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When will my grass go dormant?

Warm-season grasses like bermuda go dormant when average soil temperature falls to about 50°F, usually late October to November in the transition zone. They green up when soil reaches about 65°F. Cool-season grasses like tall fescue only pause below about 40°F and stay mostly green. Enter your ZIP for your dates.

Reviewed by Marcus Green · Turf Management Pro · 18 Years · October 14, 2026

10-year Open-Meteo soil model (ERA5-Land, about 2 to 3 inches deep) at your ZIP. Thresholds from NC State, UGA, our soil temperature guide and our dormancy guide.

What temperature does grass go dormant?

GrassStageAverage soil temperatureSource
Warm-seasonbermuda, zoysia, St. Augustine, centipede, bahiaEntering dormancySoil falls below 60°FWGIS soil temperature guide
Goes dormantSoil falls below 50°FNC State Extension (Grady Miller)
Greens upSoil reaches 65°FUGA Extension
Cool-seasontall fescue, Kentucky bluegrass, perennial ryegrass, fine fescueGrowth pausesSoil falls below 40°FWGIS soil temperature guide
Growth resumesSoil reaches 40°FWGIS soil temperature guide
Summer stressSoil stays above 80°FWGIS soil temperature guide

UGA measures green-up at 4 inches. This tool reads the soil layer about 2 to 3 inches down. For the grass-by-grass detail, read when does grass go dormant.

Before your grass goes dormant

Warm-season grass

  • Stop nitrogen about six weeks before your first frost so the grass can harden off.
  • Keep mowing at your normal height until growth stops.
  • Skip seeding. It's too late for warm-season seed to establish.
  • Don't feed the dormant lawn. Wait until soil reaches 65°F in spring.

Cool-season grass

  • Make a winterizer feeding while soil is 40 to 50°F, before the ground freezes.
  • Keep mowing until growth stops.
  • Stay off frozen turf.

Getting close to your date? Check this week's soil temperature at your ZIP.

Check soil temp

How to find when your grass goes dormant

Look up your grass's typical slowdown, dormancy and green-up dates from your ZIP, then get the lawn ready before it shuts down.

  1. Enter your ZIP code

    The tool pulls 10 years of daily soil temperature for your spot, at about 2 to 3 inches deep, and averages it into one typical year.

  2. Pick your grass

    Warm-season grasses like bermuda and zoysia go dormant in winter. Cool-season grasses like tall fescue only pause, so the dates you get depend on which one you have.

  3. Read your three dates

    Warm-season grass enters dormancy when soil falls below 60°F, goes dormant below 50°F, and greens up once soil reaches 65°F. Each date shows how many days away it is.

  4. Get the lawn ready before the dormant date

    For warm-season grass, stop nitrogen about six weeks before your first frost and keep mowing at your normal height until growth stops. Skip seeding. For cool-season grass, make a winterizer feeding while soil is 40 to 50°F.

  5. Hold off until green-up

    Don't fertilize dormant warm-season grass. UGA says to wait until soil reaches 65°F in spring. Check this week's soil temperature as your green-up date gets close.

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Grass dormancy, soil temperature, and your dates

Why soil temperature decides when grass goes dormant

Grass doesn't read the calendar. Warm-season grass slows down and shuts off as the soil around its roots cools, and it wakes up again when that soil warms. That's why the same grass goes dormant on different dates in different towns.

Air temperature swings from day to night, but soil changes slowly. A 7-day average of soil temperature tracks what the roots are actually feeling, which is why this tool smooths 10 years of daily readings before it looks for your dates.

Want today's reading instead of the typical year? Check your current soil temperature and compare it against the thresholds above.

What a warm-season lawn does from fall to spring

  • Entering dormancy: once average soil drops below 60°F, warm-season grass is shutting down for winter. Skip nitrogen and seeding, and keep mowing at your normal height until growth stops.
  • Goes dormant: as average soil falls to about 50°F, bermuda, zoysia, St. Augustine, centipede and bahia turn tan. NC State's Grady Miller puts the brown-out point there, and the first hard frost finishes it.
  • Stays dormant: the grass is alive but resting. Keep heavy traffic off frosted turf and don't feed it.
  • Greens up: when soil reaches about 65°F at 4 inches, the trigger UGA uses, new green pushes up from the crowns. That's also when fertilizer goes back down.

Brown in the middle of the growing season is a different story. Here's how to tell dead grass from dormant grass, with the tug test and the other checks that settle it.

What cool-season grass does in winter and summer

Tall fescue, Kentucky bluegrass, perennial ryegrass and fine fescue run on the opposite schedule. They slow down near freezing and hold most of their color through winter, with growth pausing once soil drops below about 40°F.

Summer is the harder season for them. When soil runs above 80°F, these grasses can go dormant to ride out heat and drought. The tool counts how many days a typical year runs that hot at your ZIP, and zero is a common answer in the North.

How this tool works out your dates

  • Soil data: 10-year daily averages from the Open-Meteo soil model, built on ECMWF ERA5-Land reanalysis, for the 0-7 cm layer (about 2 to 3 inches deep) at your ZIP.
  • Smoothing: each day is averaged with the three days before and after it, wrapping across New Year's, so one odd day can't move your date.
  • Fall dates: starting August 1, the tool finds the first day the smoothed soil falls below each fall threshold.
  • Spring date: from your dormant date it finds the first day the soil gets back to the green-up threshold, which usually falls in the next calendar year.
  • Edge cases: where average soil never drops below 50°F or never reaches 65°F, the tool says so instead of showing a made-up date.

For the full grass-by-grass rundown, read when does grass go dormant, the guide these thresholds come from.

Frequently asked questions

What temperature does bermuda grass go dormant?

Bermuda starts going dormant when average soil temperature falls to about 50°F, the point NC State turf scientist Grady Miller gives for warm-season grasses. It starts entering dormancy as soil drops below about 60°F, and the first hard frost finishes the job. Across much of the transition zone that lands in late October or November.

At what temperature does zoysia go dormant?

Zoysia follows the same soil rule as bermuda. It heads into dormancy as average soil temperature falls to about 50°F and browns with the first fall frost. It greens up again when soil warms to about 65°F at 4 inches, the trigger UGA uses, and it is often a little slower to green up than bermuda.

When do St. Augustine and centipede grass go dormant?

Both go dormant near the same 50°F soil mark. In the warmest spots, where this tool shows average soil staying above 50°F all winter, they may only go semi-dormant: growth slows and the color fades, but the lawn never fully browns out.

Does tall fescue go dormant in winter?

Not the way bermuda does. Tall fescue, Kentucky bluegrass, perennial ryegrass and fine fescue slow down near freezing and hold most of their color through winter. Growth pauses once soil drops below about 40°F. These grasses are more likely to go dormant in a hot, dry summer stretch, when soil runs above 80°F.

Should I fertilize dormant grass?

Not a warm-season lawn. Dormant bermuda, zoysia, St. Augustine, centipede and bahia can't use the nitrogen. UGA says to hold fertilizer until soil reaches 65°F in spring, which is also when the grass greens up. Cool-season lawns are different: a winterizer feeding while soil is 40 to 50°F is the usual last feeding of the year.

How can I tell if my grass is dead or dormant?

Try the tug test. Grab a handful of brown blades near the soil and pull gently. Dormant grass holds firm because the roots and crown are still alive. Dead grass slides out with almost no resistance, roots and all. Dormant lawns also brown evenly across the yard, while dead patches tend to have sharp edges.

How accurate are these dormancy dates?

They are typical dates, built from 10 years of daily soil temperature at about 2 to 3 inches for your ZIP. Any single year can run early or late with the weather. Use the date to plan, then check this week's soil temperature as it gets close.

Related articles

When Does Grass Go Dormant? Temperature Chart by Grass TypeIs My Grass Dead or Dormant? How to Tell the DifferenceSoil Temperature Guide: When to Seed & Fertilize