TestDIYOrganic

I tried to grow two containers of grass indoors. The first was Jonathan Green Dense Shade grass seed which I was hoping would do well with the limited light on my desk. The second was Jonathan Green Black Beauty grass seed mix that I'm considering using if I do a lawn renovation. I had both containers sitting on my desk and created a time lapse video of the Black Beauty Grass seed germinating as well as some of the Dense Shade I replanted because the old seed I used didn't germinate very well.



The video covers 15 days starting from the 2nd day of planting the Black Beauty grass seed.



I was surprised that Black Beauty appeared to do better in these low light conditions compared to the Dense Shade mix but the Dense Shade also had a number of issues going against it.









Black Beauty is on the left and Dense Shade on the right. Under these conditions where I could easily keep the soil moist and no direct sun was hitting the seeds to dry them out the seeds started to germinate very quickly. I used a homemade guide and a pair of scissors to cut the grass evenly a few times during the video.



I used to move the Dense Shade container onto a sunny window sill every couple of days so it could get some direct sunlight. After starting the time lapse video I had to keep the container in the same spot (more or less). At some point I started using a small desk to illuminate part of the containers to give the video a more even appearance. The side of the Dense Shade container that had direct light on it 24 hours a day from a very low wattage desk lamp did much better than the other side of the container that only had some indirect sunlight through North facing windows. The Black Beauty container on the other hand did well all over.



There were a few things going against the Dense Shade mix. First I used grass seed that was over 2 years old that gave me poor germination. Second, the potting mix was infested with fungus gnats. I used neem oil to kill them but I saw the larvae crawling around in the video a few times.



The Black Beauty didn't seem to have the same issues with the fungus gnats or at least not as bad. In the video it looks like there might have been some but the grass had grown in very thick and it was hard to see the potting mix. I did see some fungus gnats landing on the blades of grass but they may have come from the other container.



Black Beauty, as some other TTTF grass varieties are infected with endophytes (a beneficial fungus) that helps control insects. That might be the reason that there wasn't a problem but another reason might be because I didn't plant them both at the same time. I used Jungle Growth's Organic Potting Mix and I've seen other complaints about fungus gnat infestation but from what I also read this is a problem with many different potting mixes. I planted the Dense Shade as soon as I opened the bag of potting mix while it was still moist. Black Beauty on the other hand was planted weeks later and I had already filled the container with the potting mix. During those weeks the mix had dried out. This might have killed off any eggs or larvae in that container.



I chose to plant the grass in a container because it was the middle of summer and way too hot to plant the grass outdoors in a test plot and I wanted to get at least some sense of what Black Beauty might look like. So far it seems like a pretty decent grass mix with very good germination and nice color. It's also a little cheaper and more readily available than what some consider elite grass seed.



You can also read more of my thoughts on Black Beauty as well as why I'm considering Turft-Type Tall Fescue instead of Kentucky Bluegrass..

As you can see the Jonathan Green Black Beauty Grass I'm growing indoors in a container had gotten over 3" tall and was starting to look a bit ragged so I thought today would be a good time to trim my indoor lawn.



Obviously I can't use my lawn mower so I needed to come up with another way to get a nice, even, level cut for my indoor lawn.



I created a cutting guide and I'm using a pair of scissors to mow my indoor grass. I'll describe how I made the mowing guide and how I used it below.

Indoor Grass Cutting Guide

I wanted to cut my indoor grass at about 2.5". This would keep it at a height where it should be able to stand up on it's own, even when it starts getting thicker, and it would also be tall enough to give visual interest.



I cut 2.5" wide strips out of a hanging file folder. You could use other similar thin cardboard material. I then folded the cardboard at 90 degrees at the corners and sized it so it would rest along the rim of my container. I used staples to connect the pieces.






This gave me a guide all the way around the grass container that I could use to get a nice even cut and I could rest the scissors gently on the edge to establish my height.

Fiskars Cuts+More Scissors

Having a long pair of scissors makes it easy to get an even cut but I couldn't find an old pair of scissors I had that were long enough. Okay, maybe I just needed an excuse to by a new toy and the Fiskars Cuts+More Titanium Shear looked like a great pair of scissors that would not only be work well at cutting my indoor lawn but also be useful in the garden in many other ways.



The total length of the scissors is 9" but the cutting blades are only about 3.75" long. The titanium blades are sharp right out of the package and to help keep the blades sharp so they don't damage the grass tips there's an easy to use ceramic sharpening rod built into the plastic sheath that's included with the scissors. The scissors are backed by Fiskars Lifetime Warranty.



As the name implies, this is more than just a pair of scissors. The sheath also includes a tape cutting tool which can be used to open boxes. The back end of the scissors can be used to cut thin wire.



There is a sharp notch on the outside edge of one of the blades that is used to cut thin twine and larger rope can be cut with the scissors by placing it all the way down into the curved area near the joint.



When the scissors are closed the protruding tip is rounded over to keep you from poking things that don't want to be poked with sharp things but the other blade contains a sharp awl tip. By opening the scissors all the way you can separate the blades and use the black blade, with the awl tip, as a knife. It even has a small set of teeth (like one of those Rambo survival knives without the compass, matches, fishing line and hooks) that could be used for some very light duty sawing.



The plastic handles appear to be durable and firmly attached to the titanium blades anre are very comfortable. The scissors are designed for a right-handed person. They're usable if you're a lefty but the way the curves in the handles don't feel as comfortable. When using the scissors with my left hand my knuckles were hitting the top of the finger hole in a way that they weren't when using my right hand.



When you're done working on your landscape there's even a bottle opener to crack open a nice cold one while you relax.

Mowing The Indoor Lawn

Using my Fiskars Cuts+More scissors lightly resting on the cardboard cutting guide I worked my way around the grass to even out the height. Since the cardboard is thin I was careful to not distort it too much or push it so that it falls off the rim.






After the majority of the grass was cut I removed the guide and inspected the grass from a lawn from a low angle to see if there were any blades that were missed and I cut them freehand.



The Fiskars scissors gave a nice clean cut like a reel mower would give. Reel mowers are great for young grass and they seem to be recommended especially for tall fescue because the wider blades and stiffer plant appear to be damaged by rotary mower blades more easily. Jonathan Green claims their Black Beauty grass isn't ass susceptible as other tall fescues.



After I was done cutting I brushed the blades of the grass back and forth with my fingers to work the clipping down to the soil where it will eventually break down and return nitrogen to the grass. Fresh, new, healthy grass feels great. It almost feels like rubber.



The end result was a more uniform looking desk lawn :)