Kentucky Blue Grass vs Tall Fescue: How Turf Type, K31, & KBG Are Different
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- čas přidán 16. 07. 2024
- Both Kentucky Blue Grass and Tall fescue can be found in lawns from the transition zone all the way up through the colder northern states but only one of the two grass types does best in the summer heat and only one of the two grass types can repair bare spots all by itself.
There are benefits to seeding a lawn with turf type tall fescue or Kentucky 31 tall fescue and their are benefits to growing KBG instead.
In this video I wanted to explain the differences that matter most and show as best as I can the difference from the grass that I have been growing for the past year in pots.
► If you opt for fescue in your lawn I have a full guide to growing fescue published over on my website that should be quite helpful: turfmechanic.com/turf-type-ta...
Make sure to see the following videos for more info on the various cool season grass types:
► K31 vs TTTF: • Kentucky 31 vs Turf Ty...
► Tall vs Fine Fescue: • Fine Fescue vs Tall Fe...
► How Fast Does Perennial Rye Grow: • Temperature & Speed of...
► Grass Seed Application Rates: • Grass Seed Application...
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Best video on lawn grass I've seen. And man, I've seen a lot. Well explained. Thank you
I agree!
Thank you! :)
You have the best grass type comparison videos on CZcams.
keep them coming! That midnight KBG is looking beautiful!
This is so detailed and informative. I appreciate the close-up shots . Thank you!
Thanks for doing this! I often hear people compare these grasses but I never see them side by side. Very informative!
I don't know if the other guys I watch on CZcams have done a video that specifically shows and tells the exact differences in depth as you have, but this video has given me a great deal of information that I can use to better understand my lawn and what I can do to keep it looking nice. I recently tried a mix of Pennington primary KBG seed mix in my back yard and Scott's tall fescue in the front. The tall fescue easily took hold and is growing really fast regardless of the area I applied it on. I tried 3 techniques for the front and back; broke up the dirt and removed excess thatch and covered seed with a hay blanket with Lawn starter dirt. Some areas I just simply dethatched and broke up the dirt and threw seed w/ lawn starter, and the third I just dethatched and broke up the dirt. In the backyard, in the areas where there is more shade the KBG is barely sprouting and in the sunny areas are not producing much results w/ kgb. I'm not willing to spend more money on a lawn because my property is immensely big. Looks like Tall Fescue will be my friend. Thank you for the great video.
This is an incredible video as I prepare to choose for overseeding this year. Thank you!
Very informative video! Since I decided to make a lawn myself, I was stroling around YT and was always coming back to your videos. And that is saying much.
Sadly, where I live I couldnt get KBGs and didnt have a choice as you guys in the US.
At the end, I choose TTF mix with 10% KBG and 10% english weed(lolium parene).
KBGs were much faster to germinate, but after a 4 weeks are not taller than they were in their second week. But the fescues are gaining a lot of growt and now they are obviously taller and noticeable... Still hesitating to mow it but will have to in the coming days.
Cheers and thank you for your work!
By far the best video on this topic...perfect. Thank you
Great video and explanation of cool season grass types. My backyard is a 100% TTTF and my front yard is a 50/50 PGR and KBG. I like my TTTF I cut it at 4" the problem is there is a lot of foot traffic there and cutting it tall you can definitely tell where people have walked it gets really matted down. I much prefer my front yard super dark green.
Very well done and appreciate your analysis 👏.
Wow, great video on this subject! You've got a subscriber here 👍
Great video, I have to say I am impressed with my Barenbrug RTF, it doesn’t spread as fast as my Midnight KBG but I have been very impressed with some of the small areas rhizomes have filled into this spring alone!
I was just looking into this for ideas to overseed when falls a bit closer. Glad to see your having results.
Thanks for making this video I started with scotts and alot of it stuck right away but alot stayed dormant and sprouted like 30 days in. just did a solid k31 oveseed. Nice to know what I'm getting into. I have a feeling it's gonna be sick.
Nice straight to the point no nonsense stuff.
Glad it resonates Kevo! Thanks.
I revamped my lawn with three types of Kentucky bluegrass ,midnight, bewitched, and award four years ago here on the southern side of Long Island. This year we had the lawn slit seeded with three types of Kentucky bluegrass in early April . These types were midnight, mazana, and blue bank from Supper seed store type ss1100 .we then applied a starter fertilizer from Lebanon pro scape 21-22-4. .. In my opinion after seeing how these types of bluegrasses take time to germinate, ( as long as you have arrogation ), I would not recommend fall seeding due to the long germination period of up to one and a half to two months. For the money you spend for this seed it is better off if you put down early spring. After four years our lawn is the gem in the neighborhood.
Very useful information
Inspired on your vids, I did similar experiment here. Seeded Zoysia compadre on a pot. Coming nice, 18 days now, about 1/2 inch.
Those chickens deserve a CZcams channel
I live in northern Minnesota and my TTTF holds up excellent. I am well North of the transition zone line
thank you so much
Hey, TM. Great info. I have a mixture of TTTF, KBG, and Perennial Rye (Jonathan Green Black Beauty Ultra). I typically mow at 3.5 inches but I do have a lot of areas where the grass is falling over and lying down. Do you know if that would be the fescue or the bluegrass? Should I just cut it shorter? I usually mow and then come back with a rake to stand it up and mow over those areas again. Any help would be appreciated.
I realized I bought wrong weed, thanks for your video, saved me money and 1 year time
Hey brother!
Does KBG Tahoe over yards since it spreads? I’m trying to decide if I should try to remove my lawn and seed, or if I should just overseed. Love the video my man
Great video, thanks! I was set on a type of Kentucky Bluegrass, but I think i'm leaning towards TTTF, in West Michigan. Sandy soil and I'd like to cut it at 4 inches. My yard is dirt, and filling with weeds, is it still a good idea to wait until Fall to plan grass seed? Or harley rake and try now? I can water it regularly.
Thanks for the informative video. Just curious, does TTTF do well in places with more than 8hrs of sun?
Nice video and lots of information. I am trying to plant areas of wildflower meadow in my yard, would it be possible for me to have some transition area that have both flower and grass? I heard Kentucky blue grass chokes everything, how about fescues? Thanks!
Thanks for the video. I live in New York City with a small backyard and plan to do a new lawn seed. I like to try out the midnight blue grass from outside pride. Do you have good experience with their seeds? I see you also use Greenview Tall type fall fescue from Amazon. Do you have good experience with both seeds? Thx
I'm guessing the best patch for a lawn containing clover, tall fescue, KBG, Bermuda, and zoysia is contractor's mix. I'm in central Virginia. Many lawns in my area have Johnson grass, wire grass, crabgrass, and nutsedge. Also some creeping charley that's hell to kill out. 🐀🐾
I want to make some sod containers like yours. Any advice on soil mixture and maintaining them? Can you make some videos on that?
I'm trying to incorporate some KBG into my creeping red fescue lawn. My soil is fairly alkaline (~7.2pH). Is this a detriment for KBG more than other types of turf? Would you recommend applying agricultural sulfur to rectify this and encourage growth?
I have clumps of k31 coming back in a few areas. I really can’t stand the look of that. Just overseeded some KBG on April 5th it just started to sprout here about a week ago. Can’t wait to see it grow up! Great video and great explanation on the grass types!
It looks like crabgrass to me
@@chazdarden95 fr I can't stand that shite
I replaced my KBG with Tall Fescue and KY31 about 10 years ago in my Michigan lawn. I have found them to be much superior as far as less maintenance and drought resistance in some of the hotter Summers we we seem to be trending towards. I much prefer its less need for fertilizer and water. I have a lawn that pretty much gets by just great with a Spring and Fall fertilizing and unless we are in a VERY dry period it gets by just fine on natural rainfall.
I concur with this view. I have a relatively new lawn (established in 2019, so three summers so far). It was originally seeded with whatever random seed the contractors used (manually seeded south side, north side was hydroseed). Lawn came in, but lots died off in the winter. After that first summer, I took over maintenance and used Scott's regional blend ("Pacific Northwest"), which is mostly ryegrass, with some bluegrass and fescue mixed in. It filled in nice the following spring and summer, but still had spotty die-off in the summer, and then more in the winter. But the stuff that died off looks like the ryegrass and bluegrass; all around, there are these great, healthy clumps of fescue.
So, the end of this summer I've overseeded with a straight tall fescue blend, and will use that again in spring. Fact is, our summers are extremely dry, and have been extra hot as well (two separate heat waves over 100 F). I'm not willing to keep the lawn soaked; I do one heavy water before each heat wave, which seems to keep the fescue happy enough (not green, but at least not just completely dead, dried up and withered), but still leaves the other grass varieties dying off in the heat.
It will depend a lot on climate, as well as one's willingness to expend huge amounts of water on a lawn. But for my own part, I can't justify the huge water expense for the lawn, and my summertime climate won't support ryegrass and bluegrass without constant, heavy watering. The fescue on the other hand does great, looks great, and seems to hold up better to any traffic as well. I expect this will be true for most of the west and mid-west, which are getting hotter and drier every year.
K31 looks ugly in my opinion
@@Scott-xq2dm yeah, no reason to put up with K31. Modern turf type tall fescue are much better looking and just as hardy, if not more so.
A lot of good info here. Got to cut out the background noises tho.
Do you only wet it once then cover until germination? Or is there some watering in between.
Can i incorporate KBG if i already have fescue my yard its bad alot of patches weeds moss etc. Got my results in from soil RX and i need fast acting lime. Im new to all this my yard has some foot traffic so I am gling to dethatch, Aerate throw down seeds, fertilizer, then lime. WAnted to know can I throw down the KBG seeds EVEN IF I HAVE FESCUE? Its early Spring here in Massachusetts east coast. Thanks in advance
So if want a really SOFT lawn for kids to run around barefoot in Minnesota... Midnight KBG and fine fescue blend?
Can I grow KBG in southern PA? We have stretches in the summer of 90° and no rain for 7-10 days at a time.
Turf Type Tall Fescue here but i have few spots of K31. Find them to be much stronger with drought and foot traffic, great video
Same here. I chose Turf Type Tall Fescue over Kentucky Blue grass mostly due to better drought tolerant and foot traffic. Turf Type can't fix itself, but you can overseed it. All lawns will need repair every year anyway. That is what I did to my lawn and now it looks full and green. Also, Turf Type would have a better chance if you grow it from seeds I think.
Thanks a lot for your comment! Honestly the two different types do seem to be closer to each other as you move further into colder zones and both feel less clumpy when they are planted densely together. By far their biggest selling points are that they grow tall so you don't have to mow as often, they don't need as much fertilization to do well, and they have much better drought tolerance than KBG. Spend a bit of time and money on annual overseeding every sept and a lawn with either will be just fine for most anybody.
K31 you refer to as fescue at end of video. Isnt K31 a mix? Im so confused. I appreciate everything youve shared. I just want to be sure before i take on my grass. Ty
Hey I’m in the process of making a kbg video too lol
Hehe, I figured you were. 😁 Ive got a few kbg vids up my sleeve for the next month or two. Ill be sure to give you a shout out in mine somewhere. 👊
Which one is more durable to walk on?
whats best for new jersey for disease and drought
This video makes (I suspect unintentionally) a good argument for planting a grass seed mix, no? I'm a residential area of NYC, and the seasonal & temperature fluctuations are intense. I would love a KBG monoculture but I know it would be damn hard to care for during the summer months.
That said, which seed do you think would grow best in such an urban environment?
Can't speak for the author of the video, but my experience has been that the blends wind up monoculture anyway, depending on your climate. That is, I'd been using a blend of perennial ryegrass, KBG, and fescue, but the fescue is the only one that can hold up to our hot, dry summers and wet winters. The other varieties die off in the summer, leaving holes that don't come back (i.e. not just dormant).
Note that if I were willing to keep up with the heavy watering the ryegrass and bluegrass need, it would work. But I'm not. And if I were, I might as well just have a lawn full of the high-maintenance grass.
I'd say a blend of "supervariety" (i.e. there's not just one ryegrass, not just one bluegrass, not just one tall fescue, etc.) is best. Figure out your climate and what sort of maintenance you're willing to do, and then pick the top-level variety to go with. A blend of subspecies of that variety is fine, but don't waste time on different varieties.
please help I need to find a TTTF seed that is excellent for high traffic I have a Daniff dog will be 180-220 lbs. and a almost 3 year old daughter and my yard is already destroyed from previous home owners 2 dogs can anyone please give me recommendations I live in minnesota
Please what grass is good for my area Delaware south
k31 is a pain. i have kbg/PR lawn but city was doing some work and dropped k31 on my yard. I tried scooping it out but missed some. it's way too clumpy, not as nice looking as kbg
I need to warn that TTTF rated as thin blades etc are all relative. In a bed of KBG the best TTTF looks like invasive K31. Careful
very true, blades are very different and just the vein pattern sticks out even if the blade width is similar. Some people are fine with it and some don't even notice however.
I've been interested in KGB since getting our home last year, but here in Central California we're in the 100's or high 90's consistently July through Sept, with a few days usually hitting 105. Would the KBG just go dormant? Or would it die altogether? I'm able to water 3x/week.
Be prepared to irrigate, irrigate, irrigate
You’ll likely need to put down close to 2 in of water/wk at peak of summer heat
If you’re in a drier environment you’ll likely have an easier time growing KBG as long as you can put down enough water. One other thing to consider, among the cool season grasses, KBG is infamous for fungal disease susceptibility especially in hot humid locations
My two cents
@@josecito976 Thanks for your response! I'm totally OK watering, and it's a dry climate. You often hear people say the higher temps will be bad for it, but I'm not sure in what way. Like, will it die? Does it just go dormant? You know? That kind of thing.
@@jamesorr1200 in my experience once ambient temps go over 85 KBG will definitely show signs of heat/drought stress. You can let it go dormant if you’re not going to keep up with watering but even when dormant you should continue to water it or risk the plant drying out and dying off
Im also in Central Valley, if u prep your kBG or rye for our harsh summers, for example plenty of potassium, good soil if you water it you can maintain in CA. Some of the parks in my development are Rye KBG mix and remain green while being cut short also. I’m seeding Rye early Sept. 🙏🏻
Awesome video! I think at 8:50 you misspoke and said “KY31 is the only cold season grass type to spread underground to repair itself.” That should be KBG, not KY31.
I think you are right, my bad, both grasses use the work Kentucky, grr, I'm sure I've misspoken a few other times too. :/
Yes. He make an error in the explanation. KY spreads, K31 does not.
Nice video. Do you think that tall fescue can be maintained at 2.5in in the transition zone of Virginia?
Can you irrigate more during the summer?
@@juzoli Yes, I have in ground irrigation. Also, the turf is a mixture of tall fescue and Kentucky bluegrass.
Do you think that I’d have to train it for low cutting, by gradually reducing the h.o.c.?
@@desmorider747 Officially, TTTF should be cut 2.5-4 inches, so you should be okay. But the good drought resistance only applies if it cut taller, so it can retain more water.
If you water it 1-2x a week, it should be fine, at least you won’t kill it:)
But since all places, all soils are different, just give it a try and see. Spend a summer by cutting half your lawn to 2.5, other half taller (3.5), and you will se which performs better.
“Can be maintained” is a generic term. Try both, and see which one looks better for your eyes.
@@juzoli Thanks for your time and answers. What state are you in?
@@desmorider747 NJ.
I personally chose TTTF because the summer might be hot, and I don’t want to waste too much water on irrigation. For this purpose I will leave it longer. But right now it is at 2.5”.
My small front lawn is PRG though because it looks better:)
Great video!! I really like the drought tolerance of the TTTF here in Buffalo, NY, but I wish I could keep it at 2 inches short
Have you tried maintaining it at 2in? Some cultivars of tttf list the height at 2”-4”.
@@desmorider747 I tried 1&3/4 and got stressed up. I've been cutting it at 2.5 since then (only 5 mows) and looks better, but it is mixed with PR and KBG from the precious owner of the house. I'd like to have all TTTF in my 1,200 sqft front lawn eventually
@@upnylawn3519 When I was living on Long Island till I was 20 I worked summer jobs on a sod farm. Kentucky Blue Grass was the thing to have. That can be maintained lower than tttf. Did you bring the h.o.c. down gradually?
@@desmorider747 Yeah I'll probably go with KBG when I do the full reno in fall. For now I just wanted something easy to germinate and that would help me go nicely through the season
@@upnylawn3519 Do you have irrigation system? What kind of mower are you using? Gradually take it down to 2.25in and see how it does at that height. I would think in the Buffalo NY climate you’d have no problem at 2.25-2.50in. If it’s not looking good you can always let it grow longer. This summer I will try my back lawn at 2.25-2.50in with a reel mower, and my front at 3-3.5in. In years past I have maintained lawn at 4-4.5in.
Growing one seed per pot of the different grasses would show how much bunch and how much spread there would be from each seed. Just a thought for a series of videos. Call it "the one seed series".
That's a pretty great idea actually! I will probably do that this fall 😃
At 8:50 you say that kentucky 31 is the only grass that repairs itself but you are pointing to the kentucky blue grass. Did you mean to say bluegrass?
Vegas heat ??? Perennial rye or turf tall fescue - n not bermuda. Ur opinion
Perennial rye will die in Vegas heat, too much for it. Tttf will be better but will probably go dormant in the hottest parts of the year no matter what you do. If you are set on running cool season grass in Vegas then go out of your way to find a Tttf variety that has been "bred" for the best heat tolerance possible. I don't know that off the top of my head but I'm sure you could find out a few varieties quickly by doing an hour of research.
@@TurfMechanic
Thank u for ur help
I jus over-seeded this april with tttf however im wanna try to over seed with bermuda but i get allergies ever season change here (spring n autumn). N Bermuda puts out too much pollen i hear n its in Vegas the city prefers not the Bermuda bcuz of its pollen.
Anyways i always bump into ur vids n enjoy watching it
😊
Can you mix the 2 of Kentucky bluegrass and tall fescue
Yeah sure you can. It isn't mixed like that as often as perennial rye because the grass blades don't match as well but at least with fescue you'll get more drought tolerance to mix in with your kbg. Trick is to getting even spread since the blades will look quite different, especially if the kbg starts checking out in the summer.
@@TurfMechanic right thank you.. I have had the worst time trying to get my lawn together.. i think this year it's because i stopped watering it for a moment and lost track.. being i work a lot
@@nobodybusiness5409 no harm probably, it will come back very soon as temps start moderating. This is cool season grasses best time of the year September through first week or through early November- have fun with it if you get some time away from work that is 🤣
8:40 did you mean to say kbg? Instead of saying k31 as spot repair potential? Maybe Kentucky needs to have better naming so it’s not just always mentioned
You refered to midnight kb as kb 31. The kb 31 was one with deer damage. But the midnight is the one that would heal itself. Im so confused. 🤦♀️🤔
Why the Kentucky 31 look like crabgrass? I thought it should be straight up like the other ones.
Which one do you recommend for Chicago region?
Hey Rudy, all of the cool season grasses, tall and fine fescues, Kentucky blue grass, and perennial rye will work fine in Chicago. The choice is very personal however, what you value will dictate what you plant. Rye and fescue won't spread and will have to be ocerseeded periodically, kbg will fill in gaps on its own but will be slow to mature and hard to grow from seed, fescue will be better able to withstand high temps and lower levels of irrigation. Fine fescue will work wonders in dense shade. Rye will do great cut low and frequently, tall fescue will work well cut tall and less often. All will work just fine, you just need to assess your situation and trust your gut.
@@TurfMechanic Yes, last fall I dug up a section of my lawn, put down new topsoil, planted fresh KBG, covered with a thin layer of peat moss, kept it moist, man, so hard to get to germinate and grow, still have gaps. I wound up tossing a different mix in there just to get something. KBG is so hard to get to grow. I know it spreads, hopefully it will.
So, just shoot me. I have this fine bladed, and I mean fine, grass I suspect is fescue that if I cut it tall, 4" for the heat we get here in Chicago summers it just lays over. I love the look of my lawn when it flourishes in the spring and fall and is a deep green. Now there is this patch problem in the back yard. Thought it was mold, nope treated for that. Grubs, nope couldn't really pull up the turf nor find any doing a bit of digging but treated for than just in case. I have however squirrels up the whazoo. Someone must think they are cute and feeding them. Now the bare spots are everywhere in the back and now I might know why.
Hard to know for sure but it sounds like a fine fescue type. It won't stand up on its own when it's long and fine fescue usually doesn't need a lot of fert so patches might indicate over fertilization spots in the lawn. Could be localized to spots where animals pee? Fine fescues usually do better in shady cool zones and they don't need a lot of attention in terms of irrigation or feeding. Sound like a possibility to you?
@@TurfMechanic ty for the reply. I fert perhaps once a year or every other year. The grass is usually green and thick except for summer. This area is full on sun and always has been. Animals, they would have to be of the wild variety as I have none nor does my neighbor and I'm bordered on two sides with fences opposed them. I'm not keen on the fine fecue. Any recommendation on what to seed these bare spots with?
You should consider selling the chicken soundtrack...
Hehe, I've pondered the idea of making a two hour long ambient video of just the camera watching the chickens, unedited. I'm sure some people would like that; I do love listening to them in the background while outside.
Older video but dang those chickens are loud.
Yeah, I try to mic up these days which helps filter their sound out. Hope you found the video worth watching anyways!
@@TurfMechanic definitely, watch the entire thing. Great info and the pots of grass really showed it well.
@@aguyandhiscomputer great to hear! Thanks for saying 👊
K31 sucks...I wouldn't recommend it to anyone because even when healthy the color is just atrocious. Just my opinion. KBG and Rhizomatic TTTF makes a beautiful lawn here in upstate N.Y. As for water KBG in the summer when temperatures reach 85-95 degrees I water deeply every 3 days, use Humic Acid liquid, micro nutrients with Sea Kelp, and low dose Nitrogen with Iron just before sunset but I still water it in as to not burn the grass. Keeps KGB healthy and strong all summer long.
You kept calling Kentucky Bluegrass, Kentucky 31. It was very confusing,
Yep, I really flubbed that one, I didn't even notice at the time in editing. My apologies, I may remake this video in the future to get rid of the confusion.
@@TurfMechanic I wasn't looking for the mistake. I am in PA and I have been looking for a creeping grass instead of the clumping and I was searching for it while I was listening to you video. It got me a little confused, lol. I had to go back and watch it and pay more attention before I figured out what you meant. Thnak for the info.
Thank you for making this video. A few weeks back I was search all over the place for a decent break down. Please eat that fucken chicken before making your next video.
Hahaha, hysterical comment but seriously I'm glad you liked the actual content of the presentation over the background noise. That was breakfast you were hearing! 😆
You can’t really have a fair comparison test because neither of the grasses have matured yet...
They are also not growing in the ground which wont make it fair either. Point here is not to create a perfectly fair comparison, its to learn from basic home experiments as best as we can. I dont run a lab or try to produce scientifically valid comparisons but what i do create and film can easily be used to learn a thing or two..thats the point.
Not into the obnoxious chicken noise. Not even a little bit.
Lol, I guess you won't be interested in my ambient chicken sounds video I've been planning all week! 😅
@@TurfMechanic 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 Touche' !!!!!
You have GOT to be less repetitive and more engaging. Stop going on tangents. You seem to be filled with information but your delivery to educate needs work.
I hope I've gotten better over the years, this video was made quite a while back. ✌️