One of the most remarkable features in most of the American homes is the lawn grass. A lot of efforts go into making and sustaining the lawn all year round. But most importantly knowing which grass grows fastest and in which region is vital for having a good lawn.
Thus it is important to know how each of the various types of grasses grows and the period of time it takes for them to germinate. Research has established that the rye grass is the fastest growing type of grass amongst those found in America. This type of grass is highly recommended for cool season periods.
This type of grass is popular because of its rich deep green color, which makes it very attractive especially on the lawn. The rye grass seed has the potential to germinate in less than three weeks of planting. It also grows at the same fast speed which means that it can make a mature lawn within the shortest period.
This also means that there is minimal waste of seed through surface wash away or rotting making it one of the most successful grasses to grow. There are two types of rye grasses: the annual rye grass which is rather slower in the rate of germination and growth, and the perennial rye grass which germinate faster than the annual rye grass
Rye grass seeds become well established in cool and moist conditions. The contact of the soils has to be increased for maximum effect. There are other factors that affect the establishment t of rye grass seeds.
They include Cultmulching as well as keeping the soils moisture sufficient. If the rye grass establishment has to reach maximum expectation. The level of competition for space and nutrients between the seeds as well as from other varieties of grasses has to be kept very low. Per acreage about 20 to 30 pounds of rye grass seeds has to be maintained.
To avoid over soaking and rotting of rye grass seeds have to be germinated in well drained loamy soils preferably in low lying plains. The best method of planting ryegrass is the broadcasting method. Broadcasting can be done using either hands or by machine. However machine broadcast is the most efficient.
Rye grass is well established in fields or lawns that have been cultivated well before planting. Mechanical seeding does produce the best results. The bests seeding depths ranges from 1/4 to 3/4 inches deep, which mean that rye grass seed thrive on shallow seeding.
Because rye grass seed establishment is moisture sensitive, broadcasting method is used for soils with sufficient amount of moisture. For soils with limited moisture content, row seeding is used where wider rows are used. Where row method is used the results are less sufficient than when broadcasting is used (Ehlke and Undersander para 12).
While ryegrass is used in lawns well because of its deep rich green color, it can also be used as fodder. This is because of a number of factors. Studies in the recent past suggest that rye grass is one of the highest yielding types of grass when all conditions for establishment are observed. Per acreage, it has been found out that about rye grass yields about 1,430 pounds.
This means that if the grass is grown for lawn then the desired lawn thickness is achieved and if grown for fodder the desired volume is realized. To increase the quality if the ryegrass fodder, planters are encouraged to use nitrogenous fertilizers during broadcasting. Actually there is about a 50% difference in the volume of fodder realized from fields where nitrogenous fertilizers have been used and those where not.
It has also been found that the use of nitrogenous fertilizer increase the protein level in ryegrass fodder. When ryegrass is established with other types of grasses as fodder it generally increases its value as well as the quality (College of Agricultural and Life Sciences paras 5 – 8).
Furthermore, rye grass can be used to build the soils, reduce surface run off thus keeping erosion to a minimum, improving the organic content of the soil as well as keeping the level of nitrogen optimum (Rye Grass Cover Crop para 3).
Rye grass suffers for winterkill and as such it may need protection from such adverse effect as such needs protection by other crops. Even though mixing rye grass with other companion crops increases the completion during summer and spring, during winter, these crops acts as cover to protect rye grass (Ehlke and Undersander para 9).
Weeding is better done before seeding. The most effective method of weeding is chemical. However, due to the sensitivity of the chemical method often used, it always useful to get information on chemical weeding from any county agricultural office. Mechanical methods can be used, but are laborious and less effective.
The history of rye grass cultivation dates back to the 1930s. During this time a lot of vegetation was destroyed and as environmentalist suggested grass cultivation done as one of the methods of conservation. Thus extensive research yielded result that rye grass was one of the fastest growing grasses.
Early researchers who made significant contribution in rye grass research include The John Innes researchers, who made significant studies in the crop breeding including (Murphy 79).
In the 1950s a researcher by the name Schultz found out that when rye grass was cultivated with other types of grasses, it germinated and generated faster than the rest. Furthermore Schultz found out that the rye grass did well in altitudes of about 2500 above sea level. Such and other historical research work has led to the current knowledge on the cultivation of the rye (Barro and Conrad 4).
Works Cited
Barro, Susan and Conrad, Susan. “Use of Ryegrass Seeding as an Emergency Revegetation Measure in Chaparral Ecosystems” 2011. Web.
College of Agricultural and Life Sciences. “Annual Ryegrass Trial Shows Limits, Promise (Research Brief #47).” 2011. Web.
Ehlke, Newton and Undersander, Dwight. “Cool-Season Grass Seed Production.” 2011. Web.
Murphy, Denis. Plant Breeding and Biotechnology: Societal Context and The Future Of Agriculture. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 2007. Print.
Rye Grass Cover Crop. “Annual Ryegrass and Cereal Rye.” 2011. Web.