting area, tilling to about six inches. Then we raked the surface smooth, pulling out roots, rocks, and grass clumps.

I laid a hose around the area I wanted to seed, defining my space. Then I spread grass seed evenly in the space and raked it in gently. Thanks to last year's straw bale garden, we had plenty of rotted straw to spread lightly over the seed for mulch--good for protection from birds and wind and for retaining moisture. A good soaking with the hose followed: the challenge of growing grass is keeping it constantly moist.

During a cold snap when the seeds seemed unresponsive, I ran into a certain former Purdue Extension educator and told him of my project. "Fall's the best season to grow grass, right?" he said. I vaguely remembered this from my master gardener training--I think I may have dozed off during the turf grass lecture, actually. I felt a moment's doubt. Was I really going to screw up grass? How could I hold my head up as a certified master gardener if I couldn't do grass?


Lots of people swear by clean fresh straw for new grass, but I had wondered if rotted straw would be just as effective, and apparently it was. After several weeks of frequent, light watering, despite cold weather, grass began to sprout. My daily cajoling probably helped, too. "Grow, grow! C'mon, little seeds!" I said, every time I walked from the garage to the patio. My youngest teen would just shake her head and scurry into the house ahead of me before anyone saw her.

Grass and flower beds - a nice combo!

Now from my upstairs office window, I can see a well-defined circle of bright green, patchy and fragile, like the hair on a new baby. I'm hoping it will be filled in enough for the graduation party in June. 

Yeah, I can do grass.