Choosing lawn seed for sun, shade and wear

Start with the lawn, not the packet

Before you look at any packaging, answer three questions. How much sun does the area get? How much do people, children, pets or football use it? And how short do you want to mow it? The answers point to one of a small number of mix types, and that matters more than the brand name.

A lawn that gets six hours of sun and a family trampling it is a different problem from a shaded corner under a tree or a small front lawn that is mostly for show. The RHS sorts seed mixes into broadly the same categories, so I will use its descriptions as the baseline.

The main grass types

Four names turn up on almost every packet. Here is what the RHS says about each in its guidance on starting a lawn from seed and lawns in shade.

• Perennial ryegrass: a hard-wearing grass that grows fast and so needs regular mowing. The RHS says any perennial ryegrass in a mix should be a 'turf' or 'fine' type.
• Tall fescue and red fescues: found in general-purpose mixes alongside ryegrass. Fescues in general are better at coping with shade, drought and low nutrient levels.
• Chewings fescue and creeping red fescue: the fine-leaved grasses in 'luxury' mixes, which form a dense, soft lawn and suit a low, neat cut. They are slow-growing.
• Browntop and bent grasses (Agrostis): browntop appears in general-purpose, luxury and shade mixes. The RHS says bent grasses are preferred in damp shade.

General-purpose mixes for family lawns

The RHS describes general-purpose mixes as hard-wearing grasses for foot traffic, children and pets, usually perennial ryegrass, tall fescue, red fescues and browntop. They grow quickly and need regular mowing.

For most gardens with normal use, this is the sensible default. It tolerates a bit of neglect, recovers from wear faster than a fine mix, and in general is more forgiving about mowing height than a fine mix. The trade-off is that it looks less like a bowling green.

Luxury and fine-lawn mixes

Luxury or fine mixes, according to the RHS, are made of fine-leaved turf grasses, usually Chewings fescue, creeping red fescue and browntop. They are slow-growing and suit a low, neat cut.

General guidance: they are best on lawns that get light use and are cut regularly with a good mower. Because they are slow to grow, they are also slower to repair if a heavy footfall damages them. The RHS does not state this directly; it follows from how it describes the two types, so choose a fine mix because you want that finish, not for a football pitch.

Shade mixes

The RHS says it is important to choose a shade-tolerant grass mix, sold as seed or turf. Its shady mix is for light to medium shade and is mostly hard fescue, creeping red fescue and browntop. It adds that these are not very hard-wearing, and that for damp shade a blend with more bent grass is better.

No seed grows in dense shade. The RHS notes that most turf needs four to six hours of full sun each day, and that dense canopies from trees such as oak, beech or conifers can block up to 95% of summer sunlight. Tree roots compete for water and nutrients, and compacted or waterlogged soil makes things worse. If that sounds like your lawn, a shade mix helps, but look at the cause too.

Shaded grass also needs different mowing. The RHS says to raise the cutting height to at least 6cm (2½in), or up to 9cm (3½in), always remove clippings and to mow less often because shaded grass grows more slowly. It also says lawns in shade are best fed in autumn, just before trees lose their leaves.

Matching seed to the conditions

Putting that together as a simple decision guide:

• Full sun, normal family use: general-purpose mix.
• Full sun, light use, low mowing: fine or luxury mix.
• Light to medium shade: shade mix, with the mowing height raised.
• Damp shade: a shade mix with more bent grass, per the RHS.
• Heavy wear on a small area: general-purpose, with an eye on soil compaction. See our guide to hollow-tine or spiking aeration.
• Dry, sunny patches: the RHS suggests re-sowing sparse areas after a dry summer ideally with a drought-tolerant seed mix.

What to avoid

Cheap 'bargain' seed with no species list. The RHS advises choosing a reputable brand. If you cannot tell what is in the bag, you cannot tell what you will get.

Luxury mix in a high-traffic spot, or a general-purpose mix in a deep-shade corner. Both are common mismatches. And a single mix everywhere when your garden has a sunny front and a shady back: it is often worth buying two bags.

Seed that has been stored badly or is old. The pages I read do not give a shelf life, so check the date on the packet and buy fresh.

How to read a seed label

The RHS pages say the weight per square metre is printed on the packet and varies by mix. Beyond that, the following is general guidance on what a good label looks like rather than something from the sources.

Look for the species and ideally the variety names, with their percentage by weight. Look for a stated intended use, such as general purpose, fine lawn or shade. Look for the sowing rate and the area the bag covers. A label that only says 'lawn seed' with no list is a warning sign.

Whatever the label says about coatings or extras, the sowing rate on the packet is the one to follow.

Mixing new seed into an old lawn

The best match is the existing grass, but you rarely know what that is. Fine-bladed old lawns will look patchy if you sow a coarse ryegrass into them: the new patches grow faster and stand out. In a fine lawn, a fine mix will blend better. In an average family lawn, a general-purpose mix usually blends well enough. That is general guidance, not a cited rule.

Match the mix to the conditions that made the old grass fail, not to what it looked like. If the old grass gave up because of shade, a shade mix is better than copying it. The RHS says repairs are best made in spring or autumn, and for shaded areas it says to choose a shade-tolerant mix.

Preparation matters as much as the mix. The method is in our guide to overseeding a lawn step by step, and our overseeding service includes helping you pick the right mix.