st augustine grass better to plug or resod.

marc – posted 03 March 2004 18:48

my lawn right now is bahia that is overrun by weeds. i desperately need to do something. i live in east central florida tampa area. i was planning on plugging the lawn this month in hopes of having and full st. augustine lawn by fall. in researching lawn spraying companies i was told plugging is not successful any more b/c asulox is not available anymore to control carpetgrass. first of is it worth it to plug or spend extra money to resod? second, if i do decide to resod i plan on killing off the bahia and weeds with round up 2 weeks prior. do i need to till up the lawn to for fresh soil or can i lay the sod right over the killed bahia and still be successful? this may make the extra cost not inviting.

Dchall_San_Antonio – posted 04 March 2004 00:58

I would apply compost over the dead bahia and then lay the sod. Be absolutely sure you roll the sod down to squeeze out any air under the sod. Roots can’t grow in air.

marc – posted 04 March 2004 11:39

is plugging a bad option then given the circumstances?

Dchall_San_Antonio – posted 15 March 2004 09:43

If you kill the bahia and plug, you will have a yard full of weeds until the St Augustine takes over. And resurfacing the yard would be advisable.

I’m not sure how bahia and St Augustine do when growing together in a yard. Will one take over from the other? I don’t know.

jr – posted 16 March 2004 11:44

You will not have a St. Augustine lawn this fall by plugging, nor next fall either. Spend the extra money for sod. It will be instant and easier to care for. You will probably spend just as much money and a lot more time screwing around with plugs trying to make them grow, keeping out weeds, etc. As for your existing lawn, kill it and try to rake out as much of the dead as you can, but tilling would be unnecessary extra work.