| 1. |
We would like to plant
zoysia but are not sure it is right for our area. |
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Be wary. Zoysiagrasses
have done well on in the transition zone from Maryland to Missouri.
They have done well in tropical and subtropical areas such as Hawaii
and Jamaica and other regions with heavier soils such as the clay
of Georgia and the marl of the Florida Keys and the coastline of Biscayne
Bay, also in Florida. But zoysiagrass has gotten in trouble
in the deep sands where the sting nematode is prevalent, and which
apparently thins out the zosyia. |
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| 2. |
Where can we get St.
Augustine seed? |
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You can't. Other
than Pennington's Raleigh-S sold in the late 90s, St. Augustinegrass
produces too little seed, and is too difficult to harvest, for anyone
to have made a serious commercial attempt. The seedlings are
also quite weak. |
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| 3. |
We just planted a
new lawn for $2000 and want to know how to water, mow, and fertilize
it. |
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Be cautious about fertilizing
it for the first few months, because most sod is sold in a luxuriant
well-fertilized condition, and may not need it. Also, don't
water it more than once a day for the first two weeks, and once the
roots get in the soil, back off to maybe two to three times per week,
depending on rainfall, water restrictions, and type of soil.
You can mow as soon as it tacks down well enough to not to get sucked
up in the mower. |
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| 4. |
Where can we get a
particular variety of grass? |
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Here is a list for Florida:
Florida Sod Growers Cooperative.
When we get lists for other areas, we'll add them. |
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| 5. |
My lawn has been doing
well but started showing these yellowing patches. Someone told me
what caused it, but I wanted to get a second opinion. |
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In general, yellowing
turf often shows that something isn't being picked up by the roots.
But the cause may be almost anything, a damaged root system, micronutrient
deficiency (e.g., iron, manganese), too much watering, high soil pH,
etc., and cannot be determined without more information. |
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| 6. |
There is a wiry, creeping
weed invading my lawn and emerging in my flower bed. What is
it and how can I get rid of it? |
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This is the worst kind
of weed, whatever it is. It's probably perennial and roots at
the node. Depending on where you are, it could be bermudagrass,
quackgrass, zoysiagrass, creeping beggar's ticks, etc. Chances
are that it has underground storage organs, such as rhizomes or tubers,
which will make chemical control difficult. It probably can't
be pulled effectively. You described a "wiry" stem,
which suggests that the weed may be either woody or at least fairly
hardened. First find out if it is a grass or a broadleaf weed,
and that will possibly give you some selective chemical control options. |
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| 7. |
What can we do about
our pets? We have a small lawn, and the dogs always run in the
same spot. |
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Put a flower pot or other
obstacle to make them go around the the spot. This is more in
the area of animal psychology than turf maintenance. However,
you may also be able to deal with any problem of compaction by replacing
the soil in trafficked areas with a medium sand, which has the advantage
that it tends to resist compaction. Also, those worn areas may
need a little extra water and fertilizer (depending on what else the
pets are doing there). |
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| 8. |
How do we deal with
winter kill, either selecting the right grass or winterizing our lawn.
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Most experts suggest backing
off the nitrogen late in the season. It could be that the grass
you are using naturally goes dormant. If so, let it. If
you are dealing with true winterkill, plant a different grass. |
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| 9. |
I am looking for a
shade grass to grow under my oak trees. I've heard about Palmetto,
Seville, etc. |
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There's no panacea, but
those are two varieties of St. Augustinegrass that can do fairly well
if they get some (2-3 hours) full direct sunlight. |
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| 10. |
There are brown patches
spreading in my lawn. What's going on and how do I get rid of
it? |
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If you have St. Augustinegrass,
first see if you have chinch bugs. If you have a cool season
grass, look into whether you may have a fungal disease. Depending
on the time of year, e.g., late summer and fall in the subtropics,
particularly in the humid subtropics, brownpatch can occur occasionally.
Other factors that would help in diagnosis are whether there have
been any chemical or fertilizer applications recently. Also,
is the lawn thatchy? |
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