Planting low pollen grasses in Maryland - Ask Extension
Hello,
I have very bad seasonal allergies, and I recently finally pinpointed down to grass type, which are the worst offenders. We now also have th...
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Planting low pollen grasses in Maryland #786808
Asked April 14, 2022, 12:38 PM EDT
Hello,
I have very bad seasonal allergies, and I recently finally pinpointed down to grass type, which are the worst offenders. We now also have the ability to build out landscaping that improves my quality of life. We live in a wooded area in Gwynn Oak, MD, so there’s not much to be done about the trees, but we’re thinking about overseeding with different grass seed. I’ve read that St. Augustine and Buffalo grass are good varieties for allergy sufferers, however I know they are not commonly used in our area. My question is, could we still use one of these grasses and not cause harm to our native wildlife?
Oh and we also have a huge poplar in our front yard which dominates the space.
You may ask, why not pull out the grass and put rocks? Well, we also have two small children and want them to have soft places to play. Our backyard is not as well suited for that because it’s very wooded with trees. I’ve included photos of the front and back yards for reference.
Thank you,
Crystal
Baltimore County Maryland
Expert Response
Hello Crystal,
Although we defer to medical experts regarding allergen impacts, usually grass allergies are triggered specifically by its pollen. Grasses only bloom (produce pollen) once a year, though the timing will depend on the species. Warm-season grasses grow actively in summer and bloom either in mid/late summer or autumn. Cool-season grasses grow actively in autumn and again in spring, and then bloom in spring before they go summer-dormant. Turfgrass in Maryland can belong to either group, but usually is a fescue blend, which is cool-season. Zoysia is the main warm-season lawn grass used here. (If the grass you currently have is green in spring, it's fescue-based. If it's completely brown in winter and greens-up for summer, it's zoysia.)
Neither St. Augustine nor Buffalograss are used for lawns in our area, either due to hardiness issues and/or an intolerance for our other growing conditions. They won't necessarily harm wildlife (aside from the fact that lawns in general don't offer much wildlife benefit); they just won't survive very long.
The mid-Atlantic has the distinction of being in the transition zone, meaning we don't have conditions ideal for growing either type of lawn grass very well year-round, whether cool- or warm-season. That said, when regularly mowed, neither type of turfgrass should be producing much in the way of pollen, if they ever bloom at all. Ornamental grasses, on the other hand, which are used for decoration by themselves or in meadows, are allowed to flower because it's part of their decorative appeal (plus it's helpful to have the grasses in a meadow seed themselves around to keep gaps filled). Most ornamental grasses used in this way are warm-season species, though a few are cool-season. All of this is to say that your lawn or landscaping may not be much of a source of allergens for you, fortunately, but grass pollen could still be blowing-in from just about anywhere.
Both the shade and the root competition from trees will greatly reduce what grasses will grow well. All lawn grasses plus most ornamental grasses are adapted to open, sunny habitats. Rather than having an ongoing struggle with keeping a lawn healthy under trees, we suggest you consider lawn alternatives. The trade-off is that, while these alternative plants will grow better and require considerably less maintenance than the turf, they won't tolerate the degree of foot traffic that turf does. A number of other ground-covering plants would provide a soft landing for playing children, they just won't stand up to the repetitive foliage damage for the long term. Perhaps you can dedicate a smaller section of yard to lawn while planting the rest with alternatives (or using mulch); this would lighten the burden of lawn care. You can find information and inspiration for lawn alternatives and conversions to other plantings in the links at the bottom of the Challenge of Growing a Lawn page shared above.
If you want to try re-establishing turf for now, you could either strip the lawn remnants (if too weedy or patchy) to amend the soil with some compost before laying seed or sod, or overseed. You may find sod removal too difficult if the poplar's roots are shallow and within the top couple of inches of the soil surface. Both procedures are outlined in our Lawn Renovation and Overseeding page.
Since the grass in the photo appears to not be dormant right now, you likely have fescue and not zoysia, so should overseed with the same type. Mixing warm-season and cool-season grasses in a lawn complicates its care and doesn't necessarily result in a pleasing year-round look or boosting its resiliency. The soil here looks a bit poor and compacted, which may be one reason why the grass is struggling. Adding organic matter [OM] helps to loosen compacted soil, but it would be best to perform a soil test first so you know what the OM and nutrient content is already. OM is easiest to add when a lawn is being renovated so you have bare soil to rake it into; layering it on top of existing lawn is difficult and not recommended because it could smother the grass, though you could selectively apply a light layer to bare areas before seeding.
If additional lawn care information would be useful, you can peruse our collection of pages about lawn topics. They include tips on what seed blends to look for, when to fertilize, and what to expect when growing grass in the shade.
Miri
Although we defer to medical experts regarding allergen impacts, usually grass allergies are triggered specifically by its pollen. Grasses only bloom (produce pollen) once a year, though the timing will depend on the species. Warm-season grasses grow actively in summer and bloom either in mid/late summer or autumn. Cool-season grasses grow actively in autumn and again in spring, and then bloom in spring before they go summer-dormant. Turfgrass in Maryland can belong to either group, but usually is a fescue blend, which is cool-season. Zoysia is the main warm-season lawn grass used here. (If the grass you currently have is green in spring, it's fescue-based. If it's completely brown in winter and greens-up for summer, it's zoysia.)
Neither St. Augustine nor Buffalograss are used for lawns in our area, either due to hardiness issues and/or an intolerance for our other growing conditions. They won't necessarily harm wildlife (aside from the fact that lawns in general don't offer much wildlife benefit); they just won't survive very long.
The mid-Atlantic has the distinction of being in the transition zone, meaning we don't have conditions ideal for growing either type of lawn grass very well year-round, whether cool- or warm-season. That said, when regularly mowed, neither type of turfgrass should be producing much in the way of pollen, if they ever bloom at all. Ornamental grasses, on the other hand, which are used for decoration by themselves or in meadows, are allowed to flower because it's part of their decorative appeal (plus it's helpful to have the grasses in a meadow seed themselves around to keep gaps filled). Most ornamental grasses used in this way are warm-season species, though a few are cool-season. All of this is to say that your lawn or landscaping may not be much of a source of allergens for you, fortunately, but grass pollen could still be blowing-in from just about anywhere.
Both the shade and the root competition from trees will greatly reduce what grasses will grow well. All lawn grasses plus most ornamental grasses are adapted to open, sunny habitats. Rather than having an ongoing struggle with keeping a lawn healthy under trees, we suggest you consider lawn alternatives. The trade-off is that, while these alternative plants will grow better and require considerably less maintenance than the turf, they won't tolerate the degree of foot traffic that turf does. A number of other ground-covering plants would provide a soft landing for playing children, they just won't stand up to the repetitive foliage damage for the long term. Perhaps you can dedicate a smaller section of yard to lawn while planting the rest with alternatives (or using mulch); this would lighten the burden of lawn care. You can find information and inspiration for lawn alternatives and conversions to other plantings in the links at the bottom of the Challenge of Growing a Lawn page shared above.
If you want to try re-establishing turf for now, you could either strip the lawn remnants (if too weedy or patchy) to amend the soil with some compost before laying seed or sod, or overseed. You may find sod removal too difficult if the poplar's roots are shallow and within the top couple of inches of the soil surface. Both procedures are outlined in our Lawn Renovation and Overseeding page.
Since the grass in the photo appears to not be dormant right now, you likely have fescue and not zoysia, so should overseed with the same type. Mixing warm-season and cool-season grasses in a lawn complicates its care and doesn't necessarily result in a pleasing year-round look or boosting its resiliency. The soil here looks a bit poor and compacted, which may be one reason why the grass is struggling. Adding organic matter [OM] helps to loosen compacted soil, but it would be best to perform a soil test first so you know what the OM and nutrient content is already. OM is easiest to add when a lawn is being renovated so you have bare soil to rake it into; layering it on top of existing lawn is difficult and not recommended because it could smother the grass, though you could selectively apply a light layer to bare areas before seeding.
If additional lawn care information would be useful, you can peruse our collection of pages about lawn topics. They include tips on what seed blends to look for, when to fertilize, and what to expect when growing grass in the shade.
Miri
