If you are tired of endless mowing and irrigating your lawn, try growing UC Verde buffalo grass. UC Verde alternative lawns provide an option for homeowners and others who wish to have a more environmentally friendly lawn that requires minimal maintenance.
What is UC Verde Grass?
Buffalo grass (Buchloe dactyloides ‘UC Verde’) is a grass native to North America from southern Canada to northern Mexico and into the Great Plains states that has been around for millions of years.
Buffalo grass was known to be extremely drought tolerant as well as having the distinction of being the only native North American turf grass. These factors gave researchers the idea to produce varieties of buffalo grass suitable for use in the landscape.
In 2000, after some experimentation, researchers from the University of Nebraska produced ‘Legacy,’ which showed great promise regarding color, density, and adaptability to warm climates.
In late 2003, a new and improved variety, UC Verde buffalo grass, was produced at the University of California. UC Verde alternative lawns showed great promise with regards to drought tolerance, density, and color. In fact, UC Verde grass needs only 12 inches (31 cm.) of water per year and requires mowing only every two weeks if kept at the height of turf grass, or once a year for a natural meadow grass look.
Benefits of UC Verde Alternative Grass
Using UC Verde buffalo grass over traditional turf grasses has the benefit of a potential 75% water savings, making it an excellent option for drought tolerant lawns.
Not only is UC Verde a drought tolerant lawn option (xeriscape), but it is disease and pest resistant. UC Verde buffalo grass also has a significantly low pollen count over traditional turf grasses like fescue, Bermuda, and zoysia.
UC Verde alternative lawns also excel at preventing soil erosion and tolerate water logging, which makes it excellent choice for storm water retention or bio-swale areas.
UC Verde will not only reduce the need for irrigation, but general maintenance is much less than traditional turf grasses and is an excellent alternative lawn choice for regions with high heat, such as southern California and the desert Southwest.
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