Soil temperature in Belfast, Northern Ireland

Soil temperature

14.1°C57°F

at 6cm — germination depth

Cooling over the next 11 days.

Seeding conditions are open — soil is 14.1°C at 6cm and holding above 9°C.

Almost every UK and Irish lawn is a ryegrass and fescue mix, whether it was sown or turfed. We assume that, and use9°C as the seeding threshold.

I know what grass I have

The differences are small. Ryegrass is the quickest off the mark; bluegrass is the slowest and wants the warmest soil. Everything else sits between.

Soil temperature at 6cm for reliable germination. Sources onthe method page.
SpeciesSoil tempDays
Perennial ryegrasslikely yours8°C5–10
Red / chewings fescuelikely yours8–10°C10–14
Tall fescue10–12°C10–14
Browntop bentColonial bentgrass10–12°C14–21
Smooth-stalked meadow grassKentucky bluegrass12–13°C14–28

Soil temperature at 6cm in Belfast, Northern Ireland is currently 14.1°C, and falling about 2.0°C over the next 11 days. That depth matters because it is where grass seed sits and where roots start working, and it lags air temperature by days — which is why a warm afternoon here tells you very little on its own.

Lawns in this area are typically perennial ryegrass with fescue, which is what most lawns round here are sown with. That blend needs the soil to hold above 9°C before seed germinates reliably. Seeding conditions are open — soil is 14.1°C at 6cm and holding above 9°C.

8 of the next 10 days are good mowing days. The best weekend slot right now is Saturday 8am–9pm, on the basis that no rain since Friday, ground firm.

The next recommended window in Belfast opens at 1pm on Thursday 3 September, because the rain clears by then. Underfoot, the ground reads as firm after 25mm rain over the last week.

See the full mowing forecast for Belfast

The next 10 days

Column height is how mowable the day is; the lighter band is the best stretch within it. The line is soil temperature at 6cm.

9°C — seeding

Soil at 6cm 16.3°C cooling to 13.0°C

Wednesday 2 September: Good. No — 0.4mm of rain falling.

Wednesday 2 SeptemberConfident

No — 0.4mm of rain falling.

Poor:Grass wetness
Grass wetraining now
Good:Ground firmness
Ground firm25mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing wellgrowth potential 0.84
Good:Temperature
Temperature15°C
Good:Wind
Wind light5 km/h

Limiting factor:grass wetness

Thursday 3 September: Good. 1pm–3pm — dried off since a shower 2 hours ago, ground firm

Thursday 3 September · 1pm–3pmConfident

1pm–3pm — dried off since a shower 2 hours ago, ground firm

Marginal:Grass wetness
Grass drydried off since a shower 2 hours ago
Good:Ground firmness
Ground firm27mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing wellgrowth potential 0.84
Good:Temperature
Temperature16°C
Good:Wind
Wind light12 km/h
Sociable hours
Fine by the neighboursstarts once the rain has passed

Limiting factor:none

Friday 4 September: Good. midday–9pm — wind light — 21 km/h

Friday 4 September · midday–9pmConfident

midday–9pm — wind light — 21 km/h

Marginal:Grass wetness
Grass dryrain earlier today
Good:Ground firmness
Ground firm28mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing wellgrowth potential 0.68
Good:Temperature
Temperature13°C
Good:Wind
Wind light18 km/h
Sociable hours
Fine by the neighboursstarts once the dew has burnt off

Limiting factor:wind

Saturday 5 September: Good. 8am–9pm — no rain since Friday, ground firm

Saturday 5 September · 8am–9pmConfident

8am–9pm — no rain since Friday, ground firm

Good:Grass wetness
Grass dryno rain since Friday
Good:Ground firmness
Ground firm20mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing wellgrowth potential 0.57
Good:Temperature
Temperature11°C
Good:Wind
Wind light12 km/h
Sociable hours
A bit early or late, but finestarts when it stops being antisocial

Limiting factor:none

Sunday 6 September: Not worth it. No — 1.7mm of rain falling.

Sunday 6 SeptemberReasonably confident

No — 1.7mm of rain falling.

Poor:Grass wetness
Grass wetraining now
Good:Ground firmness
Ground firm14mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing wellgrowth potential 0.81
Good:Temperature
Temperature17°C
Good:Wind
Wind light17 km/h

Limiting factor:grass wetness

Monday 7 September: Good. 8am–11am — rain earlier today, ground firm

Monday 7 September · 8am–11amReasonably confident

8am–11am — rain earlier today, ground firm

Good:Grass wetness
Grass dryrain earlier today
Good:Ground firmness
Ground firm31mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing wellgrowth potential 0.60
Good:Temperature
Temperature12°C
Good:Wind
Wind light18 km/h
Sociable hours
A bit early or late, but finestarts once the dew has burnt off

Limiting factor:none

Tuesday 8 September: Good. 8am–11am — rain earlier today, ground soft in places

Tuesday 8 September · 8am–11amReasonably confident

8am–11am — rain earlier today, ground soft in places

Marginal:Grass wetness
Grass dryrain earlier today
Good:Ground firmness
Ground soft in places33mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing steadilygrowth potential 0.40
Good:Temperature
Temperature11°C
Good:Wind
Wind light17 km/h
Sociable hours
A bit early or late, but finestarts when it stops being antisocial

Limiting factor:none

Wednesday 9 September: Good. 11am–8pm — growing slowly — growth potential 0.32

Wednesday 9 September · 11am–8pmReasonably confident

11am–8pm — growing slowly — growth potential 0.32

Good:Grass wetness
Grass dryrain earlier today
Good:Ground firmness
Ground firm36mm rain over the last week
Marginal:Growth
Growing slowlygrowth potential 0.32
Good:Temperature
Temperature10°C
Good:Wind
Wind light21 km/h
Sociable hours
Fine by the neighboursstarts once the dew has burnt off

Limiting factor:growth

Thursday 10 September: Good. 8am–8pm — growing slowly — growth potential 0.26

Thursday 10 September · 8am–8pmLow confidence this far out

8am–8pm — growing slowly — growth potential 0.26

Good:Grass wetness
Grass dryno rain since Wednesday
Good:Ground firmness
Ground firm34mm rain over the last week
Marginal:Growth
Growing slowlygrowth potential 0.26
Good:Temperature
Temperature11°C
Good:Wind
Wind light9 km/h
Sociable hours
A bit early or late, but finestarts when it stops being antisocial

Limiting factor:growth

Friday 11 September: Not worth it. No — 0.1mm of rain falling.

Friday 11 SeptemberLow confidence this far out

No — 0.1mm of rain falling.

Good:Grass wetness
Grass dryno rain since Wednesday
Good:Ground firmness
Ground firm29mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing steadilygrowth potential 0.39
Good:Temperature
Temperature11°C
Good:Wind
Wind light5 km/h

Limiting factor:none

Nearby

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These are town-centre figures. Yours will differ a little.

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