Does grass take on more water when established

ciandavidmarriottd0FQtn7D · September 2021

Sorry if its been posted already but cant seem to find the answer (maybe because its obvious). I put some new turf down this year and wondered, when the roots are more established do they consume/hold more water than when they were first laid and would it be considerably more?

Thanks,

Butterfly66 · September 2021

I don’t know but my guess would be that there is little difference. Grass roots are fairly shallow and don’t noticeably increase in size over time. I guess longer grass will take up slightly more water than short as it will use and lose more (through evaporation)?

Fairygirl · September 2021

The roots will be stronger, but as @Butterfly66 says , grass is very shallow rooting, so I can't see how it would make a great deal of difference. The length is a major factor as to the amount of water 'held'.
Is there are a reason you need/want to know @ciandavidmarriottd0FQtn7D - is it for your watering regime?

Buttercupdays · September 2021

I suspect the answer is 'it all depends'

If the soil has been well prepared, is reasonably moisture retentive and in good heart, then the turf will be able to put down deeper roots an obtain both food and water from the soil to promote more growth and may require less from the gardener.
If the soil has sharper drainage and/or is lower in nutrients, then growth will be reduced and water take up might be lower, as there is less foliage to maintain. If the soil gets too dry though, the grass might dieback without additional watering or it might weaken and yellow for lack of the right nutrients. The gardener has to watch and keep the balance right, providing whatever is missing and adjust for the weather.
In a natural situation you would get different types of grasses growing. I have a a long slope in my garden. The top is shaded by trees, but benefits from some run-off from the field behind. The lower part gets full sun and has finer grasses and more wildflowers. The very bottom is by a water channel and is always moist and the grass here is much coarser and more vigourous, with the likes of Cocksfoot and Yorkshire Fog. It all gets mown at the same time, but the areas look and feel different, though the base soil is presumably the same. It will have been altered over the years by falling leaves, or nutrient-rich silt carried by the water, and growth is also affected by the rainfall and the available heat and light.

cork gardener · September 2021

A related question...
I put down new turf this year (in March).The soil was worked to a depth of 8'' or so and looked to be decent quality topsoil. Quite quickly after putting it down (2 months or so), the grass looked starved of nutrients, growth slowed down to almost nothing. I applied lawn feed and it bounced back and looks great again. I'm assuming it only ran out of nutrients so quickly because it was new turf and didn't have an established root system?

Fairygirl · September 2021

Normally - you would add a general purpose food before laying the turf. That gives enough nutrition until the turf is well enough established. It shouldn't need fed at all for around 6 months or so, because the main thing new turf needs is water.
People rarely water enough, and tend to do the' ten minutes every day' routine, instead of several hours a couple of times a week if there's no persistent rain for several hours. The former causes problems as it keep roots near the surface which are then easily damaged in hot, dry weather

cork gardener · September 2021

Thanks Fairygirl - I thought I watered plenty but who knows. I did add a general purpose feed before turfing but maybe not enough, its perked up hugely since applying the lawnfeed so I think it was definitely a nutrient issue.

Fairygirl · September 2021

As long as it's doing ok, I don't think you need to worry too much @cork gardener

Does grass take on more water when established

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