st.augustine dying

easyrider – posted 25 June 2003 20:34

planted sod 13 weeks ago. water 7 day. then their after as needed. used scott’s lawn care 8 weeks later. sod in clay. now i see where there are places that are completely bare. no grass at all in those spots. would like to know what is wrong and what to do about it.

Dchall_San_Antonio – posted 28 June 2003 00:58

Is there any reason to think there might have been a problem under the sod in those places? Any chemical or fertilizer spills recently?

Did you roll the sod down when you laid it? It must be rolled to ensure sod contact with the underlying soil. Otherwise the roots will try to grow into the air gap between the sod and the soil. Roots won’t do that.

What I would do is put some finished compost on the bare spots and water lightly. Then just wait for the runners to fill in for you.

Sir Skrip – posted 30 June 2003 10:40

you only watered daily for the first 7 days? I just put my St. Augustine about 13 weeks ago or so too, but I watered daily for over a month. And it is super green and thick, I get complements on it all the time. But the nice grass and fullness, along with the runners did not kick in hard til about the end of the 2nd month… I now water every other day and never let it go any longer.

Dchall_San_Antonio – posted 30 June 2003 13:09

At the opposite end of the watering schedule is my next door neighbor. She moved in 4 years ago and just refused to do anything to the grass. Over the years, as the grass recovered from previous tenants’ abuse and started looking good again, she has actually bought a push reel mower and mows it about every other month. But as for watering, she still has not watered it in 4 years, come downpour or drought. It is St Augustine and looks better than mine with zero water. I’m almost wondering if her roots have bent over and are actually living under my lawn???

Sir Skrip – posted 01 July 2003 10:44

haha… that was funny.

I have to mow it every 3 or 4 days, it grows ridiculously perhaps due to the constant watering. It is super thick and very green though. Now ya got me thinking… if i water it less, i wouldn’t have to mow it as much. I’d be content with once every 7-10 days, not 3-4 days which is what im doing now.

im gonna try watering every 2 or 3 days as opposed to every other. thanks for the reminder!

Will-PCB – posted 01 July 2003 12:11

Folks,

There is something that person knows that you guys dont know, and that is … water only when it wilts, and then no more till it wilts again.

This promotes deep penetrating root growth which the grass will need to survive extreme conditions (both drought and freezing temps).