Tall fescue for lawns: photo, description, seeding rate, height, reviews

Content

1 History of appearance
2 Description of tall fescue with photo
- 2.1 Methods of application
3 Pros and cons of lawn quality
4 Landing rules
- 4.1 Tall fescue seeding rate
5 Care instructions
6 Conclusion
7 Reviews of tall fescue

Tall fescue (reed) is a perennial herbaceous plant that is often used in pastures as well as for turf. Very unpretentious, grows on saline, alkaline soils. It only needs periodic watering and occasional feeding.

History of appearance

Tall fescue is a wild plant that became known relatively recently. Only at the end of the 19th century was it discovered by farmers in the USA. It has been noted that the grass can be used as animal feed.

Thanks to this, tall fescue quickly spread both in the United States and in many European countries. Moreover, initially she was called a reed (reed) pimp. Along with its use as a pasture plant, fescue began to be used as a lawn crop. It was in this role that she became most widespread.

Description of tall fescue with photo

Tall fescue is a perennial grass from the genus of the same name, belonging to the grass family. It produces small rhizomes of fibrous type, which are quite well fixed and germinate in the soil.The height of the stems can vary from 50 cm to 1.5 m.

The foliage of tall fescue is hard, lanceolate in shape, very narrow / D plates reach no more than 1 cm in width and 15-20 cm in length. The color is rich dark green, grassy, which creates a beautiful background for a lawn.

The plant produces very long, narrow leaves of a rich green color.

Tall fescue inflorescences form in mid-summer. They are represented by large panicles. They reach a length of 20 and even 30 cm. They droop towards the ground even at the peak of growth. At the lower nodes of the panicle, long branches are formed, producing numerous spikelets. A short shoot also grows, which gives rise to 4-8 spikelets. Each of them rarely exceeds 1 cm, and from 4 to 6 flowers appear on one spikelet.

The lower flower scales of tall fescue are lanceolate in shape, up to 9 mm long. Their tops are solid, but they can also be two-toothed. They are found without awns or with a small, barely noticeable awn, the length of which does not exceed 0.5 mm.

At the end of flowering, tall fescue bears fruit already at the beginning of autumn. They are grains of elongated, grooved shape. The color is gray-yellow.

Important! Tall fescue is characterized by a rapid onset of growth in mid-spring. The green mass is formed by June, and a few weeks later (early July) flowering begins. Therefore, when forming lawns, it is important to mow in a timely manner.

Methods of application

Tall fescue is unpretentious and takes root quite well even on saline soils. Therefore, the herb has become widespread, the main areas of application are:

pasture meadows – fodder crop;
for making hay;
lawns (for designing plots, parks);
green manure is a green fertilizer that saturates the soil with useful substances;
strengthening slopes that extend from highways;
turf-forming plant (for maintaining soil according to the turf-humus system).

Attention! When using tall fescue as a forage plant, you should know that the yield of green mass reaches 50-100 centners per hectare.

Pros and cons of lawn quality

Tall fescue is characterized by a large number of objective advantages. This is an unpretentious grass that can be used as a lawn and forage crop. It grows normally even in unfavorable conditions and is easy to care for. Due to its high winter hardiness, such grass can be cultivated in most Russian regions.

Tall fescue is one of the most popular types of ornamental grasses

Pros:

grows well in sun and shade;
differs in immunity to fungal infections;
quickly begins to grow in the spring;
resistant to flooding by melt water;
winter-hardy;
can be cultivated even on saline soils;
recovers after trampling;
can exist up to 10-15 years;
low price for seeds.

Minuses:

the plant reproduces well by rhizomes and can occupy the entire area;
if you do not mow, the roots will become very strong and difficult to uproot;
grows poorly in open areas with draft winds.

Landing rules

Sowing tall fescue seeds should be planned for spring or autumn. In the first case, work begins from late April to mid-May. In the second - in mid or late October, shortly before the first frost. In the southern regions of Russia, the dates are shifted to November, although in the spring sowing can be done as early as the end of March.

Any area is suitable for work, including shady ones, but it is best to grow tall fescue in sunny places. It’s good if the area is not completely open. It is advisable that the place be protected from drafts at least on the northern side of the garden. The soil may even be infertile, saline, but not too acidic (pH more than 5.0).

The sowing process itself looks like this:

They clear the area and dig up the soil using half a shovel.
Soak the grains in a pink solution of potassium permanganate for two hours.
Then they are placed for several hours in a solution of “Kornevin” or another growth stimulant.
Make several small holes (depth 2 cm, diameter 15 cm) at intervals of 10 cm.
Place 5-8 grains in each hole.
Sprinkle with soil and tamp down a little.
Gently water with settled water.

Attention! Fescue should be planted away from tall shrubs and trees. They create shade that will prevent grass from growing quickly.

Tall fescue seeding rate

When planting tall fescue, you should take into account the seeding rate, which is 50 g of seeds per 1 m². If you intend to develop a large area, you can proceed from the norm of 5 kg per 1 hundred square meters (100 m²) or 500 kg per 1 ha (10,000 m²). It is also worth considering that every thousand seeds weighs 2.2-2.5 g. Accordingly, 50 g contains more than 20 thousand grains. Therefore, it is undesirable to violate the specified sowing norm.

Seeds are sown in an amount of 50 g per 1 m2

Care instructions

As already mentioned, tall fescue is an unpretentious plant. However, there are still certain rules of care - it is recommended to follow these tips:

Watering is required regularly and abundantly, especially during drought. The soil should always remain slightly moist.
If the soil is infertile, during preparation or after germination it is advisable to water it with a solution of complex mineral fertilizer, for example, Agricola.
When growing tall fescue, the lawn is regularly mowed. Peduncles are constantly removed to prevent seeds from forming.
The lawn is treated with insecticides several times a season to avoid severe pest infestations.
At the end of autumn, the lawn is mowed almost to the roots and covered with straw, hay or leaf litter. This should only be done in regions with frosty winters.

Conclusion

Tall fescue is a classic lawn grass. Suitable for decorating a lawn, creating a beautiful background near a house, gazebo, country pond and other recreational areas. It is characterized by high winter hardiness and low maintenance requirements. Therefore, even a novice summer resident can cope with growing such grass.

Reviews of tall fescue

Eremina Alena, Novosibirsk

Fescue is a cool plant, you could say it's a lazy person's lawn. Does not require special care, but needs to be watered regularly. It is better in the evening so that the leaves do not get burned from the evil sun. And be sure to cover it with hay and straw for the winter. If there is nothing, you can wrap it in agrofibre. Still, in winter in the Siberian climate it freezes without shelter.

Sumina Natalya, Saratov

I bought tall fescue seeds from last year and they all sprouted. I planted it as recommended - 50 g per meter, I didn’t even make holes. The result was a tight fit, everything needed for a lawn. The seeding rate is sufficient, otherwise there will be real thickets, so be careful. And what they write about care is correct - you need to water it regularly and feed it at least once at the beginning of summer.

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