PENNINGTON SEED INC - 7-Lb. Smart Grass Seed Central Sun/Shade Mixture

We live in an older neighborhood with small lots and mature trees surrounding our back yard perimeter. We have some kind of pine trees, a couple larger blue spruce, and juniper bushes. On top of that, the yard faces south so it is in the shade for the majority of the day. We used this seed last year under where the pine trees had hung over the yard and killed the grass. We cleaned up debris added some soil in combination with lime to help bring the pH levels back up, finishing up with the grass seed. We blocked it off from our dogs for about a month or so, and tried to water the spots twice a day. The grass surprisingly grew, despite the continued drop of pine needles and complete shade. This year, the spots haven’t come back as thick as I had hoped (it’s still early spring) but there IS some grass there still. I purchased more to do the process again. Cheaper on amazon for the quantity than home improvement store. Will certainly buy again, thanks!

Seeds do not germinate. I originally said this grass seed did not germinate. Decided to toss it on my lawn late fall and it grew. I have pretty grass now in the back yard. What I am going to do is buy another bag and put it down in the fall. I did everything they said in the summer and it would not grow. Did fine come fall.

We ordered the Pennington Smart Seed (Sun & Shade) in early April and followed the directions our landscaper suggested. Basically, the area we desperately needed to grow grass was bare dirt (left over from a construction project) so we tilled about 6 inches deep, sewed the seed heavily, and strawed the top. Then came the watering and more watering...and even more watering! Luckily May in the the Southern U.S. was wet so that helped as well. I will admit I thought it would never germinate but finally could see some fine "baby" grass. It has now been a little over 2 1/2 months and the grass is very thick and healthy. It took a lot of followup care but the yard has filled in beautifully. We have just ordered two more bags as there is still a section to landscape. The keys....WATER and PATIENCE! 7/26/2018. We sewed two more bags of Pennington Smart Seed Sun and Shade Grass Seed one week ago today. It has rained almost daily (thunderstorms) since then. Noticed today we already have baby grass! It is about an inch tall...just enough to see some green color through the straw. Still think this is the best grass seed we have found! 10/30/2019. Bought and sewed another bag of Pennington Smart Seed Sun and Shade Grass Seed on 10/17/2019 after having three trees and four stumps removed from the front yard. For the first time I also used some Scott's grass starter fertilizer. Wasn't sure if it was too late in the season for the seed to germinate but as of this morning there is "baby" grass poking up through the straw. Average night temps have been in the 40's but with warm days and lots of rain. Still believe this is the best grass seed on the market!!! 09/02/20: Just mowed my grass. Posted a picture of grass 11 months later. Still "growing" strong!

I have a very shady area of lawn just off of my covered carport and under a large maple. I planted Scott's Sun and Shade three times over two summers. Kept watering, kept babying it. And it just kept dying. Tiny little threadlike blades of grass that were so delicate a good rain would lay them all flat. The Pennington Sun and Shade came up very fast (3-10 days because this is a mix of seeds that have various germination times). The grass has thicker, healthier blades than the Scott's. It looks like nearly every seed germinated. I planted in September in Tennessee. Kept a timed sprinkler on it, running 5 minutes every two hours during the day. So far, 4 weeks later, I am extremely pleased. Dark green, healthy grass. When it got 4 inches tall I VERY delicately weed-eated the grass down to 3". To encourage the grass to branch out rather than just grow a tall, central blade. Very pleased with this seed. Note: No matter what size bag you get, it is only 50% seed. It says it right on the bag. The other 50% is additives, coatings, green stuff, and probably old-fashioned paper and/or cellulose for weight. Just be aware you are only getting HALF the seed you think you are getting. And I planted heavy. I literally covered the ground with seed. Like a seed carpet (out of frustration with this area not growing grass). Then I dumped about 20 pounds of peat/top soil mix on top of the seed (up to 1" thick).

Although this seed works, I've had a better success rate with other brands that include the filler that retains water. Many spots I need to seed are in direct sun, so drying out is a major problem.