Soil temperature in Windsor, Ontario

Soil temperature

28.4°C83°F

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.
SpeciesSoil tempDays
Perennial ryegrass8°C5–10
Red / chewings fescue8–10°C10–14
Tall fescuelikely yours10–12°C10–14
Browntop bentColonial bentgrass10–12°C14–21
Smooth-stalked meadow grassKentucky bluegrasslikely yours12–13°C14–28

Soil temperature at 6cm in Windsor, Ontario is currently 28.4°C, and falling about 26.1°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 ground soft in places — 31mm rain over the last week.

The next recommended window in Windsor opens at 8pm on Tuesday 1 September, and holds while conditions stay put. Underfoot, the ground reads as soft in places after 19mm rain over the last week.

See the full mowing forecast for Windsor

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 28.4°C cooling to 0.0°C

Tuesday 1 September: Good. 8pm–9pm — ground soft in places — 19mm rain over the last week

Tuesday 1 September · 8pm–9pmConfident

8pm–9pm — ground soft in places — 19mm rain over the last week

Good:Grass wetness
Grass dryno rain since Sunday
Good:Ground firmness
Ground soft in places19mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing wellgrowth potential 0.52
Poor:Temperature
Heat stress28°C
Good:Wind
Wind light17 km/h
Sociable hours
Your neighbours will remember it

Limiting factor:ground firmness

Wednesday 2 September: Good. 8am–11am — ground soft in places — 19mm rain over the last week

Wednesday 2 September · 8am–11amConfident

8am–11am — ground soft in places — 19mm rain over the last week

Good:Grass wetness
Grass dryno rain since Sunday
Marginal:Ground firmness
Ground soft in places19mm rain over the last week
Marginal:Growth
Growing slowlygrowth potential 0.35
Poor:Temperature
Cool24°C
Good:Wind
Wind light13 km/h
Sociable hours
A bit early or late, but finestarts when it stops being antisocial

Limiting factor:ground firmness

Thursday 3 September: Good. No — ground waterlogged.

Thursday 3 SeptemberConfident

No — ground waterlogged.

Marginal:Grass wetness
Grass dryrain earlier today
Marginal:Ground firmness
Ground soft in places19mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing steadilygrowth potential 0.50
Poor:Temperature
Temperature22°C
Good:Wind
Wind light9 km/h

Limiting factor:grass wetness

Friday 4 September: Not worth it. No — ground waterlogged.

Friday 4 SeptemberConfident

No — ground waterlogged.

Marginal:Grass wetness
Grass dryrain earlier today
Marginal:Ground firmness
Ground soft in places27mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing wellgrowth potential 0.86
Good:Temperature
Temperature22°C
Good:Wind
Wind light7 km/h

Limiting factor:ground firmness

Saturday 5 September: Good. 6pm–8pm — ground soft in places — 31mm rain over the last week

Saturday 5 September · 6pm–8pmReasonably confident

6pm–8pm — ground soft in places — 31mm rain over the last week

Good:Grass wetness
Grass dryrain earlier today
Marginal:Ground firmness
Ground soft in places31mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing wellgrowth potential 0.98
Good:Temperature
Temperature17°C
Good:Wind
Wind light7 km/h
Sociable hours
A bit early or late, but finestarts when it stops being antisocial

Limiting factor:ground firmness

Sunday 6 September: Good. 10am–8pm — ground soft in places — 31mm rain over the last week

Sunday 6 September · 10am–8pmReasonably confident

10am–8pm — ground soft in places — 31mm rain over the last week

Good:Grass wetness
Grass dryno rain since Friday
Marginal:Ground firmness
Ground soft in places31mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing wellgrowth potential 0.99
Good:Temperature
Temperature19°C
Good:Wind
Wind light8 km/h
Sociable hours
Fine by the neighboursstarts when it stops being antisocial

Limiting factor:ground firmness

Monday 7 September: Good. 8am–3pm — ground soft in places — 12mm rain over the last week

Monday 7 September · 8am–3pmReasonably confident

8am–3pm — ground soft in places — 12mm rain over the last week

Good:Grass wetness
Grass dryno rain since Friday
Good:Ground firmness
Ground soft in places12mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing wellgrowth potential 0.95
Marginal:Temperature
Temperature18°C
Good:Wind
Wind light6 km/h
Sociable hours
A bit early or late, but finestarts at first light

Limiting factor:ground firmness

Tuesday 8 September: Good. 8am–8pm — ground soft in places — 12mm rain over the last week

Tuesday 8 September · 8am–8pmReasonably confident

8am–8pm — ground soft in places — 12mm rain over the last week

Good:Grass wetness
Grass dryno rain since Friday
Good:Ground firmness
Ground soft in places12mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing wellgrowth potential 0.87
Good:Temperature
Temperature20°C
Good:Wind
Wind light8 km/h
Sociable hours
A bit early or late, but finestarts at first light

Limiting factor:ground firmness

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 Friday
Good:Ground firmness
Ground firm12mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing wellgrowth potential 0.96
Good:Temperature
Temperature19°C
Good:Wind
Wind light12 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 dryrain earlier today
Good:Ground firmness
Ground firm12mm rain over the last week
Good:Growth
Growing wellgrowth potential 0.88
Good:Temperature
Temperature21°C
Good:Wind
Wind light20 km/h

Limiting factor:none

Nearby

Your own postcode

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

One email when the app is ready, and nothing else. Unsubscribe in one click. See the privacy notice.