Ornamentals

Lawn grasses, bunch and creeping

• Once out of the seedling stage, grasses may grow primarily upward (bunch type) or outward (creeping type).

  Bunch-type grasses are named for their bunchy appearance, caused by the production of many tillers from the crown of the plant. These grasses expand only by tillering.
  Common bunch-type grasses
  Annual ryegrass
  Hard fescue
  Perennial ryegrass
  Red fescue (some varieties)
  Tall fescue

  Creeping-type grasses are named for their creeping growth habit. These grasses spread by stems that stretch out from the crown of the plant. New shoots develop from nodes on underground stems, called rhizomes, or on horizontally growing aboveground stems, called stolons.

  Grasses spread by rhizomes
  •Kentucky bluegrass
  •Red fescue (some varieties)

  Grasses spread by stolons
  •Buffalograss
  •Creeping bentgrass
  •Rough bluegrass
  •St. Augustinegrass

  Grasses spread by both stolons and rhizomes
  •Bermudagrass
  •Colonial bentgrass*
  •Kikuyugrass
  •Seashore paspalum
  •Zoysiagrass

  *stolons and rhizomes are short
  
  Read more about grass development.