For many of us, a lawn is a perfect way to get some greenery in our lives.
It’s also a great way to cut down on your water bill and keep your home comfortable during the hot summer months.
But what if you live in an area with a lot of shade?
Does that mean you can’t have grass?
Of course not!
There are plenty of ways to grow grass in the shade.
Here are some tips for doing so:
Mow high
You should mow at the correct height for your particular type of grass.
Do this by taking a sample from the highest part of your lawn and measuring how long it is.
Then, you can adjust your mower’s height accordingly so that you’re not scalping any areas with low-growing grasses.
Mowing too high can cause thatch and disease in low-growing grasses;
while mowing too low causes scalping damage to any top growth on those same types of plants (if they weren’t already damaged before).
Water frequently
In order to grow a healthy lawn in the shade, you’ll need to water it frequently.
Watering needs vary depending on the type of grass that you have chosen for your yard.
Be sure to check with your local nursery or garden center for more information about how much water is needed for specific types of plants.
If you notice that your sprinkler system isn’t working properly and/or if there are patches where no grass is growing at all, this could be due to a lack of watering over time.
Fertilize properly
The most important thing is to use a good quality fertilizer.
Many of them contain slow-release nitrogen and potassium, which means they take longer to break down and release their nutrients into the soil.
This will help prevent your lawn from being overfed, which can lead to unhealthy grass that’s more susceptible to disease and insects.
Use fertilizers with between 3% and 5% nitrogen as well as 1% – 2% phosphorus (P) for cool season grasses like Kentucky bluegrass, perennial ryegrass or tall fescue; 6% – 7% nitrogen for warm season grasses such as Bermuda grass; 6%-7% phosphorus for warm season varieties like bermudagrass; 2%-3% potassium for all types of turfgrass
Overseed when possible
Overseeding is a great way to fill in the gaps between lawns and shrubs or just add more color.
It’s also an excellent option for those who want a shorter lawn but don’t want to wait until spring or fall to do it.
If you’re planting grass seed in the shade, be sure that there are no bare spots on your property where weeds might grow—this will help prevent erosion and heat stress from occurring later on.
Aerate and top-dress to improve soil quality
Aerating and top-dressing are two common ways to improve soil quality.
Aerating involves removing small plugs of soil from the ground with a special tool, which allows air and water to penetrate deeper into the soil.
This helps nutrients get to plants’ roots, leading to healthier grass growth.
Top dressing is similar in that it adds nutrients directly onto your lawn;
however, this method uses organic materials such as compost or manure instead of chemical fertilizers that can burn tender grass blades if used incorrectly (or at all).
Both aeration and top dressing should be done once every few years depending on how much traffic there is on your property–for example:
if you have kids playing soccer on it every day then you might need more frequent treatments than someone whose yard only gets mowed once per month!
Know your grass type
When you’re trying to grow grass in the shade, it’s important to know your grass type.
Different types of grass have different needs and will require different amounts of water and fertilizer.
For example, some varieties are more drought-resistant than others; some need less frequent mowing than others; some tolerate shade better than others.
This will help determine how much care your garden requires so that you can provide the right amount of attention for each area as needed!
Conclusion on growing grass in the shade
Wow, that was a lot of information!
Hopefully, we’ve given you a good idea of the best ways to grow grass in shade.
It’s never the easiest task but implementing these should really help you take the next step.
We hope this article has been helpful, but if not please let us know and we can try again next week!
