Growing & Caring for St. Augustine Grass
In northern Texas, one of the most popular turf choices is St. Augustine grass. This grass is found in warm, humid places around the world. It is found in the U.S., but only in southeastern states like Florida, South Carolina and parts of Texas. In fact, once you travel west of Fort Worth, sightings of St. Augustine grass become quite rare. That’s because the climate begins to change that far to the west, becoming dryer and less favorable for this particular kind of turf.
How to Identify St. Augustine Grass
Although St. Augustine grass naturally thrives in the North Texas climate, it still needs the right guidance and support to thrive. Not every lawn in this region is St. Augustine grass, so it is important to first identify what kind of turf you have before deciding on a program of caring for it.
St. Augustine grass is identifiable by its coarse texture. It’s so coarse that it is rarely used for golf courses and other sports fields. Nonetheless, it remains very popular with owners of homes and businesses throughout the area. Rather than developing rhizomes, this type of turf spreads by its stolons.
Several varieties of St. Augustine grass have been bred over the last few decades. These varieties have introduced improvements that make the turf more resistant to chinch bugs and a disease known as St. Augustine Decline, or SAD. Currently, no cure exists for this virus, which may make it necessary to replace existing turf with a more SAD-resistant variety when this disease makes an appearance.
How to Care for St. Augustine Grass
Proper watering is an important part of maintaining St. Augustine grass. It is vital to wet the soil to a depth of three to four inches so that the plants grow deeper roots. This helps the grass survive during droughts. Keeping the turf mowed to a height of between three and four inches is also essential to its health.
Proper fertilization and thatch control are similarly necessities for the care of St. Augustine grass. Getting all of these requirements right is something of a balancing act, and that’s why many property owners rely on a lawn maintenance company to get the job done.
Contact us if you have St. Augustine grass at your home in North Texas. We service lawns in Southlake, Keller, Bedford and beyond.
If you want your grass to be the envy of the neighborhood, we can put you on the right track. Our eight service lawn care program will give your grass what it needs to thrive and we will monitor it for those pesky insects and diseases that can invade and ruin your lawn.
