What is the soil temperature in Cleveland, Ohio?

Soil temperature at 6cm in Cleveland, Ohio is currently 29.5°C. Too warm to seed — the soil is heat-stressed. Wait for it to cool.

Soil temperature in Cleveland, Ohio

Soil temperature

85°F29.5°C

at 6cm — germination depth

Cooling over the next 11 days.

Too warm to seed — the soil is heat-stressed. Wait for it to cool.

Most cool-season lawns in the northern US and Canada are bluegrass, tall fescue, or a mix of the two. We assume that, and use12.5°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.
Species	Soil temp	Days
Perennial ryegrass	8°C	5–10
Red / chewings fescue	8–10°C	10–14
Tall fescuelikely yours	10–12°C	10–14
Browntop bentColonial bentgrass	10–12°C	14–21
Smooth-stalked meadow grassKentucky bluegrasslikely yours	12–13°C	14–28

Soil temperature at 6cm in Cleveland, Ohio is currently 29.5°C, and falling about 27.4°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 Kentucky bluegrass with tall fescue, the usual mix for cool-season lawns at this latitude. That blend needs the soil to hold above 12.5°C before seed germinates reliably. Too warm to seed — the soil is heat-stressed. Wait for it to cool.

6 of the next 10 days look workable. The best weekend slot right now is Saturday 8am–8pm, on the basis that rain earlier today, ground firm.

The next recommended window in Cleveland opens at 8am on Wednesday 2 September, because anything earlier is the hour your neighbours will remember. Underfoot, the ground reads as firm after 0mm rain over the last week.

See the full mowing forecast for Cleveland

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. It crosses the seeding threshold inside this forecast.

12.5°C — seeding

Soil at 6cm 28.0°C cooling to 0.0°C

Tuesday 1 SeptemberConfident

No — heat stress, 28°C.

Good:Grass wetness: Grass dryno rain in over a week
Good:Ground firmness: Ground firm0mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth: Growing steadilygrowth potential 0.43
Marginal:Temperature: Cool26°C
Good:Wind: Wind light8 km/h

Limiting factor:temperature

Wednesday 2 September · 8am–11amConfident

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

Good:Grass wetness: Grass dryno rain in over a week
Good:Ground firmness: Ground firm0mm rain over the last week
Marginal:Growth: Growing slowlygrowth potential 0.32
Poor:Temperature: Cool24°C
Good:Wind: Wind light10 km/h
Sociable hours: A bit early or late, but finestarts when it stops being antisocial

Limiting factor:growth

Thursday 3 September · 8am–9amConfident

8am–9am — no rain in over a week, ground firm

Good:Grass wetness: Grass dryno rain in over a week
Good:Ground firmness: Ground firm0mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth: Growing wellgrowth potential 0.52
Marginal:Temperature: Temperature22°C
Good:Wind: Wind light20 km/h
Sociable hours: A bit early or late, but finestarts when it stops being antisocial

Limiting factor:none

Friday 4 SeptemberConfident

No — 0.4mm of rain falling.

Poor:Grass wetness: Grass wetdew forming, rain 1 hour ago
Good:Ground firmness: Ground soft in places2mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth: Growing wellgrowth potential 0.83
Good:Temperature: Temperature22°C
Good:Wind: Wind light7 km/h

Limiting factor:grass wetness

Saturday 5 September · 8am–8pmReasonably confident

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

Good:Grass wetness: Grass dryrain earlier today
Good:Ground firmness: Ground firm7mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth: Growing wellgrowth potential 0.99
Good:Temperature: Temperature18°C
Good:Wind: Wind light8 km/h
Sociable hours: A bit early or late, but finestarts when it stops being antisocial

Limiting factor:none

Sunday 6 September · 10am–8pmReasonably confident

10am–8pm — no rain since Friday, ground firm

Good:Grass wetness: Grass dryno rain since Friday
Good:Ground firmness: Ground firm7mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth: Growing wellgrowth potential 0.98
Good:Temperature: Temperature15°C
Good:Wind: Wind light10 km/h
Sociable hours: Fine by the neighboursstarts when it stops being antisocial

Limiting factor:none

Monday 7 September · 10am–8pmReasonably confident

10am–8pm — no rain since Friday, ground firm

Good:Grass wetness: Grass dryno rain since Friday
Good:Ground firmness: Ground firm7mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth: Growing wellgrowth potential 0.98
Good:Temperature: Temperature16°C
Good:Wind: Wind light10 km/h
Sociable hours: Fine by the neighboursstarts when it stops being antisocial

Limiting factor:none

Tuesday 8 September · 8am–8pmReasonably confident

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

Good:Grass wetness: Grass dryno rain since Friday
Good:Ground firmness: Ground firm7mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth: Growing wellgrowth potential 0.91
Good:Temperature: Temperature20°C
Good:Wind: Wind light1 km/h
Sociable hours: A bit early or late, but finestarts at first light

Limiting factor:none

Wednesday 9 SeptemberLow confidence this far out

No — ground frozen.

Good:Grass wetness: Grass dryno rain since Friday
Good:Ground firmness: Ground firm7mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth: Growing wellgrowth potential 0.93
Good:Temperature: Temperature18°C
Good:Wind: Wind light6 km/h

Limiting factor:none

Thursday 10 SeptemberLow confidence this far out

No — ground frozen.

Good:Grass wetness: Grass drydried off since a shower 1 hour ago
Good:Ground firmness: Ground firm7mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth: Growing wellgrowth potential 0.85
Good:Temperature: Temperature22°C
Good:Wind: Wind light24 km/h

Limiting factor:grass wetness

Nearby

Your own postcode

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