History

• The growth rate of grass didn't matter much to people until the Middle Ages when open areas, called "commons," were used to graze the community's sheep and cows. Then, the faster growing grasses were favored by communities with a lot of stock to pasture---taking your flock out to look for pasture land could be dangerous in the unruly fourteenth century. By the seventeenth century, wealthy Europeans were cultivating "lawns" that were used for entertainment and sport like bowling and golf. Since most forage grasses could grow half a foot a week and produce three or four complete crops a year, new varieties were developed that grew more slowly and were not as "rough," or coarse as the old varieties. Lawns not maintained with livestock were groomed with scythes and mowed grass was preserved for winter forage.
  
  

Types

• Cool season (north), transition (green) zone and warm season (south) zones
  
  The invention of the reel-type lawnmower in the middle of the eighteenth century accelerated the progress of the ornamental lawn. By the turn of the century, the little mowers were being mass-produced and finer grasses such as fescue were replacing clover, chamomile and thyme as choices for lawns. Today's American lawn grasses are classed as cool, transition or warm season grasses, all of which will grow from one to two inches a week, depending on conditions. Cool season grasses do best in the northern part of the country--their growth slows in warmer or dry weather. Warm season grass growth will slow or go dormant in cool or dry weather. Fescue is one of the earliest vigorous growers, growing three to four inches a week in the early part of the season. Its vigor and growth rate make it a popular component of cool season mixtures with perennial rye grass, an extremely rapid quick-cover grower that lasts only one season in the north, and bluegrass, which is a slow starter. Most warm season grasses do not mix well.
  
  

Geography

• Although lawns were popular among the wealthy in France and England, it was the American middle class that adopted the ornamental grass lawn and provided the market for the first mechanical lawn mower. Americans also began hybridizing old grasses for ornamental use, producing grasses that grew only a few inches a week and could be more easily groomed.
  
  

Considerations

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  Grasses tend to grow slowly while establishing a root system and more quickly once established. Lawn grasses may slow their growth and turn brown but their roots keep growing as long as there is moisture in the ground.
  
  

Time Frame

• Most grasses, allowed to grow, mature in 30 to 90 days. Lawn grasses are mowed (the equivalent of pinching flowering plants), so they grow continuously the whole season. At the beginning of the season, all types grow quickly and may need cutting twice a week to keep their leaves the right height, usually 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 inches, depending on variety. Most warm season grasses' growth slows as the fall begins and all grasses go dormant when temperatures fall below freezing.