Soil temperature in Oxford, England

Soil temperature

15.9°C61°F

at 6cm — germination depth

Cooling over the next 11 days.

Seeding conditions are open — soil is 15.9°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 Oxford, England is currently 15.9°C, and falling about 2.4°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 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 15.9°C at 6cm and holding above 9°C.

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

The next recommended window in Oxford opens at midday on Wednesday 2 September, because the rain clears by then. Underfoot, the ground reads as firm after 24mm rain over the last week.

See the full mowing forecast for Oxford

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 17.1°C cooling to 15.3°C

Wednesday 2 September: Good. midday–2pm — dried off since a shower 1 hour ago, ground firm

Wednesday 2 September · midday–2pmConfident

midday–2pm — dried off since a shower 1 hour ago, ground firm

Good:Grass wetness
Grass drydried off since a shower 5 hours ago
Good:Ground firmness
Ground firm24mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing wellgrowth potential 0.92
Good:Temperature
Temperature16°C
Good:Wind
Wind light10 km/h
Sociable hours
Fine by the neighboursstarts once the rain has passed

Limiting factor:none

Thursday 3 September: Good. 8am–8pm — rain earlier today, ground firm

Thursday 3 September · 8am–8pmConfident

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

Good:Grass wetness
Grass dryrain earlier today
Good:Ground firmness
Ground firm25mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing wellgrowth potential 1.00
Good:Temperature
Temperature18°C
Good:Wind
Wind light19 km/h
Sociable hours
A bit early or late, but finestarts when it stops being antisocial

Limiting factor:none

Friday 4 September: Good. 2pm–8pm — dried off since a shower 1 hour ago, ground firm

Friday 4 September · 2pm–8pmConfident

2pm–8pm — dried off since a shower 1 hour ago, ground firm

Good:Grass wetness
Grass dryno rain since Wednesday
Good:Ground firmness
Ground firm16mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing wellgrowth potential 0.99
Good:Temperature
Temperature19°C
Good:Wind
Wind light21 km/h
Sociable hours
Fine by the neighboursstarts once the rain has passed

Limiting factor:none

Saturday 5 September: Good. 8am–8pm — rain earlier today, ground firm

Saturday 5 September · 8am–8pmConfident

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

Good:Grass wetness
Grass dryrain earlier today
Good:Ground firmness
Ground firm17mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing wellgrowth potential 0.89
Good:Temperature
Temperature12°C
Good:Wind
Wind light7 km/h
Sociable hours
A bit early or late, but finestarts when it stops being antisocial

Limiting factor:none

Sunday 6 September: Good. 10am–8pm — no rain since Friday, ground firm

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 firm6mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing wellgrowth potential 1.00
Good:Temperature
Temperature16°C
Good:Wind
Wind light8 km/h
Sociable hours
Fine by the neighboursstarts when it stops being antisocial

Limiting factor:none

Monday 7 September: Good. 8am–8pm — no rain since Friday, ground firm

Monday 7 September · 8am–8pmReasonably confident

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

Good:Grass wetness
Grass dryno rain since Friday
Good:Ground firmness
Ground firm4mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing wellgrowth potential 0.87
Good:Temperature
Temperature13°C
Good:Wind
Wind light12 km/h
Sociable hours
A bit early or late, but finestarts when it stops being antisocial

Limiting factor:none

Tuesday 8 September: Good. 1pm–2pm — grass slightly damp — rain earlier today

Tuesday 8 September · 1pm–2pmReasonably confident

1pm–2pm — grass slightly damp — rain earlier today

Poor:Grass wetness
Grass slightly damprain earlier today
Good:Ground firmness
Ground firm2mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing wellgrowth potential 0.74
Good:Temperature
Temperature14°C
Good:Wind
Wind light13 km/h
Sociable hours
Fine by the neighboursstarts once the dew has burnt off

Limiting factor:grass wetness

Wednesday 9 September: Good. 2pm–8pm — wind light — 19 km/h

Wednesday 9 September · 2pm–8pmReasonably confident

2pm–8pm — wind light — 19 km/h

Good:Grass wetness
Grass drydried off since a shower 0 hours ago
Good:Ground firmness
Ground firm11mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing wellgrowth potential 0.52
Good:Temperature
Temperature12°C
Marginal:Wind
Wind light19 km/h
Sociable hours
Fine by the neighboursstarts once the rain has passed

Limiting factor:wind

Thursday 10 September: Good. 10am–8pm — grass dry — rain earlier today

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

10am–8pm — grass dry — rain earlier today

Good:Grass wetness
Grass dryrain earlier today
Good:Ground firmness
Ground firm12mm rain over the last week
Marginal:Growth
Growing slowlygrowth potential 0.29
Good:Temperature
Temperature11°C
Good:Wind
Wind light4 km/h
Sociable hours
Fine by the neighboursstarts once the dew has burnt off

Limiting factor:grass wetness

Friday 11 September: Good. 8am–8pm — no rain since Wednesday, ground firm

Friday 11 September · 8am–8pmLow confidence this far out

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

Good:Grass wetness
Grass dryno rain since Wednesday
Good:Ground firmness
Ground firm12mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing wellgrowth potential 0.50
Good:Temperature
Temperature11°C
Good:Wind
Wind light4 km/h
Sociable hours
A bit early or late, but finestarts when it stops being antisocial

Limiting factor:none

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