Need help with new Augustine grass

denbri31 – posted 26 June 2007 17:47

Hi, my neighbor and I shared a front yard together. We decided to try Floratem grass. The grass was growing well until after the first cut. There now appears to be seeds on the ends of the grass…possibly weeds. I’m not sure how to describe it or really what it is. Each grass blade has ten to fifteen seeds. There really isn’t grass anymore. Could someone tell me what this is and if there is a home remedy or store item that we could purchase? Thanks.

[This message has been edited by denbri31 (edited 26 June 2007).]

[This message has been edited by denbri31 (edited 26 June 2007).]

hankhill – posted 26 June 2007 22:39

How about posting a photo so we can see? St. Augustine will produce”seedheads” but I don’t believe they actually produce much viableseed. SA primarily grows through propagation via its stolons.

[This message has been edited by hankhill (edited 26 June 2007).]

TexanOne – posted 27 June 2007 03:31

Denbri,

Not to worry – It is perfectly normal for St Augustine to produce some vertical seed stalks during the growing season, but mostly early summer. The SA seed stalks are thick, green, oval, stems with several greenish-yellow, or yellow seeds opposite of each other along the exterior of the stalk. The seeds look like little teardrops with the sharp tapered end pointed upward.

Here is a website that has a photo of St Augustine seed stalks to make sure:

http://www.tropicalforages.info/key/Forages/Media/Html/Stenotaphrum_secundatum.htm

Look on the right side – third photo from the top. Click on the photo to enlarge…

There is no remedy as this is part of the normal growth cycle of St Augustine and the stalks will disappear in a few weeks. The seed stalks also have a tendency to grow a little faster vertically than the grass blades, but mowing once or twice / week will keep the grass looking good. As the growing season progresses, the seed stalks will quit forming.

denbri31 – posted 27 June 2007 12:10

Thank you so much TexanOne! The picture on the website is exactly what is going on with our grass. We are new to this…so we were assuming that it was weeds. Would you be able to recommend how often we should water and what type of fertilzer to use? Also, is there a way to get the green back to the lawn….with all the seed stalks coming in …it looks really bad. Thanks again.

denbri31 – posted 27 June 2007 12:14

Also, thanks HankHill….TexanOne was able to help. I really appreciate the quick responses. Thanks, again.

TexanOne – posted 27 June 2007 13:30

Since you are in Tampa, I am not really sure what blend of fertilizer to recommend because I am not familiar with the soils there. I would recommend you find a nursery in your immediate area – the type of business that is a family-run (not the large chain-store nursery). Usually, many of those nurseries have an owner guru that will know exactly what you need for fertilizer.

As for watering, I would think that St Augustine will do fine on natural rainfall in the Tampa area. I know ya’ll are in the middle of a bad drought, so until the drought breaks, I would recommend you water the St Augustine with ¾ to 1 inch / 2x week (every 4 days).

The seed stalks will usually disappear in a few weeks. Applying fertilizer won’t make them go away. The only thing you can really do is allow the grass to run its seeding cycle – which will probably stop soon.

By the way, almost all turfgrasses seed out sometime during their growth cycle. St Augustine and Zoysia seed out for a few weeks in late spring / early summer. Bermudagrass seeds out the entire growing season. Just cut the St Augustine around 3” to 4” / 1x or 2x week and your grass will be soon be normal looking again. The fact that your St Augustine is seeding out is generally a pretty good indication it is healthy. Hope this helps!

hankhill – posted 27 June 2007 22:47

Yeah, this year (second season for the lawn), I was very pleased to see theseedheads since it told me the lawn was doing well!

[This message has been edited by hankhill (edited 28 June 2007).]