Although the species is spread over all of the cool, humid parts of the U.S., it is not native to North America. Apparently the early colonists brought seed of Kentucky bluegrass to this country in mixtures with other grasses. In the southern U.S., Kentucky bluegrass is limited to the transition zone from North Carolina, through much of Tennessee, northern Arkansas to the panhandle of Texas and Oklahoma. In the western states, Kentucky bluegrass is grown with irrigation. It spreads by rhizomes and tillers and forms a dense sod.
Most shoots produced in the spring remain vegetative.
Shoots produced in late summer often terminate in an infloresence the following spring. The lifetime of a Kentucky bluegrass shoot that terminates in an infloresence ends soon after the seeds mature. This pattern of growth is a response to day length rather than temperature. Daylength also influences the number of shoots that develop. Significantly more shoots are produced during the short days of early spring than during long summer days.