CHEAT CODE™ is by most metrics the #1 perennial ryegrass blend in the East. The cultivars averaged top 4% overall performance in the east in fertilized locations (50/30/20 Score™) with top quality, disease, color, traffic, self-repair & 5-year poa annua.

CHEAT CODE™ was created with one aim in mind… to be the best performing perennial ryegrass blend available for fertilized lawns in the East (especially the NE were rye is more appropriate)… from #1 best turf quality averaged among fertilized NTEP locations in the east (except IA & MN... see cold-winters spreadsheet) to the best gray leaf spot resistance of any rye blend (8.3/9.0) to the best traffic & wear performance and even the best self repair and best 5-year poa annua performance of any rye blend on the market (besides PODIUM… our other rye blend), we think CHEAT CODE™ is a no brainer for anyone planning to plant rye in the east that has average January lows of 14° or higher.

CHEAT CODE™ had the 2nd best color of any blend for eastern locations but the blend that got first for color got last place in almost every other metric and often last place by a wide margin, so, 2nd for color might as well be first (see gray leaf spot rating or 5-year poa annua below as a few examples).

NTEP performance below is based on per seed averages for each cultivar in the blends (since the actual blends weren’t tested on NTEP).  Data is from the 2017-2021 Final Report (with the exception of the slightly older Pangea and Infusion cultivars *).

 

Disease Score™

1st: CHEAT CODE™ (85.07%)  |  2nd: Knorr* (80.4%)  |  3rd: 5-Iron* (78.7%)  |  4th: SS9000 (77.3%)  |  5th: NIGHTSHIFT/Obsidian (54.7%)

(Score is based on collective ratings of stem rust, red thread, brown patch, crown rust, and gray leaf spot divided by the best possible rating of 9.0 from tables 33-37 of the 2017-2021 NTEP final report for PRG)

 

Individual Disease Performance (Tables 33-37)

Gray Leaf Spot (Table 37, NJ):

1st: CHEAT CODE™ (8.3)  |  2nd/3rd: Knorr* / 5-Iron* (7.9)  |  4th: SS9000 (7.0)  |  5th: NIGHTSHIFT/Obsidian (2.2)

95% confidence at a 1.4 difference (LSD)

 

Stem Rust (Table 33, MO):

1st: CHEAT CODE™ (8.4)  |  2nd: Knorr* (8.0)  |  3rd: SS9000 (7.3)  |  4th: 5-Iron* (7.2)  |  5th: NIGHTSHIFT/Obsidian (5.5)

95% confidence at a 3.0 difference (LSD)

 

Red Thread (Table 34, MD/MO):

1st/2nd (Tie): CHEAT CODE™ (7.5) & SS9000 (7.5) / 3rd: 5-Iron* (7.3)  |  4th: NIGHTSHIFT/Obsidian (7.2)  |  5th: Knorr* (7.0)

95% confidence at a 1.4 difference (LSD)

 

Brown Patch (Table 35, MN/MO):

1st: CHEAT CODE™ (7.0)  |  2nd: Knorr* (6.8)  |  3rd/4th: 5-Iron*/SS9000 (6.5)  |  5th: NIGHTSHIFT/Obsidian (6.0)

95% confidence at a 1.4 difference (LSD)

 

Crown Rust (Table 36, MN/MO):

1st: CHEAT CODE™ (7.1)  |  2nd/3rd/4th: Knorr*/5-Iron*/SS9000 (6.5)  |  5th: NIGHTSHIFT/Obsidian: (3.8)

95% confidence at a 1.7 difference (LSD)

 

Pink Snow Mold (Tables 24 & 38):

1st: Knorr* (5.86)  |  2nd Obsidian/NIGHTSHIFT (5.83)  |  3rd: SS9000 (5.60)  |  4th: 5-Iron (5.57)  |  5th: CHEAT CODE™ (4.82)

 

Traffic & Wear Score™

1st: CHEAT CODE™ (90.88%)  |  2nd: 5-Iron** (89.1%)  |  3rd: SS9000 (88.9%)  |  4th: Knorr** (86.6%)  |  5th: NIGHTSHIFT/Obsidian (78.1%)

** Score based on Tables 20 (mean quality, MA), Table 21 (2-week post-traffic quality, OR), Table 22 (2-week post-traffic quality, 2018 & 2019, VA - averaged), Table 44 (wear rating, NJ).  The scoring at these 4 locations was added together and divided by 31.3 - (31.3 = 9+9+9+ the highest recorded wear tolerance rating of 4.3)... in other words, this score is based on summary data from all available traffic and wear related locations from the 2017-2021 NTEP data, and is designed to be as comprehensive as possible as a nominal metric of overall traffic and wear performance. **

 

Percent Poa Annua After 5 Years, NJ (Table 43)

1ST: CHEAT CODE™ (1.3%)  |  2ND: SS9000 (1.7%)  |  3rd: 5-Iron (2.0%)  |  4th: Knorr* (3.6%)  |  5th: NIGHTSHIFT / Obsidian (20.9%)

95% confidence at a 9.1% difference (LSD)

 

Seedheads (Table 20):     1st: Knorr* (6.40)  |  2nd: 5-Iron* (6.16)  |  3rd: CHEAT CODE™ (6.00)  |  4th: NIGHTSHIFT/Obsidian (5.70)  |  5th: SS9000 (5.53)

95% confidence at a 1.1 difference (LSD)

 

Divot Recovery / Self Repair / "Spread Trait" 2017/2020 Averaged (Table 25)

** With the dying/dead Linn cultivar excluded, the 2nd lowest average score was 80.8% (Fireball).  Divots don't remove 100% of the turf to begin with, so using a scale that starts around 80% may be more helpful.

1st: CHEAT CODE™ (91.11%)  |  2nd: Knorr** (90.6%)  |  3rd: 5-Iron** (90.35%)  |  4th: SS9000 (89.5%)  |  5th: NIGHTSHIFT/Obsidian (82.3%)

 

NORTHEAST CLIMATE SPECIFIC PERFORMANCE (fertilized NTEP locations only) 

All Around Performance (50/30/20 Score™)

(Note: Turf Quality is also a totally valid metric for all around performance… the 50/30/20 Score™ may be used for added emphasis of color & disease performance)

50/30/20 Score based on

• 50% NJ/VA/MD/KY/IL/NE Quality
• 30% NJ/IL Color (few fertilized locations avail.)
• 20% 6-Disease Average from NTEP Tables 33-38

1st: CHEAT CODE™ (6.90)  |  2nd: Knorr* (6.73)  |  3rd: 5-Iron* (6.66)  |  4th: SS9000 (6.47)  |  5th: Nightshift / Obsidian (6.05)

 

Turf Quality - All Fertilized Eastern Locations (NJ, VA, MD, KY, IL, NE)

1st: CHEAT CODE™ (6.34)  |  2nd: Knorr* (6.20)  |  3rd: 5-Iron* (6.18)  |  4th: SS9000 (6.10)  |   5th: Nightshift / Obsidian (5.27)

 

COLOR (NJ, IL)

1st: Nightshift / Obsidian (8.15)  |  2nd: CHEAT CODE™ (7.70)  |  3rd: Knorr* (7.40)  |  4th: 5-Iron* (7.39)  |  5th: SS9000 (6.98)

 

NOTES:

CHEAT CODE™ is simply PODIUM™ spiked with 40% Slugger 3GL – which is our favorite cultivar for the Northeast!  Slugger 3GL boasts a gray leaf spot rating of 8.7 out of 9.0 (tied for 2nd out of 114 cultivars tested) and it topped the regional averaging for the highest and most consistent turf quality of any confirmed available ryegrass cultivar.  Slugger 3GL also holds the line with top 10% fertilized location color (and top 8% color specific to fertilized locations in the east) and has nice secondary traits like drought performance (top 8% in Utah drought testing), elite traffic & wear, very low 5-year poa annua (less 5-year poa than any of our competitor's blends)… 5-year poa annua performance is an inference into how competitive a grass is for a given area and poa annua invasion was tested in Adelphia, NJ.

 

Rye & Disease: rye planted deeper in the transition zone is not recommended even for the best rye.  With average July lows over 62° or so, fungicides may become more necessary during some months... correct nitrogen rate and timing and correct watering at approximately 70-75% reference evapotranspiration every 2-3 days (after deducting rainfall) can reduce disease pressure considerably but disease risk can follow heavy rain events especially when night lows exceed 65°.

*** Note: ryegrass does not do well with snow mold (especially our rye blends) so preventative fungicide could be a good idea in some areas ***

*** Note: ryegrass is more prone to pythium than other grass families so having preventitive/curative fungicide on hand of chemistries known to be effective against pythium is highly recommended as a caveat to planting rye in an area with high disease pressure.  Water should be applied no more than every 2-3 days during drought.  Pythium pressure is highest when moisture is excessive and night lows exceed 65-70°F.  Excess nitrogen is also a risk factor (especially if debris is rarely raked) so dialing down the nitrogen a little during hot months can be a good idea.

*** Dollar spot or red thread/pink patch are a sign of low growth which most commonly means not enough nitrogen (or occasionally low sulfur), low water, low phos (very rare), low light, excessive heat, etc. can also be the cause of the low growth.  Try to mirror Pace Turf's growth potential model to some extent to avoid diseases related to deficient or excessive nitrogen application.

 

CHEAT CODE™ NOMINAL CULTIVAR RATIO

≈ 40% Slugger 3GL Perennial Ryegrass

≈ 20% Mystique Perennial Ryegrass

≈ 20% SR4750 Perennial Ryegrass

≈ 20% Zoom 2 Perennial Ryegrass

*** Approximately 1.0% annual ryegrass is common in perennial rye when black light root testing is how the “other crop” was determined but when the same seed is genetically tested usually the majority of the other crop ends up actually being perennial ryegrass because a portion of PRG roots fluoresce under a black light.  For good measure we still recommend not going too long between mowing during seedhead stage for the first year to halt the life cycle of any possible annual ryegrass, so no field conditions year one.

 

Printable NTEP performance summary sheets can be requested free of charge by email at support@seed-boss.com

 

Common overseeding seed rate:  3-5 pounds per 1,000' (175-220 lbs / acre)

Common bare dirt seed rate: 7-9 pounds per 1,000' (300-400 lbs / acre)… closer to 9# low cut… closer to 7.5# high cut.

Caution: More seed is not necessarily better than less seed.  Lower seed rates may improve color and reduce disease pressure, so in areas with higher disease pressure the lower end of the recommended seed rate may outperform higher seeding rates.  For bare spots, very light spot seeding is recommended rather than overseeding when possible to reduce crowding in already dense areas.

 

TIPS FOR SUCCESS

• Seed germination basics:
  • Bare dirt is ideal (or at least no thatch)
  • Adhere to proper seed rate... too little seed means increased weed pressure and increased erosion risk, and too much seed can mean lesser color and increased risk of disease.
  • Rake seed in w/ a Groundskeeper II rake (or slit seed if you can on a low setting)... grass seed sitting on the surface will be unlikely to germinate
  • Keep soil moist and never dry or soaked until germination... perennial ryegrass doesn't need as much water during germination to germinate... I physically touch the dirt prior to watering most of the time... often soil is already moist and more hours can pass before water is needed.  Watering just once per day is typically enough for perennial ryegrass to germinate well as long as some water is getting into the soil profile (at least 60% of reference evapotranspiration).  A bookmarkable evapotranspiration map specific to your city can be requested free of charge by email.
  • Water for enough days to germinate your slowest germinating seed.  Grasses within a given grass family tend to have similar germination timing.  Fall seeding tends to germinate considerably faster than a spring seeding.
  • A germination rate of 50% starts around 50° soil temps for most cultivars... seeding before soil is warm enough may reduce germination.  I like to aim for 50-55° soil temps for spring seeding (slow germination but better summer hardiness) or let soil dip to about 60-65° for fall seeding (or when regular light rain is expected).  It's important not to seed too late for fall seedings especially on bare dirt because if soil cools too much grass seed won't germinate at all.  Germination at least 45 days before average first frost is a common rule of thumb to allow enough winter hardiness, but this rule of thumb can generally be ignored in areas with mild Winters like the PNW or the United Kingdom.
• For spring seeding, regular early nitrogen is extra important to maximize establishment prior to summer conditions.  1/2# of N per 1,000 square feet at seeding as well as 1/2# of N about every 4 weeks for at least a few months can get the grass off to a good start (Note: 1.09# of urea dissolved in water / 1,000' = 1/2# of N).  The larger the droplets the better... I like a TeeJet TTI11004 spray tip for applying fertilizer.  Fertilizer should be immediately rinsed off of the grass blades after application to avoid tip burn or 2 gallons of water per pound of urea can be left unrinsed.
• After germination has concluded, the grass only needs to be watered to the point of survival... 1 fairly light watering every few days is likely enough water during the first few weeks.  If you see the grass start to wilt more water is needed... if it is raining, it's best not to water are all.  Touch the dirt.
• Once the grass is a few weeks old, not enough water is usually better than too much, since disease loves excess water!  We recommend owning a soil probe; If you aren't sure if you should water, simply pull a soil core or two... cores can be quite dry before water is actually needed.  For perennial ryegrass (and grass in general) the best turf quality in research is most commonly seen with a watering interval of 2-3 days between waterings.  Watering at 70% reference evapotranspiration should be close for taller rye in full sun and watering at 75-80% reference ET should be close for low-cut rye (deduct rainfall). Time of day matters with water... watering should be concluded around the time that sunlight first hits an area (often some time before 8:00AM).  Evening & night watering maximizes disease pressure and watering during daylight hours can be much less efficient due to excessive evaporation prior to percolation.
• With rare exception, I recommend avoiding potassium, micronutrients, and phosphorus like the plague and just apply nitrogen to get the best possible turf quality with the least amount of problems and work but cold areas may benefit from applied potassium to reduce winter kill if potassium is low enough (rye should have soil K around 120-140PPM Mehlich-3 in areas with high winter kill risk like Minnesota).  Foliar iron is ok, but I personally don't use it.  Before you assume a soil applied product is going to improve your soil, we recommend taking a cold shower, slap yourself in the face (if necessary), and then binge Turfgrass Epistimology study reviews on YouTube (the live tab is best) until the urge to purchase a given product subsides.
• I believe in full renovations rather than overseeding when a major upgrade is desired.  Overseeding yields comparatively poor germination rates and the original (generally less desirable) grasses will largely survive and water down your results.  The value for time with full renovation is there in my experience.

• Observe the 1/3 rule with sharp blades.  An All American Sharpener style grinding jig is great if rotary mowing, and a flat file can be used to push the burr off for that last bit of sharpness.  The 1/3 rule is per day or two... not per pass.  If you can't mow frequently enough to observe the 1/3 rule, bringing the height of cut up allows more time between mows.  1/3 of 4" allows more growing time than 1/3 of 2".

• If the ground is mushy to the touch, try to wait for a dryer day to mow if possible.  Most compaction happens when ground is too wet.  The easiest way to cure compaction is often to prevent it, but of course, sometimes compromises have to be made to keep grass height under control.

• Where there's lots of shade, mow higher or consider TTTF or fine fescue.  Lower nitrogen rates in shade can slow growth to improve shade survival and low soil moisture or excessive tree debris are also common disadvantages that may be assumed to be light deficiency.

• Where there's traffic, more nitrogen is needed.

• Nitrogen rate should mirroe growth potential.  If it's growing slowly due to heat or cold, lower rates should be applied or none at all.  Avoid medium or heavy nitrogen applications in summer to reduce disease.  In the most mild of areas sometimes the highest growth potential (and the most N) happens during summer.  If you see dollar spot, red thread, or rust, those will generally improve when nitrogen is added as long as temperature or light isn't the limiting nutrient.  Heat loving diseases that prefer high nitrogen include brown patch, pythium, and leaf spot.  Try to take nitrogen timing and rate seriously to reduce disease pressure.  We do offer a customized nitrogen schedule service here if interested... such might be cheaper than extra fungicides and also offer nice color and better drought performance over time vs. guessing at nitrogen.

• Perennial rye has unusually nasty woody seed head stocks that can leave a yellow hue to your lawn for months and months if not addressed.  An annual "seedhead reset" can greatly reduce the effects of this undesirable trait of ryegrass (see below).  A seedhead reset is moderately stressful to the lawn and ideally should not be attempted under times of high disease pressure or other major stresses.  In areas with higher disease pressure (east especially) a less intense scalping height would probably be prudent.

How to do a seed head reset:

1. Once the seedhead stage starts each year, mow at the usual mowing height for about a month
2. Then, mow often (with very sharp blades) and gradually reduce the mowing height over the next few weeks to cut as much of the seed head stock off as possible, but make sure you stay above the crown of the plant to ensure less stress while the plant regenerates.
3. About 1 week before the last mow, apply approximately  .5# of nitrogen and make sure the lawn is receiving around 1" of water per week via rainfall and irrigation (early AM water is efficient and minimizes disease pressure... around 1/2" of water every 3-4 days is an approximation for most areas during drought.)
4. Return to your original cutting height.  The seed head stocks should be hidden below soft new blades of grass and the straw colored  seedhead stocks should be hidden from view.

 

Shipping available withing the continental USA only.  Shipping not guaranteed to be available to islands or New York City due to excessive freight costs.  Purchase price may be canceled and refunded at seller's option for out of area shipments.

 

Disclaimer: For any details relevant to decision making related to grass seed, we recommend referencing NTEP directly when possible.  This resource is intended as a user friendly supplement to NTEP data (NOT A REPLACEMENT).  Comparative gaps beyond LSD (least statistical difference) on NTEP offer a 95% confidence level.  When LSD is not available, no specific confidence level is possible or implied... these are simply the raw numbers.  In general the higher the gap, the higher the confidence and small gaps should be considered as equals in most cases but technically the higher number is still more likely to be better even when the gap is under the LSD.  This website is constantly being improved for accuracy to the best of my ability... if you notice an error or inconsistency or don't understand where certain came from, please don't hesitate to bring it to my attention via email or text.  This website almost certainly does contain unintentional typos or errors and possibly out of date information (for example: when brands change the cultivars in their blends).

Seed-Boss makes no guarantee of performance in your climate or under your management practices.  Minimizing stress on the grass tends to create the healthiest and best looking grass - which means food (occasional nitrogen), an occasional 1/2" water during drought, sun light, sharp blades, observing the 1/3 rule, etc.  All grass seed sold has been tested for germination of at least 85%, and typically at least 90%... if the grass seed does not germinate the buyer acknowledges improper seed to soil contact, improper soil moisture during germination phase, and/or inappropriate soil temperatures and agrees to not blame seed (that was tested as good).

 

Blend performance averages based on the following cultivars:

CHEAT CODE™: Slugger 3GL, Mystique, Zoom 2, SR4750 (Test name: 236/3546)

Knorr Elite Rye: Electra GLR, Paradox GLR, Pangea*

SS9000: Grand Slam GLD, Stellar 4GL, Slugger 3GL

5-Iron: Apple 3GL, Fastball 3GL, Slugger 3GL, Stellar 4GL, Infusion* (JR-178 testing name)

NIGHTSHIFT: Fireball, Hatrick

Obsidian: Fireball, Hatrick (note:  Tee-Me-Up cultivar was also in the blend formerly)

 

*  The performance of one older cultivar in this blend has been translated by sorting the 2011-2014 NTEP trial data into a percentile among all cultivars in that trial on a trait by trait basis.  The rating of the cultivar at the same percentile per the 2017-2021 data was then assigned to the older cultivar trait by trait.  No deduction was made for 7 years of breeding with the Infusion (AKA: JR-178) cultivar for the 5-Iron blend or the Pangea cultivar in Ryan Knorr's Elite Rye.  These numbers are intended to estimate performance as accurately as possible but it should be considered an estimate only.

**  Slightly older infusion cultivar exempt from averaging for 5-Iron and the slightly older Pangea cultivar exempt from averaging for Knorr for this performance trait due to difficulty of translation.

 

If you notice anything inaccurate or that could be improved for accuracy, please email us at SUPPORT@SEED-BOSS.COM.  Our aim is the highest degree of accuracy possible and that process includes peer review.