I’ve heard of such grass before, but judging from the state of most lawns I see, no one seems to be buying/installing it yet. Where can I get it, how high does it grow, how much does it cost, etc.? What with the heat wave this summer, it would seem that many people would consider mowerless grass worth the price and more.
I suppose turf grasses tend to grow lower/slower than the usual (around here) St. Augustine or Bahia. It isn’t commonly available from the local Big Orange Retail Giant. I keep meaning to look it up and see what the care/mowing differences are, especially here since mowing 2x a week is optimal and 1x a week gets pretty long.
I’m not sure if the soil requirements/bug vulnerabilities/initial cost introduced would counter any cost benefit to not having to mowing. I’ll google a bit and see what I can come up with, while I anxiously await someone in Florida using it successfully as a lawn.
btw, you can’t grow grass from seed here in FL, not with any kind of success. The vast majority of lawns are plugged or sodded.
Quit watering it. I haven’t mowed in weeks.
No, seriously, I’m not kidding - don’t waste the water and don’t mow, it’s a perfect combination. The only problem is when you get a lot of rain and then you can just about hear it growing.
You don’t specify where you’re at, but you occassionally see some blends marketed as “miracle lawns” in the Chicago area. “Almost no mowing! Never water! Grows like magic!”
It’s usually some blend of zoysia grass or bermuda with low tolerance for shade and cool weather and, around Chicago at least, stays dormant until late spring and goes dormant in early fall leaving you with a brown lawn for most of the year.
Astroturf?
The turf industry has experimented with grasses that quit growing by themselves, as well as with growth regulators.
They work, but leave an uneven, scraggly looking patch of lawn. People who care about their lawns looking nice won’t accept it; people who don’t care would rather just stop watering the grass.
There’s some use for the stuff in applications like rights-of-way for utility companies, along highways, etc., but even there, just going with native grasses is usually preferable.
I’ve seen some buffalograss lawns look pretty good without mowing.
This variety is touted as only needing mowing every 2-3 weeks, and maybe not at all if you like the unmowed look. Buffalograss is becoming more popular in parts of the Midwest and contiguous states because of its drought tolerance, low fertilizer requirements and less frequent need for mowing.
I would never bother to water. Unfortunately that doesn’t stop my lawn from growing.
This works in South Carolina? Seriously?
Like Khadaji, I never water my lawn and it never stops growing.
And we have the same problem with Zoysia as Jophiel. Beautiful short green lawns for a few months and ugly brown lawns for the rest of the year.
Grass is extremely site specific. Dead Pete, you have to tell us where you live or none of our advice will mean anything.
I live in the western US. I didn’t realize grass would be so picky.
If you’re in the northwest US, perinneal ryegrass rules. I laid sod in part of my lawn, and seeded the other part. (same kind, I got the seed from the sod farm) It’s dark green with low watering, and doesn’t grow horribly fast - I’m fussy about how it looks and I cut it about every 10 days, weekly if I’m feeling anal. Since it doesn’t freeze here, and doesn’t rain in the summer, it stays pretty all year. It’s three years old now and has stayed really nice and low maintenance.
Check with a garden center near you that sells sod. Not necessarily to buy sod, but they’re generally well-educated in what type is grass works best in your area.
I don’t think “Western US” is locates you specifically enough for this purpose, since the Western US includes everything from rain forest to desert.
Buffalo grass is probably your best bet. It won’t turn into a jungle if you don’t mow it at all. It will, however, grow to have a sort of soft, “puffy” appearance. Also, it’s not as wear-tolerant as other grasses, and doesn’t do well in shade. And finally, buffalo grass plants are either male or female, and the male plants produce tall seed stalks, so if you want to avoid that, you’ll need to sod with female plants rather than starting from seed.
On the plus side, buffalo grass is also one of the most drought-tolerant varieties, so it requires very little water to remain healthy.
If you’re in the South, don’t use ryegrass! NES always plants it after digging up sod for some electrical thing or other. It grows like crazy in the spring and then immediately dies off once it starts getting hot.
If only this worked in New Orleans :smack: Nature waters it mighty fine on its own.
South Carolina is not a dry climate … just what kinf of grass do you have planted :dubious:
I have FieldTurf in my small yard. No mowing, no watering, it drains, it cushions, and my dogs have finally started going on it.
Uh, the grass that came with the house? 
It’s mostly Centipede, I think. We’ve had a drought on here for a decade, maybe that’s it. I’ve been mowing maybe once a month lately except around my flower beds, where it grows because of the water I give them. Also, my reel mower won’t handle the seed stalks, so I need to get out there and nip those guys in the bud. But seriously, no, I hardly ever have to mow these days.