Soil temperature in Salem, Oregon
Soil temperature
69°F20.5°C
at 6cm — germination depth
Cooling over the next 11 days.
Seeding conditions are open — soil is 20.5°C at 6cm and holding above 12.5°C.
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.
| 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 Salem, Oregon is currently 20.5°C, and falling about 18.6°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. Seeding conditions are open — soil is 20.5°C at 6cm and holding above 12.5°C.
8 of the next 10 days are good mowing days. The best weekend slot right now is Monday 10am–8pm, on the basis that rain earlier today, ground firm.
The next recommended window in Salem opens at 5pm on Tuesday 1 September, and holds while conditions stay put. Underfoot, the ground reads as firm after 0mm rain over the last week.
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 20.1°C cooling to 0.0°C
Tuesday 1 September: Good. 5pm–8pm — no rain in the record, ground firm
Tuesday 1 September · 5pm–8pmConfident
5pm–8pm — no rain in the record, ground firm
- Good:Grass wetness
- Grass dryno rain in the record
- Good:Ground firmness
- Ground firm0mm rain over the last week
- Good:Growth
- Growing wellgrowth potential 0.97
- Good:Temperature
- Temperature21°C
- Good:Wind
- Wind light14 km/h
- Sociable hours
- A bit early or late, but fine
Limiting factor:none
Wednesday 2 September: Good. 8am–9am — no rain in the record, ground firm
Wednesday 2 September · 8am–9amConfident
8am–9am — no rain in the record, ground firm
- Poor:Grass wetness
- Grass dryno rain in the record
- Good:Ground firmness
- Ground firm0mm rain over the last week
- Good:Growth
- Growing wellgrowth potential 0.70
- Good:Temperature
- Temperature14°C
- Good:Wind
- Wind light8 km/h
- Sociable hours
- A bit early or late, but finestarts when it stops being antisocial
Limiting factor:none
Thursday 3 September: Good. No — 0.2mm of rain falling.
Thursday 3 SeptemberConfident
No — 0.2mm of rain falling.
- Poor:Grass wetness
- Grass slightly dampraining now
- Good:Ground firmness
- Ground firm9mm rain over the last week
- Good:Growth
- Growing steadilygrowth potential 0.50
- Good:Temperature
- Temperature12°C
- Good:Wind
- Wind light21 km/h
Limiting factor:grass wetness
Friday 4 September: Good. 6pm–8pm — grass slightly damp — rain 2 hours ago
Friday 4 September · 6pm–8pmConfident
6pm–8pm — grass slightly damp — rain 2 hours ago
- Poor:Grass wetness
- Grass slightly damprain 2 hours ago
- Good:Ground firmness
- Ground firm16mm rain over the last week
- Good:Growth
- Growing steadilygrowth potential 0.39
- Good:Temperature
- Temperature11°C
- Good:Wind
- Wind light4 km/h
- Sociable hours
- A bit early or late, but finestarts once the rain has passed
Limiting factor:grass wetness
Saturday 5 September: Good. 8am–7pm — rain earlier today, ground firm
Saturday 5 September · 8am–7pmReasonably confident
8am–7pm — rain earlier today, ground firm
- Good:Grass wetness
- Grass dryrain earlier today
- Good:Ground firmness
- Ground firm27mm rain over the last week
- Good:Growth
- Growing wellgrowth potential 0.76
- Good:Temperature
- Temperature11°C
- Good:Wind
- Wind light5 km/h
- Sociable hours
- A bit early or late, but finestarts once the dew has burnt off
Limiting factor:none
Sunday 6 September: Good. midday–6pm — rain earlier today, ground firm
Sunday 6 September · midday–6pmReasonably confident
midday–6pm — rain earlier today, ground firm
- Marginal:Grass wetness
- Grass dryrain earlier today
- Good:Ground firmness
- Ground firm27mm rain over the last week
- Good:Growth
- Growing wellgrowth potential 0.90
- Good:Temperature
- Temperature12°C
- Good:Wind
- Wind light2 km/h
- Sociable hours
- Fine by the neighboursstarts once the dew has burnt off
Limiting factor:none
Monday 7 September: Good. 10am–8pm — rain earlier today, ground firm
Monday 7 September · 10am–8pmReasonably confident
10am–8pm — rain earlier today, ground firm
- Good:Grass wetness
- Grass dryrain earlier today
- Good:Ground firmness
- Ground firm29mm rain over the last week
- Good:Growth
- Growing wellgrowth potential 0.80
- Good:Temperature
- Temperature13°C
- Good:Wind
- Wind light8 km/h
- Sociable hours
- Fine by the neighboursstarts once the dew has burnt off
Limiting factor:none
Tuesday 8 September: Good. 10am–6pm — grass dry — no rain since Sunday
Tuesday 8 September · 10am–6pmReasonably confident
10am–6pm — grass dry — no rain since Sunday
- Good:Grass wetness
- Grass dryno rain since Sunday
- Good:Ground firmness
- Ground firm30mm rain over the last week
- Good:Growth
- Growing wellgrowth potential 0.76
- Good:Temperature
- Temperature12°C
- Good:Wind
- Wind light2 km/h
- Sociable hours
- Fine by the neighboursstarts once the dew has burnt off
Limiting factor:grass wetness
Wednesday 9 September: Not worth it. No — ground frozen.
Wednesday 9 SeptemberLow confidence this far out
No — ground frozen.
- Good:Grass wetness
- Grass dryno rain since Sunday
- Good:Ground firmness
- Ground firm30mm rain over the last week
- Good:Growth
- Growing wellgrowth potential 0.80
- Good:Temperature
- Temperature11°C
- Good:Wind
- Wind light6 km/h
Limiting factor:none
Thursday 10 September: Not worth it. No — ground frozen.
Thursday 10 SeptemberLow confidence this far out
No — ground frozen.
- Good:Grass wetness
- Grass dryno rain since Sunday
- Good:Ground firmness
- Ground firm22mm rain over the last week
- Good:Growth
- Growing wellgrowth potential 0.97
- Marginal:Temperature
- Temperature14°C
- Good:Wind
- Wind light2 km/h
Limiting factor:none
Nearby
Your own postcode
These are town-centre figures. Yours will differ a little.