Slow growth

lbphathead19 – posted 20 June 2007 16:40

I have a St. Augustine lawn in Southern California and it is grow ing great right now. However I have about 8-10 spots that growth is considerably slower than the rest of the lawn. After i mow it looks OK but after a few days the healthy part of the lawn is much higher than the bad spots.

Will these fill in over time? I scalped the lawn about 3 months ago and it is just starting to look good now.

hankhill – posted 21 June 2007 00:59

Do you have a sprinkler system? If so, you may have uneven coverage.Put a plastic bowl or cup in the “dead areas” and activate theassociated zone to see whether it’s getting enough water.

If the watering rate is OK, you might try hitting those areaswith some fertilizer, provided the temps aren’t ridiculously hot (more than low 90’s).

I’m assuming here the dead areas are not obviously diseased(brown/yellow). If so, it’s probably insects or fungus.

[This message has been edited by hankhill (edited 21 June 2007).]

lbphathead19 – posted 21 June 2007 13:19

The sprinkler coverage is OK. The spots that are low are bare areas, I don’t think they are diseased. I put some topsoil within the dead areas to make it look more level and maybe promote some growth. You think I should just sprinkle some fert. in the bad areas as well. Thank for the suggestions.

TexanOne – posted 23 June 2007 13:26

I have noticed St Augustine will tend to grow unevenly until it is fully spread and established in an area. When I say uneven, I mean it is normal to have patches that are several square feet in area, are thick, and producing mostly vertical growth, surrounded by areas that produce most of the growth horizontally. This is a normal pattern for St Augustine until the entire area is a thick mass of sod. This pattern of growth does not indicate an unhealthy problem at all.

It is also possible there are variations of sprinkler coverage, but you said that was ok. Another issue may be small patches of soil more favorable to the St Augustine than others. However, I think what you are seeing is normal until the entire area sods in thickly, which may take a year or two to fully do.

St Augustine is also best adapted to hot, wet climates where it is a rampant grower. In coastal Southern California it will do well, but it will not grow as fast as it would in areas such as along the Gulf Coast. The lack of consistent high heat in your area means you will have to wait a little longer for the sod to thicken up, but the advantages are you should not have to mow it as often as those of us in hot climates.

Overall, I think you made a good choice using St Augustine. When I grew up in San Diego in the 60’s and 70’s, St Augustine was practically unknown in Southern California. Because of its toughness, I would think St Augustine would become a major player there in the future.

hankhill – posted 26 June 2007 17:11

Although my lawn has been in place for two years, I too notice whatTexasOne is talking about in the areas that were hit by Brown Patch inthe spring. They are still in mostly horizontal growth while the restof the yard is in full vertical growth (‘seed’ stalks mostly, from thelook of it).

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