Cool-season grasses such as Kentucky bluegrass, perennial ryegrass, tall fescue, and fine fescue are the best grass seeds for Iowa. However, certain warm-season varieties like buffalograss and Zoysiagrass also grow here.
Planting grass that’s well-adapted to Iowa’s climate will reduce a lot of lawn care challenges. It also minimizes the chances of lawn diseases and pests and spares you from incredibly burdensome maintenance.
Iowa grasses at a glance
Here’s a quick comparison of grass species for Iowa lawns:
| Kentucky bluegrass | Perennial ryegrass | Tall fescue | Fine fescue | Buffalograss | Zoysiagrass | |
| Well-adapted region | Statewide | North | Central and Southern Iowa | North | Southern | Southern |
| Leaf texture | Medium | Medium | Coarse | Fine | Fine | Medium or coarse |
| Leaf color | Dark green | Dark green | Medium to dark green | Medium to dark green | Green | Light green |
| Maintenance level | Medium to high | Medium to high | Low | Low to medium | Low | Moderate to high |
| Wear tolerance | Good | Excellent | Excellent | Poor | Moderate | Excellent |
| Restorative potential | Good | Poor | Poor to moderate | Poor to moderate | Excellent | Excellent |
| Drought tolerance | Fair | Moderate | Excellent | Good | Excellent | Excellent |
| Shade tolerance | Fair | Moderate | Moderate | Excellent | Fair | Fair |
| Winter hardiness | Good | Fair | Moderate to Good | Good | Excellent | Excellent |
Kentucky bluegrass
The best-adapted cool-season grass for Iowa, specifically the upper Midwest region, Kentucky bluegrass creates a beautiful medium-to-soft-textured, dark-green turf with exceptional winter hardiness.
This grass type isn’t picky about soil quality but will grow best in loamy, moist conditions. Kentucky bluegrass prefers full sun but does pretty well in partial sun and shade. However, it will go dormant if it gets regular sunlight in summer and gets stressed for water.
Pros: Kentucky bluegrass develops deep roots and has excellent foot traffic tolerance, making it a perfect pick for homeowners with pets and kids. Its wear resistance and ability to outcompete common Iowa weeds make it a worthwhile choice. And, bluegrass recovers quickly or “fills in” spots where the grass is thinning.
Cons: Kentucky bluegrass requires relatively more watering than some other varieties, more frequent mowing, and fertilization to maintain its dense, luscious appearance. Bluegrass lawns are less drought-tolerant than other varieties on our list and may become vulnerable to disease and weed attacks if stressed with poor soil, temperatures, or lack of water.
Note: Drought, shade, and traffic tolerance, among other factors, vary widely by cultivar. You can mix Kentucky bluegrass with other cultivars to achieve maximum durability.
Grass Seed Options:
– Jonathan Green (11970) Blue Panther Kentucky Bluegrass Grass Seed (3 lbs.)
– SeedRanch Midnight Kentucky Bluegrass Seed (5 lbs.)
Perennial ryegrass
This is a bunch-type (lacks stolons and rhizomes), medium-to-coarse textured grass. Perennial ryegrass is often mixed with Kentucky bluegrass to create a more traffic- and disease-resistant turf. Perennial ryegrass’ leaves develop tapered blades that are super soft to the touch – perfect for walking bare feet on.
Pros: It can grow well on various soils, tolerates partial shade, and has good resistance to wet soils. It’s primarily used in seed mixes because of its impressive germination rate. Along with establishing quickly, perennial ryegrass produces the darkest green color of all cool-season grasses.
This grass makes a highly traffic and wear-tolerant lawn, so if your Iowa lawn stays busy, here’s your pick!
Cons: Experts don’t recommend perennial ryegrass for pure stands in Iowa because it cannot tolerate extremes in temperature.
Grass Seed Options:
– Outsidepride Perennial Ryegrass Seed (5 lbs.)
– Eretz ProTurf Perennial Ryegrass Fine Lawn Seed (choose your size)
Tall fescue
Here’s a cool-season cultivar that can stay green year-round, tall fescue is a coarse-textured grass with beautiful, wide, and dark green blades. It’s best adapted to central Iowa and grows in upright clumps.
It prefers full sun but does just alright with partial shade, making it a suitable choice for Iowa homeowners who want a lush lawn without compromising their trees’ foliage. Be sure to pick “turf-type” tall fescues as they have a narrower leaf blade and look better.
Pros: Tall fescue has excellent drought tolerance despite being a cool-season grass. It can also handle considerable heat, wear and tear, salt, and disease with grace. All thanks to its deep root development, tall fescue becomes a super low-maintenance grass – ideal for busy peeps.
Cons: Extended drought will push tall fescue into dormancy, which is a serious deal for this turfgrass because it recovers very slowly. You’ll need to overseed to bring it back to life. Read Lawn Love’s detailed article on the ideal time to plant grass seeds to learn more.
Grass Seed Options:
– Triple-Play Tall Fescue Grass Seed Blend (5000 sq ft)
– Eretz Kentucky 31 K31 Tall Fescue Grass Seed (choose your size)
– Pennington The Rebels Tall Fescue Grass Seed Mix (7 lb.)
Fine leaf fescue
Another excellent choice for Iowa lawns is the fine fescues. Fine fescue is a general term that represents a group of fescue grass species with a distinctive fine leaf texture. They include creeping red fescue, hard fescue, chewing fescue, and sheep fescue.
This cool-season grass type develops medium to dark green leaves and is often mixed with other grasses like Kentucky bluegrass to enhance its resistance against sun and shade.
Pros: Fine fescue needs less fertilization and irrigation than most cool-season varieties, making it a safe choice for drought-prone regions. Additionally, depending on the variety, they can grow in partial or highly shaded areas.
Cons: It is less wear-tolerant and doesn’t hold up well in intense heat or wet soils. They also have a low tolerance for foot traffic.
Grass Seed Options:
– Outsidepride Legacy Fine Fescue Grass Seed (5 lbs.)
– Eretz Creeping Red Fine Fescue Seed (choose your size)
– Outsidepride Creeping Red Fine Fescue Grass Seed (25 lbs.)
Buffalograss
Though cool-season varieties are best adapted for Iowa lawns, they might fall short in some situations. In such cases, when you need a low-maintenance lawn or for special uses, alternative grasses may fit the niche.
Buffalograss is a warm-season species that is otherwise suitable for warmer regions of the United States but proves to be beneficial in specific situations for Iowa landscapes.
It’s a fine-textured grass that’s historically been used for grazing and pastures but, owing to its super low maintenance needs, now makes a popular choice for homeowners. It is used to develop low-maintenance lawns in Iowa.
Pros: Buffalograss has little fertilizer, water, and mowing needs and can handle extreme cold and hot temperatures. It will also withstand high-pH soils and can quickly fill damaged areas. It’s also drought tolerant and manages to give the traditional turf aesthetic, quite sustainably.
Cons: This grass species cannot tolerate shade and has moderate tolerance against foot traffic. It will enter dormancy as soon as the first autumn frost hits. Buffalograss is also susceptible to pests and will need extra care if it gets infested.
Grass Seed Options:
– Everwilde Farms Buffalograss Seeds (1 lb. of seeds)
– Buffalograss seed (primed) (5-lb. bag)
Zoysiagrass
Zoysia japonica is one of the two widely grown zoysia species in the U.S. It’s a warm-season grass that has exceptional tolerance to low temperatures and develops a coarse-textured, light-green lawn. Rely on Zoysiagrass to give your lawn a dense, attractive look, but just for the summer months.
It makes a nice, low-maintenance alternative grass for home lawns. You can use Zoysia in Southern Iowa if year-round color is not a high priority for you.
Pros: In addition to its cold tolerance, Zoysiagrass also handles shade pretty well and a fair amount of foot traffic. It might be slow to germinate, but stolons and rhizomes allow easy self-repair after damage. Zoysiagrass is also very tolerant of drought, you probably only need to irrigate it to prevent dormancy.
Cons: It only stays green for four months (summer season) of the year and looks good for this limited period. Zoysiagrass also has significantly different maintenance practices than cool-season lawns so planting zoysia might simply increase your yard work. It needs to be dethatched every year or two as it develops thatch quickly which further makes it susceptible to disease and insects.
Grass Plug and Seed Options:
– Zoysia Plugs (50 Large Grass Plugs)
– Zoysia Plugs (50 Full & Lush Grass Plugs)
– Zoysia Plugs (100 Plugs)
– Zenith Zenith Grass Seeds (1/8 lb. of seeds)
Best grasses by region in Iowa
Northern Iowa
The climate in northern Iowa stays cold throughout the year. You’ll want a grass seed that is winter-hardy and well-adapted to Iowa. You can plant any of the cool-season grass options from Kentucky bluegrass, perennial ryegrass, tall fescue, and fine fescue.
It’s best to go for a 50/50 blend of Kentucky bluegrass with perennial ryegrass or tall fescue to enhance cold tolerance and overall vigor of your lawn.
Central Iowa
Compared to northern Iowa, central Iowa experiences somewhat milder weather, so versatile grass does best here.
Kentucky bluegrass, perennial ryegrass, tall fescue, and fine fescue adapt to climate fluctuations here. Some improved varieties of buffalograss have better cold tolerance and grow here as well.
Southern Iowa
Southern Iowa experiences slightly warmer temperatures and longer growing seasons as compared to the northern part of the state. Grasses that thrive here include Kentucky bluegrass, perennial ryegrass, turf-type tall fescue, fine fescues, and with a bit of effort, warm-season grasses like buffalograss and zoysiagrass.
Warm-season varieties do better in southern Iowa because the growing seasons are longer and temperatures are higher compared to the northern and central parts.
FAQs about the best grass seed for Iowa lawns
What is the best grass seed for overseeding in Iowa?
Your best bet for overseeding is a blend of Kentucky bluegrass and perennial ryegrass. Kentucky bluegrass develops deep roots and gives a beautiful color to the turf while perennial ryegrass grows fast.
What’s the best grass seed for full sun in Iowa?
Tall fescue and Kentucky bluegrass prefer full sun for optimal growth.
Can you grow Bermudagrass in Iowa?
Bermudagrass thrives in hot and sunny conditions and has limited cold tolerance, so it’s probably not a good idea to put so much effort into maintaining non-native grass in Iowa.
Trust a pro
Now that you know what type of grass seeds do best in Iowa, you’re a step closer to achieving that beautiful green haven you’ve been dreaming of. The next step is good lawn care.
If you don’t have the time or desire to invest hours a week in your lawn, consider hiring a professional to mow, fertilize, and weed your lawn. The sit back and enjoy the best yard in the neighborhood.
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