What is the soil temperature in Dover, Delaware?

Soil temperature at 6cm in Dover, Delaware is currently 28.3°C. Too warm to seed — the soil is heat-stressed. Wait for it to cool.

Soil temperature in Dover, Delaware

Soil temperature

83°F28.3°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 Dover, Delaware is currently 28.3°C, and falling about 26.4°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.

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

The next recommended window in Dover opens at 3pm on Wednesday 2 September, because that is when the dew has burnt off — earlier than that and you are cutting wet grass. Underfoot, the ground reads as firm after 0mm rain over the last week.

See the full mowing forecast for Dover

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 27.1°C cooling to 0.0°C

Tuesday 1 SeptemberConfident

No — 0.4mm of rain falling.

Good:Grass wetness: Grass dryno rain in the record
Good:Ground firmness: Ground firm0mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth: Growing steadilygrowth potential 0.48
Poor:Temperature: Cool24°C
Good:Wind: Wind light8 km/h

Limiting factor:temperature

Wednesday 2 September · 3pm–8pmConfident

3pm–8pm — grass dry — rain earlier today

Poor:Grass wetness: Grass dryrain earlier today
Good:Ground firmness: Ground firm0mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth: Growing wellgrowth potential 0.72
Good:Temperature: Temperature23°C
Good:Wind: Wind light10 km/h
Sociable hours: Fine by the neighboursstarts once the dew has burnt off

Limiting factor:grass wetness

Thursday 3 September · 8am–11amConfident

8am–11am — no rain since Tuesday, ground firm

Good:Grass wetness: Grass dryno rain since Tuesday
Good:Ground firmness: Ground firm6mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth: Growing steadilygrowth potential 0.49
Poor:Temperature: Temperature23°C
Good:Wind: Wind light6 km/h
Sociable hours: A bit early or late, but finestarts once the dew has burnt off

Limiting factor:none

Friday 4 September · 9am–11amConfident

9am–11am — grass dry — dried off since a shower 5 hours ago

Good:Grass wetness: Grass drydried off since a shower 5 hours ago
Good:Ground firmness: Ground firm6mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth: Growing steadilygrowth potential 0.45
Poor:Temperature: Temperature23°C
Good:Wind: Wind light9 km/h
Sociable hours: A bit early or late, but finestarts once the dew has burnt off

Limiting factor:grass wetness

Saturday 5 September · 9am–8pmReasonably confident

9am–8pm — rain earlier today, ground firm

Good:Grass wetness: Grass dryrain earlier today
Good:Ground firmness: Ground firm10mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth: Growing wellgrowth potential 0.94
Good:Temperature: Temperature17°C
Good:Wind: Wind light20 km/h
Sociable hours: A bit early or late, but finestarts once the dew has burnt off

Limiting factor:none

Sunday 6 September · 10am–8pmReasonably confident

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

Good:Grass wetness: Grass dryno rain since Saturday
Good:Ground firmness: Ground firm12mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth: Growing wellgrowth potential 0.98
Good:Temperature: Temperature17°C
Good:Wind: Wind light16 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 Saturday, ground firm

Good:Grass wetness: Grass dryno rain since Saturday
Good:Ground firmness: Ground firm12mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth: Growing wellgrowth potential 0.97
Good:Temperature: Temperature16°C
Good:Wind: Wind light9 km/h
Sociable hours: Fine by the neighboursstarts when it stops being antisocial

Limiting factor:none

Tuesday 8 September · 8am–3pmReasonably confident

8am–3pm — no rain since Saturday, ground firm

Good:Grass wetness: Grass dryno rain since Saturday
Good:Ground firmness: Ground firm12mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth: Growing wellgrowth potential 0.90
Marginal:Temperature: Temperature18°C
Good:Wind: Wind light14 km/h
Sociable hours: A bit early or late, but finestarts when it stops being antisocial

Limiting factor:none

Wednesday 9 SeptemberLow confidence this far out

No — ground frozen.

Good:Grass wetness: Grass drydried off since a shower 5 hours ago
Good:Ground firmness: Ground firm12mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth: Growing wellgrowth potential 0.89
Good:Temperature: Temperature21°C
Good:Wind: Wind light8 km/h

Limiting factor:none

Thursday 10 SeptemberLow confidence this far out

No — ground frozen.

Good:Grass wetness: Grass dryrain earlier today
Good:Ground firmness: Ground firm7mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth: Growing wellgrowth potential 0.62
Poor:Temperature: Temperature23°C
Good:Wind: Wind light21 km/h

Limiting factor:none

Nearby

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