LawnSuite cool-season lawn care (fescue, ryegrass, bluegrass): a 12-month calendar
Cool-season lawns such as tall fescue, perennial ryegrass and Kentucky bluegrass run on an upside-down year. They grow best in autumn and spring, get through summer rather than thrive in it, and stay green in winter. Here's what holds for cool-season grass in every climate, quoted from LawnSuite's cool-season program, and a 12-month calendar for your climate.
What holds for cool-season grass in every climate
Timing, heights and watering vary by climate: pick your climate in the calendar below.
From LawnSuite's cool-season program:
Winter
Cool-season turf stays green through winter.
Mowing
A tall canopy shades the soil, keeps the root zone cooler.
Oversowing
Oversow only where the turf is genuinely thinning, worn, patchy or bare, or where you are deliberately converting/renewing the species. A dense, healthy stand does not need reseeding every year.
Weeds
If you use a weed-control product, choose one whose label lists your cool-season grass, and follow the label.
Don't lay a pre-emergent where you plan to oversow.
Cool-season grass lawn care calendar, month by month
Pick the climate closest to yours. Each month lists the task types LawnSuite's cool-season grass program schedules in that climate.
Temperate
| Month | Scheduled tasks |
|---|---|
| January | Disease watch, Feeding window, Mowing height change, Pest check, Soil moisture check |
| February | Disease watch, Feeding window |
| March | Feeding window, Pre-emergent weed window, Renovation window |
| April | Feeding window, Weed check |
| May | Feeding window, Weed check |
| June | Feeding window |
| July | Feeding window |
| August | Feeding window, Pre-emergent weed window |
| September | Feeding window, Renovation window |
| October | Feeding window |
| November | Feeding window, Pest check, Soil moisture check |
| December | Disease watch, Feeding window, Soil moisture check |
Mediterranean
| Month | Scheduled tasks |
|---|---|
| January | Disease watch, Feeding window, Mowing height change, Soil moisture check |
| February | Disease watch, Feeding window |
| March | Feeding window, Pre-emergent weed window, Renovation window |
| April | Feeding window, Weed check |
| May | Feeding window, Weed check |
| June | Feeding window, Weed check |
| July | Disease watch |
| August | Pre-emergent weed window |
| September | Feeding window, Pest check, Renovation window |
| October | Feeding window |
| November | Feeding window, Soil moisture check |
| December | Feeding window, Soil moisture check |
Arid
| Month | Scheduled tasks |
|---|---|
| January | Disease watch, Feeding window, Mowing height change, Soil moisture check |
| February | Disease watch, Feeding window, Soil moisture check |
| March | Feeding window, Pre-emergent weed window, Renovation window, Soil moisture check |
| April | Feeding window, Weed check |
| May | Feeding window, Weed check |
| June | Feeding window |
| July | Nothing scheduled |
| August | Pre-emergent weed window |
| September | Feeding window, Pest check, Renovation window |
| October | Feeding window |
| November | Feeding window |
| December | Disease watch, Feeding window, Soil moisture check |
Cool Temperate
| Month | Scheduled tasks |
|---|---|
| January | Disease watch, Feeding window, Soil moisture check |
| February | Disease watch, Feeding window, Soil moisture check |
| March | Feeding window, Pre-emergent weed window, Renovation window |
| April | Feeding window, Weed check |
| May | Feeding window, Weed check |
| June | Disease watch, Feeding window |
| July | Feeding window |
| August | Feeding window, Pre-emergent weed window |
| September | Feeding window, Pest check, Renovation window |
| October | Feeding window |
| November | Feeding window |
| December | Disease watch, Feeding window, Mowing height change, Soil moisture check |
| Task type | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Feeding window | A period when feeding fits the grass's growth cycle. |
| Pre-emergent weed window | The period before weed seeds germinate. |
| Weed check | When weed growth picks up. |
| Pest check | When pest pressure rises. |
| Disease watch | When disease pressure rises. |
| Renovation window | A period suited to overseeding, dethatching or aerating. |
| Mowing height change | When a height change suits the growth cycle. |
| Soil moisture check | When soil moisture is worth checking before watering. |
Source: the same month-by-month data as our free 12-month lawn care calendar, exported from the 26 grass and climate programs. Time each window for your lawn with the app's 7-day outlook and hourly soil temperature.
About LawnSuite's grass calendar
How do I get a dated plan for my cool-season grass lawn?
This calendar shows the month-by-month task types from LawnSuite's cool-season grass program for each Australian climate it covers. Start free to see your basic plan for your grass and climate; LawnSuite Pro gives you the dated plan.
More on cool-season grass from the blog
- Oversowing in spring: what actually makes sense on an Australian lawn
- Spring lawn renovation by grass type: Buffalo, Couch, Kikuyu, Zoysia and cool-season
- When Should You Dethatch or Scarify an Australian Lawn?
- When to fertilise your lawn in Australia (by grass type)
- The first feed of spring: how to know your lawn is actually ready
Plan it for your own lawn
Start free to see your basic plan for your grass and climate, and preview what your dated Pro plan looks like.