Grass seed for shade

Grass seed for shade

Regular grass seed does not grow well in shaded areas. So, if you have trees, buildings or fences in your garden that cast shadows throughout the day, your lawn could look worse for wear. This is where our grass seed for shade comes to the rescue!

What is the best grass seed for shade?

We have specialist grass seed varieties that grow well in shaded areas of your garden. Since normal grass seed doesn’t grow well under large trees or hedgerows due to low light, low moisture and nutrient-deprived soils – we applied our expertise in selecting grass seeds that grow best in these conditions.

Our shade-tolerant grass seed competes well with the trees and other garden plants for water and nutrients, and its growth is not affected even though it’s sheltered from sunlight!

The best seed for the shaded areas of your lawn will depend on how heavily shaded these parts of your garden are. Our STEADFAST grass seed range is developed perfectly to excel in these challenging growing conditions:

  • STEADFAST: Shade is suited to dappled shade, and areas of your lawn are shaded for parts of the day but don’t suffer from constant shadows.
  • STEADFAST: Ultra Shade is the ideal solution when you have buildings, tall fences and walls, and looming hedgerows and trees that block sunlight completely and starve areas of your garden from sunlight all day long.

What seeds grow best in the shade?

The main grass seed for shade we chose for our STEADFAST: Shade is Strong Creeping Red Fescue. This grass seed type grows quickly and doesn’t require much light to flourish. Its ‘creeping’ nature also means it covers a lot of ground and recovers well from wear and tear. This makes it a great choice for areas of your lawn that struggle to grow due to low-light conditions.

Chewings Fescue is a grass seed type used in our STEADFAST: Shade and STEADFAST: Ultra Shade mixes. This hardy fine grass seed grows thick and provides resilience and the ability to grow in low-fertility soils – this suits shaded areas perfectly!

The magic addition to our STEADFAST: Ultra Shade mix is the Poa Supina grass seed variant. Poa Supina is the ultimate solution for areas of your garden struggling to grow due to permanent shade. This super-species is exceptionally shade-tolerant and grows perfectly in low to no-light conditions, and it's ideal for areas of your garden constantly in the shade.

Once you have selected the variant of our STEAFAST range that suits your garden, you can use our handy grass seed calculator to find out how much seed you need.

When should you sow your grass seed?

Spring, summer and autumn are The best times to sow grass seed in shaded areas. During this time, your seeds require temperatures consistently at least 15 degrees Celsius and above. These temperatures are perfect for the germination of fescue grass species. But watch for any approaching cold weather fronts or humid periods that will slow your grass seed’s growth and could even kill it.

The benefits of sowing grass seed in spring

Spring is the perfect time to sow grass seed. This is because the weather is mild but warm enough for the seed to germinate, and there are usually plenty of spring showers to do the watering for you. If you sow your seed in spring, your lawn will be ready by summer, so you can sit back, relax and enjoy the UK summer!

The benefits of sowing grass seed in summer

You rarely have to worry about unexpected cold fronts during the UK summer months. Summer sunshine and warmer temperatures give your seedlings the perfect conditions to grow, and as long as you keep watering your lawn, it will thrive.

Summer temperatures in the UK generally range from 15 – 25 degrees, with frequent rainfall. These conditions are perfect for growing grass seed for shade, and temperatures around 15 degrees, with regular rain, are ideal for sowing. However, it would be best to hold off sowing if temperatures exceed 25 degrees or when a heatwave or drought occurs. Waiting until conditions return to normal before planting your grass seed will ensure successful germination and growth.

Will my grass grow and thicken on its own?

Grass seed for shade will grow and thicken on its own since it thrives in low light and low-quality soils. But there are still plenty of ways you can help encourage shady grass seed growth for an even thicker and greener lawn.

  • The same as you would for any newly planted grass seed, keep your shade-tolerant grass seed moist by watering it once or twice a day until it reaches the ideal height for its first mow.
  • And if you’re putting the seed down in a moist area of your garden that’s damp or prone to moss, then make sure the soil is aerated and has substantial irrigation so it doesn’t get waterlogged.
  • Then, you can revert back to watering your new grass in the shaded areas as often as the rest of your lawn.
  • Remember that these shaded areas often don’t get much moisture from the rain, so for the first while, it’s best to water it once a week, even if it has been raining as usual.
  • If large trees and hedges cause shade, we advise you to be more generous when watering shaded grass since the grass will compete with the other plants for water and nutrients.
  • Feeding your lawn with fertiliser will also give it a massive growth boost, improve its health and build resistance against common lawn diseases.
  • Finally, our last tip is to let your grass in shaded areas grow a little taller than the rest of your garden before cutting. This will give the grass more time to thrive and capture more sunlight as its blades grow and open, and it encourages deeper root growth for a stronger lawn overall!

Lawn grass seed for shade

Now you know how to get grass growing in the shaded areas of your garden and how to choose grass seed for shade. But if you have any questions on our STEADFAST range, growing conditions that you feel could be unique to your garden or anything else to help you get your garden flourishing again, please get in touch, and we will be happy to help.