When choosing the best grass for a lawn, it is important to first determine how much sun it will receive. It is best to select a species that is well suited for the area in which it will be grown, rather than trying to force it to grow in an unsuitable area. The best type for a shaded area is fescue. If the area will receive full sun, Bermuda grass is the better choice. If the area will receive very little or no fertilizer, centipedegrass might be the best choice.
When browsing through different types of grass, you will notice that the packaging often states whether it requires full sun, dense shade, or anything in between. These labels can, however, be a bit confusing. In general, a lawn requiring full sun should receive eight hours of unobstructed sunshine every day. One labeled as needing light shade requires six hours of sunshine that may or may not be filtered through tree leaves or pine foliage.
If the packaging says it requires partial shade, the lawn needs four hours of direct sunshine or eight hours of sunshine filtered through foliage. One that needs shade requires three hours of direct sunshine per day or all day sunshine filtered through tree leaves. A lawn that needs dense shade should receive no direct sunshine at all.
The amount of time you have available to tend to the lawn is another important consideration. Seeding grass is a less expensive option than sodding, but sodding provides more immediate results. When planting fescue, it is necessary to overseed it every two years, because creeping grass will cover the area otherwise. If the area to be covered is large and will receive little maintenance, common Bermuda or Kentucky 31 fescue are good choices. If the area is small and will receive a great deal of traffic, a sodded Bermuda or a turf fescue are better selections.
A turfgrass is available in two broad categories: warm season or cool season. A warm season variety needs to be planted in late spring or early summer, generally anytime from May to July. A cool season grass, on the other hand, should be planted in the fall from September through October.