Poa nemoralis, also known as rough meadow grass, is often used in seed mixtures for shaded lawns. We show why this plant is particularly suitable for this and how you can benefit from its advantages in the garden.
You have probably never consciously noticed this type of grass, but perhaps you remember the intense green in the undergrowth of a sparse deciduous forest. You probably have the Grove bluegrass there (Poa nemoralis) last seen. This type of grass is characterized by its high shade tolerance and is therefore ideally suited as a component of shade lawn seeds like ours Plantura shade lawn mix.
Poa nemoralis: origin and description
As a native species, rough bluegrass is often found in Germany. Its natural range covers much of the northern hemisphere: from China to Kamchatka, from the Caucasus to the Alps and to Morocco. The grass is particularly noticeable because of its protruding leaves. The flowers appearing in June and July are arranged in panicles and thus tell of its belonging to the genus of meadow grasses (
Poa). Poa nemoralis can grow up to 80 centimeters high and grows in loose clumps, primarily in sparse deciduous and mixed forests. Both the German name grove meadow grass and the Latin species name indicate this preference nemoralis there.
In sparse places in the forest, the soil is mostly fresh and humus-rich and nutrient-rich due to the regularly falling leaves. The grove meadow grass has adapted well to these conditions. It also needs soils with an alkaline to slightly acidic pH value. By fertilizing with primarily organic fertilizer like our Plantura Organic Lawn Fertilizer the humus content of the soil can be increased, thereby improving the conditions for the grass.
Its occurrence in forests, bushes and groves indicates the high shade tolerance of the grass. This makes the grass species an excellent part of Shade Lawn Seed Mixtures. In places where grass otherwise grows sparsely due to lack of light, such mixtures can work wonders. Because of this, you will Poa nemoralis also in ours Plantura shade lawn mix find again.
Properties and use of the rough bluegrass
For a quick overview we have listed the properties of Poa nemoralis briefly summarized below:
| Poa nemoralis in brief | |
|---|---|
| characteristics | Forms loose clumps, grey-greenish colour |
| Expectations | Demands Nutrient-rich and humus-rich soil, alkaline to moderately acidic pH, sufficient moisture |
| durability | Moderate to low resilience |
| use | Shaded lawns, part of our Plantura shaded lawn mixture, biotope areas, landscaped lawns |
| germination and development | 14 – 24 days, medium rapid development |
| cutting tolerance | Moderately cut-tolerant, do not mow too often, do not cut below 5 cm |
| particularities | Very tolerant of shade, very well adapted to the local climate, high tolerance to lawn diseases |
Use of Poa nemoralis
In agriculture, the meadow meadow grass is hardly used consciously. Nevertheless, it can often be found on shady pastures. However, the grass has made a name for itself in particular through its use in shadow lawn made. Where there is a lack of light, Poa nemoralis prove its merits, which is why it is also an important part of ours Plantura shade lawn is. However, because the grass has fairly shallow roots, it is a little sensitive to heavy use and frequent trimming. For this reason, the type of grass is primarily suitable for areas where the stress is limited. Stepping on it, setting up garden chairs or the like is of course not a problem, only football games or raging and digging dogs would damage the lawn badly.
