Question
Hello. I planted a new lawn and it is growing wonderfully except some thin spots. I water it good once a day. It is perineal rye. What do i do about the thin spots will they eventually grow into thicker grass? I was going to reseed with my speader but I'm afraid to step on the baby grass blades. Any suggestions would help.


Answer
Perennial Ryegrass ("Lolium perenne" to the Scientists), also known as English Ryegrass because it was imported from Europe, is a fast-growing, beautiful, thick green that many people in the Southeast appreciate most for its winter color -- hence its name there, Winter Rye. It does not tolerate heat well, so if you are in Texas or somewhere that Global Warming will bake into the 3-digit temps, this is not the grass for you.  

Another feature people love about Perennial Rye: It's tough enough to take foot traffic -- not as tough as Tall Fescue, but tough enough to take your reseeding footsteps.

Some Perennial Rye is genetically programmed to repel lawn pests -- anti-insect, anti-fungal endophytes (see the National Turfgrass Evaluation Program (www.ntep.org/pdf/Endophyte%20information.pdf) for their report on "Endophyte-Enhanced Grasses").

This is a deep-rooted, bunch-type grass that will not fill in bare spots the way, say, Kentucky Blue would, but there's no reason you can't just seed in those empty spaces. Go ahead. Make sure you water generously and don't expect it to enjoy searing summer temperatures.  Make sure you understand, though, that depending on the full year performance you observe, next year you might look at what's left of your lawn and decide to pick out some new grass.