The Best Sunny Grass Seed for New Jersey

• Kentucky Bluegrass grows well in the New Jersey sun. Don Farrall/Valueline/Getty Images

  New Jersey is known as the Garden State because of the vast amount of fresh, quality produce it yields each year. With its favorable soil and weather conditions, New Jersey is also a state that can handle a variety of grasses that thrive in full sun. These include common, cold-weather grasses as well as a warm-weather grass that thrives near the ocean.

Tall Fescue

• Tall fescue is a cool-season grass that does well in New Jersey. Although it tolerates some shade, it does best in areas with full sun. Tall fescue requires minimal maintenance and is resistant to drought and high heat. It can also tolerate salty soil, which is common along the Jersey shore and in the Pine Barrens, a large tract of land in southern New Jersey with salty soil and pine trees. Tall fescue is also a fairly quick-germinating grass and is not considered very susceptible to disease. It stays green for most of the summer, has an attractive dark-green color, adapts well to various kinds of soil, and does well on slopes.

Perennial Rye Grasses

• Perennial rye grasses are very good in areas that receive full sun. They are cool-season grasses recommended for New Jersey, have a high tolerance for heat, and are generally drought-resistant. They are considered an excellent lawn grass because of their deep-green color and their fine textures that are easy to mow. Perennial rye grasses are also durable and can be mixed with other grasses, such as fescue. Perennial rye grasses are one of the quickest germinating grasses -- averaging between 10 and 14 days -- and turn green early in the spring. They are also good for covering slopes and areas with patches.

Zoysia

• Zoysia grass thrives in full sun, although it is only recommended for areas in New Jersey along the shore. This is because it is only green during the summer when people head to the state's resort towns along the beach. It stays brown during the remaining months of the year. Zoysia grass is also a warm-weather grass. New Jersey is on the border of where warm warm grasses can grow, so zoysia is also best for the areas in the southern part of the state. Zoysia can withstand high heat and is drought-resistant because its deep roots draw water from the ground. It is very durable and will overtake other grasses in the area by spreading.

Kentucky Bluegrass

• Kentucky bluegrass is a common cool-season grass in New Jersey. It prefers full sun and does not do very well in shade. It is an attractive grass with a deep-green color, and it has the ability to recuperate from damage by spreading. It does require some care and does not do well in salty soil. With that in mind, it it not considered an ideal grass for the Jersey Shore area. Kentucky bluegrass is a slow-germinating grass that usually requires two to four weeks to show signs of significant growth. It is durable and good for covering areas with slopes. It also blends well with other grass. Kentucky bluegrass can require water, reseeding and fertilizer.