World Grass Guide
Japanese, cool-season, warm-season — pick by climate and sun, with care notes for each.
Kentucky bluegrass
Known for its deep blue-green colour and for creeping rhizomes that let it repair its own damage. Very cold-hardy, but unhappy in hot humid summers — in Japan it suits cooler regions.
Perennial ryegrass
The fastest grass to green up from seed, and tough under foot — hence its use on school grounds and sports fields. It struggles in Japanese summers, so it is also sown over warm-season turf for winter colour.
Bermudagrass
Grows fast and heals fast — the reason it dominates warm-climate sports turf. It has almost no shade tolerance, and that same speed means it gets scruffy quickly if you skip a cut.
Korai (Manila grass)
The most common lawn grass in Japanese gardens. It shrugs off hot, humid summers and establishes easily from sod. It goes dormant and brown in winter, then greens up again in spring.
St. Augustinegrass
Broad-bladed and spreading by stolons, and unusually shade-tolerant for a warm-season grass. A staple of residential lawns across the US South. Weak under traffic, and not cold-hardy.