Lolium perenne: Benefits & the 8 Best Strains

Perennial ryegrass (botanical: Lolium perenne) is one of the most commonly used lawn grasses. We present everything you need to know here: From the properties to the use of Lolium perenne for lawns in the garden.

perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) is originally at home in Europe, up to the foothills of the Himalayas and in North Africa and can be found in many other parts of the world as a new citizen (neophyte). It has many properties that make it the almost perfect lawn grass and, beyond that, makes no special demands on its environment. This makes it comparatively easy to care for and it is hardly surprising that it is used successfully as an all-round talent in many seed mixtures for lawns. In this article we would like to give you Lolium perenne, the important part of our Plantura Premium lawn family is, in all its green facets.

Lolium perenne: origin and description

Lolium perenne belongs, like most lawn grasses, to the sweet grasses (Poaceae). Its original home is roughly in Europe and North Africa. However, today it can be found in all parts of the world because of its good qualities. It loves nitrogen-rich, medium-moist soils that may be slightly compacted.

Like the species name perennial (lat. "eternal") already says that perennial ryegrass is perennial. So it not only lives for one summer, but hibernates, delighting us for many years to come. It grows quickly and in small clumps called clumps. Depending on the variety, perennial ryegrass produces runners to a greater or lesser extent. These stolons originate at the base of a plant, move away from it above ground, and then root back in somewhere else—where a new grass plant grows. This property makes Lolium perenne very valuable in lawns, because holes and gaps are closed quickly and reliably before weeds can spread. That's exactly why it's in ours Plantura overseeding included, so that your thinned lawn shines dense and rich green again after a short time. We rely on particularly well-growing varieties of ryegrass, which we will present to you in more detail below.

Properties and use of perennial ryegrass

For a quick overview, we have briefly summarized the properties of ryegrass and then briefly discuss its use.

What are the properties of Lolium perenne?

The following table shows the most important properties of Lolium perenne remove.

Perennial ryegrass in brief
characteristics	Very regenerating as it drives off runners, dense growth in clumps, glossy green leaves, red-violet base
Expectations	Adequate nutrient and water supply, normal soil
durability	High to very high, very good ability to recover from damage
use	Sports and play turf, lawn reseeding, Lawn Repair and various other mixtures
germination and development	Very fast germinating (7-14 days), competitive growth, rapid development
Minimum cutting height	Depending on the variety 6 to 30 mm
particularities	Slightly frost sensitive, some varieties susceptible to snow mold

Perennial ryegrass germinates and grows quickly and has a rich green color. This beautiful color even makes it possible to use it in fine ornamental lawns. Sown in lawns, it tolerates mowing and walking very well and grows dense and fine-leaved. However, it is slightly sensitive to frost. Because a large part of the small tufts of grass can be lost in severe winters and at high altitudes, it is recommended to Most areas require reseeding every few years to increase the dense growth and regenerative capacity of a lawn obtain.

Perennial ryegrass needs normal to good soil and a good supply of nutrients to grow well. It also loves a damp, vigorous climate and mild winters, which are becoming increasingly common in Germany. On compacted, constantly wet soils, some varieties of Lolium perenne be affected by snow mold, a fungal disease. Soils with appropriate properties should be loosened particularly thoroughly and deeply before sowing and with permeable aggregates such as sand and mature compost be loosened.

Expert tip: In order to Lolium perenne feels comfortable with you, you don't have to have particularly good soil or a particularly mild climate. Through a primarily organic lawn fertilization, for example with our Plantura Organic Lawn Fertilizer their soil can be improved during and after sowing so that the ryegrass grows densely and disease-free. If you are affected by very harsh winters, reseeding the ryegrass will help. Lawn reseeding is regularly necessary at many locations and represents a fast, effective regeneration of the lawn.

How is Lolium perenne used?

Lolium perenne Due to its persistent growth, it is used both as fodder grass for grazing animals and in mixtures for domestic lawns or landscaped lawns. Because of its high ability to regenerate and its lush green appearance, it is also used in mixtures for fine ornamental lawns and Sports Field Lawn contain. Hardly any lawn can do without this all-rounder among the lawn grasses. However, different grades are used depending on the desired properties and prevailing conditions. Some particularly good varieties will be presented to you in the course of this article.

Lolium perenne and special varieties of grass are also part of ours because of their many good qualities Plantura play and sports turf as well as ours Plantura dry grassland and Plantura shade lawn contain. Because the regenerative ability of the grass is so particularly great, it is also found in ours Plantura lawn reseeding and the Plantura lawn repair Use.

By the way: A relative of perennial ryegrass, annual ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum) is a dreaded and undesirable weed in lawns. As soon as you spot it, you should fight this ryegrass in the lawn. It is recognizable by its light green color and often forms clusters that spread out and crowd out other grasses.

Different varieties of Lolium perenne

Although perennial ryegrass already has various good properties, breeders have been successfully improving it for years. There are over 100 bred varieties of Lolium perenne come together, which show slightly different characteristics than the original species due to their breeding. They are also used in blends like ours Plantura Premium Lawn Seed Mixtures used to obtain an optimally adapted, healthy lawn. We would like to briefly introduce a few of the particularly good varieties here:

Lolium perenne 'Adagio':
Fast growing, therefore frequent mowing necessary. Sufficiently hardy and still green in winter. Forms fine leaves and a dense sward. Good competitiveness against weeds. Medium durability. Good suitability for Sports and play turf and utility lawns.

Lolium perenne ′Barolympic′:
Medium fast growing and medium green. Forms an extremely dense turf and suppresses weeds. Very durable. Extremely good variety for utility lawns and Sports and play turf. Also suitable for ornamental lawns.

Lolium perenne ′Ceretec Centurion′:
Medium-fast growing, even at low temperatures, making it competitive with weeds and moss. Good regenerative capacity, forms a very dense scar. Also dark green in winter, very fine leaves, tolerates deep pruning of up to 12 mm. Tolerates drought. use in sports field grass, universal mixing partner.

Lolium perenne ′Corsica′
Slower growing, therefore less frequent mowing. Medium to dark green, extremely good ability to regenerate due to many strong runners. Also closes larger holes in the lawn. Suitable for very deep cuts. Forms a very dense carpet of grass. Very durable. Application in fine golf turf, lawn reseeding and Lawn Repair; universal use. The 'Corsica' variety is included in many of our Plantura Premium lawn seed mixtures.

Lolium perenne 'Esquire':
Grows well in cooler temperatures, which allows it to start early in spring and keep growing long into fall. Competitive against weeds. High-quality look thanks to fine culms, deep dark green, still green even in winter. Resistant to many lawn diseases. Dense growing. Not very regenerative. Fast growing, therefore frequent mowing necessary.

Lolium perenne ′Eventus′:
Medium fast growing and medium green. Attractive color even in winter. High turf density and good weed suppression. Very hard-wearing and therefore well suited for utility, sports and play lawns, but also decorative lawns.

Lolium perenne 'New Orleans':
Medium fast growing. Very good ability to regenerate due to strong formation of runners, therefore often in Mixtures for sports fields or overseeding or Lawn repair used. Dense growth and attractive medium green colour. Suitable for deep cut. Universal application in many lawn seed mixtures, for example Sports and play turf. The 'New Orleans' variety is included in many of our Plantura Premium lawn seed mixtures.

Lolium perenne ′Shorty′:
Medium fast growing, light to medium green. Forms sufficiently dense turf and is sufficiently competitive with weeds. Attractive color even in winter. Hard-wearing, therefore well suited for use lawns and Play and sports turf.

Conclusion: Why shouldn't Lolium perenne be missing from any good lawn?

Perennial ryegrass has many excellent properties that make it invaluable in all lawn seed mixtures in the home garden:

• Very cut compatible and resilient
• Strong self-regeneration
• High-quality, fine-leaved and dense appearance
• Rapid germination ensures that the seed emerges quickly and suppresses weeds in mixtures as quickly as possible Plantura lawn reseeding or the Plantura lawn repair
• Competitive growth with strong offshoots can be seen, for example, with our Plantura play and sports turf or ours Plantura shade lawn to be observed
• Comparatively high drought tolerance, visible in ours, for example Plantura dry grassland

In summary it can be said that Lolium perenne should be contained in all high-quality seed mixtures for domestic lawns. The species already has very good characteristics by nature, which are clearly visible in all normal locations. Through the skilful use of further developed varieties, an optimal adaptation to the respective location can be achieved. In this way, the grass is always at its best, healthiest and greenest.

Expert tip: Some manufacturers offer domestic lawn mixtures that only Lolium perenne contain. Although perennial ryegrass has many good qualities, it is unfortunately not suitable as a soloist! Every lawn consists of grasses with different properties, and also Lolium perenne only shows its qualities in combination with other grasses that are harder to walk on, winter hardy and drought tolerant. Therefore, the rule of thumb is: stay away from cheap mixtures that exclusively Lolium perenne contain! One exception, of course, is lawn reseeding, which is only used to replace lost perennial ryegrass in a lawn.