How to choose lawn seed

Two things decide which lawn seed mix is right: how much light the area gets, and how hard the lawn will be used once it is down. Get those two answers first and the rest, ryegrass content, sowing rate, whether to overseed or start again, follows on from them.

Sun, shade or somewhere in between?

An open, sunny lawn takes almost any general-purpose mix. Shade is where standard lawn seed usually fails, not because the seed is bad but because ordinary ryegrass and fescue need more light than a shaded site gives them. Under trees or between buildings, use Shade Area Grass Seed Mix, where dwarf ryegrass gets the sward up quickly and nurses the slower fescues and meadow grasses that carry it long term. For deeper, colder shade under mature trees, where the soil tends to be short of nutrients as well as light, step up to Woodland & Heavy Shade Grass Seed Mix. Either way, mow shaded lawns lightly and less often than an open lawn. Frequent close cutting is what actually thins out a shaded sward, more than the shade itself.

Family lawn or ornamental finish?

This is the trade-off most people get backwards. A lawn that takes children, a trampoline and the dog needs ryegrass in the mix, because ryegrass establishes fast and recovers from wear. Back Lawn Grass Seed Mix, a 50/50 blend of perennial ryegrass and strong creeping red fescue, is built for exactly that and works equally well for a new lawn or overseeding worn, bare patches. Universal Grass Seed Mix is the budget alternative for the same kind of use, at a lower cost per bag for larger areas.

If the lawn is genuinely ornamental, a front garden that sees visitors rather than football, a finer finish is worth the extra care. Front Lawn Grass Seed Mix gives good colour year round and copes with moderate drought, but Phoenix is upfront that it only tolerates limited foot traffic and is not a mix for regular hard use. For the finest finish of all, close to a bowling green standard, Fine Ornamental Grass Seed Mix or the ryegrass-free Prize Grass Seed Mix hold their colour and take close mowing well, but neither is the right choice under a trampoline. If a lawn needs to do both jobs at once, Premier Grass Seed Mix is the middle ground: ryegrass for wear, fescue and bent for a finer cut than a pure ryegrass lawn gives.

New lawn or low-maintenance ground cover?

Not every garden area is meant to be mown weekly. Orchards, newly planted beds and ground you would rather visit twice a season than every weekend suit Landscape Low Maintenance Grass Seed Mix, a fescue and bent blend that stays presentable without regular cutting. It is a different job from a lawn, and worth choosing deliberately rather than settling for a standard lawn mix that then demands mowing you did not plan for.

Which product for which job

New family lawn or overseeding worn patches: Back Lawn Grass Seed Mix.

Shaded lawn under trees or between buildings: Shade Area Grass Seed Mix, or Woodland & Heavy Shade Grass Seed Mix for the darkest spots.

Ornamental front lawn with light use: Front Lawn Grass Seed Mix.

Fine, showpiece finish: Fine Ornamental Grass Seed Mix.

Low-maintenance ground cover, mown a couple of times a year: Landscape Low Maintenance Grass Seed Mix.

Protecting freshly sown seed from birds, wind and frost while it establishes: a Grass Germination Sheet laid over the top speeds germination on any of the above.

If your lawn does not fit cleanly into family, ornamental or low-maintenance, or you want a mix that does not exist in the standard range, the Create Your Own Seed Mix service will blend a custom grass mix to your soil and brief. Otherwise, the products above cover the great majority of UK domestic lawns.

Frequently asked questions

When is the best time to sow lawn seed in the UK?

Early autumn (September into October) and spring (March to May) both work well, since soil is warm enough for germination and usually moist enough not to need constant watering. Autumn sowing has the edge because weed competition is lower and the young grass has all winter and spring to establish before the first hot, dry spell. Avoid sowing in the height of summer unless you can irrigate reliably.

How long before I can walk on a newly sown lawn?

Most ryegrass-based mixes are ready for light foot traffic around six to eight weeks after sowing, once the grass has been mown two or three times and the roots have knitted together. Fescue and bent mixes, and shaded lawns generally, take longer to establish and are worth keeping off for longer. Mow little and often once the grass reaches about 8cm, rather than waiting and cutting it hard.

Should I overseed a worn lawn or start again?

If more than half the lawn is bare, worn to soil, or the grass species have changed to weed grasses, starting again gives a more even result. If the lawn is generally sound with thin or bald patches, overseeding with the same mix, or a compatible one such as Back Lawn Grass Seed Mix, is quicker and cheaper. Rake the patch back to soil first; seed dropped straight onto existing thatch rarely germinates well.